It is well known by now that the Philadelphia Flyers don't have a lot of salary cap space to fling around. It's one of the reasons that they bought out Cam Atkinson. Plus, they still need to sign Matvei Michkov to a salary for this upcoming season. So, every penny they can scratch and save is well worth it.
The Flyers could probably sign a good veteran defender. You can sign an old one for hopefully cheap, as they are looking for one last run. Some have hoped that the Flyers re-sign Sean Walker. He had great success here, but that success might hurt Philly's chances as he probably outpriced himself. However, with buyout season upon us, the Flyers have an opportunity to sign a good quality defender for a cheap price.
Just before free agency hit, the Columbus Blue Jackets released and bought out Adam Boqvist. Boqvist is 26. When healthy, he has been a dynamic top/middle pair defender for Columbus. But there is a hitch.
He played in just 35 games last season after playing just 46 the year before. In the COVID-shortened season of 2021-22, he scored 11 goals in 52 games with 11 assists to boot. Heck, even in the following season where he played in just 46 games, he had a career-high 19 assists with 24 points. The point is, when he plays, he contributes.
Adam Boqvist is a sensible option for the Flyers
So why would the Flyers take on yet another injury-prone defender? After all, they still have Rasmus Ristolainen and Jamie Drysdale? If all three are injury-prone, yes it could hinder the Flyers blue liners. However, it could bolster them if they rotate in and out so they never get tired or hurt as much.
The other thing is the price. Boqvist was supposed to make $2.6 million this year and $3.2 million next year. Being cut because of his injury history will drop his market value. This makes Boqvist ripe for a one-year "prove it" sort of deal the Flyers need. Plus, he is young enough that if he has a strong showing, he could be flipped for assets at the trade deadline. Remember, Walker was injury-prone in Los Angeles and became a first-round pick for Philly.
Boqvist could arrive here on a $1.5 to $2.5 million deal. That would be a fair price for a young, talented defender. That's also about the limit the Flyers could spend. I'd rather have a young defender like Boqvist who has a high ceiling than an over-the-hill defender playing out his last year. This could be a big addition to this team.