Well, it was a good shot. Daniel Briere's bold move to try to get Leo Carlsson landed short as the Anaheim Ducks signed their star center. It was a worthy effort. The deal will assuredly cripple Anaheim's attempts to sign other RFAs, including Cutter Gauthier, but hey, that's their problem.
So now what? The Flyers can sit still or still try to make a move. By sitting still, they are giving their youngsters a chance to prove themselves after a season of making it back to the playoffs for the first time in ages. It's not a terrible idea and, in the long term, would save money that they can use to sign guys like Matvei Michkov and Porter Martone to longer-term deals and maybe spend on a free agent like Cale Makar next year or an RFA like Macklin Celebrini.
The other options are to pursue a player via UFA, RFA, or trade. Hey, there is always Dylan Larkin. Perhaps he may be willing to be moved to Philly since none of his desired teams have made a move yet. That is fairly unlikely to happen. The Hurricanes would love to move young defender Alexander Nikishin, but to save cap space, they also want to move Jesperi Kotkaniemi as part of the deal. He's an ok center, best for the bottom line, but while Nikishin would be a solid addition to the Flyers, Kotkaniemi...not so much. You could also go for Nikishin as an RFA.
Remaining Unrestricted Free Agents Flyers Could Sign
If Briere has had enough of the RFA market, there are a few (older) pieces that the Flyers can sign. You can roll the dice on Vladimir Tarasenko. He's old but can still hit the 20-goal mark. Michael Bunting is still available. He's also been on six teams in three years. To me, that's concerning. He's a goal scorer, but if everyone keeps flipping him, is he a clubhouse cancer? Patrick Kane has yet to re-sign with Detroit. The Flyers are in a better playoff spot than the Wings are.
That's the thing with this free agency class. You have a lot of guys who are over 30, mostly over 33. Some used to be great. Some, time is starting to take its toll. Some are a shell of their former selves (see Laine, Patrik).
Probably the best remaining forward in free agency is Anthony Mantha. While Briere and Co. may prefer a center, you can still try to move Trevor Zegras back to center. Mantha can pack a scoring punch and provide a good veteran touch to a young team.
What RFAs Remain for the Flyers?
If Briere still wants to be bold and throw caution to the wind, there are other RFAs out there to swipe from someone. The biggest jewel out there is CBJ's Adam Fantilli, taken third overall in the 2023 Draft behind Connor Bedard and Carlsson. He's a 20+ goal scorer for the Blue Jackets who isn't afraid to be physical. He could work on his faceoff game, but he is just 21.
Speaking of Bedard, he is still not signed yet. However, there are two major issues here. One, the Blackhawks have the money to match. Secondly, he's got a busted shoulder and is likely to miss at least the next four months.
After that, most of the top RFAs are already going to arbitration. There might be some gems, but nobody that really stands out as a gamebreaker.
Briere took a shot. It's not that he missed. He actually backed Anaheim into a huge corner. They got to keep their star center, but may lose a lot of major assets. Their pursuit of Carlsson also will reset the bar for RFAs and could allow other teams to jump on them. Carlsson's contract will also force other contracts to go up, like Celebrini. Still, gotta love the effort.
More than that, Briere's move signals something to the rest of the NHL. The Flyers are back, baby. We are a destination that free agents want to come to. We are taking our rightful place back atop the power players in the league. Watch out! We're coming for you.
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