One dream, one realistic, and one bargain player for the Flyers in NHL free agency
NHL free agency will be here when June fades into July, and the Philadelphia Flyers could find a way to land a dream player.
The Philadelphia Flyers may not manage to make a huge splash in NHL free agency thanks to cap constraints, but general manager Daniel Briere can always make the right personnel moves, which could warrant more space to land even a dream free agent.
Yes, it would be rather farfetched, but many of these team executives are forward-thinking and can make eye-popping moves that we may not think possible on the surface. So let’s list one dream free agent Briere could end up surprising us with and why he would be a good option for the Flyers.
We’ll also check out one realistic option at a position that, for the moment, seems locked down but at quite the risk. Finally, we got one bargain free agent listed who could, despite the cheaper price, make for an excellent addition to the Flyers blue line.
Dream Free Agent: Elias Lindholm, Vancouver Canucks
When I went into this piece, I was thinking defense all the way, but not so much that a potential forward wouldn’t have capabilities offensively. Enter Elias Lindholm, who, despite finishing with just 44 points and 15 goals last season, should return to form in 2024-25, whether he sticks around in Vancouver or goes somewhere like Philadelphia.
Lindholm, per Alexander MacLean of Dobber Hockey, should see his next cap hit sit around the $5 million to $5.1 million range, and that wouldn’t work for the Flyers in their current state. Nor would they afford even the ‘realistic’ or ‘bargain’ players listed. So Daniel Briere would need to find a way to make it work.
For this one, he should at least buyout Ryan Johansen’s contract, or perhaps even Cam Atkinson, the latter of whom would fetch them even more money, costing them roughly $1.758 million over the next two years. The only downside with bringing in Lindholm is that he will be heading into his age-30 season, and if the Flyers want to get younger, he may not quite fit what they’re looking for.
But Lindholm could also have another five solid seasons left, well within the timeframe it would take to fully prime this Flyers team for several playoff runs. Last season proved they could stick around the race, and in doing so, landing someone like Lindholm after making a transaction or two would be a good call.
Realistic Free Agent: Kevin Lankinen, Nashville Predators
I added Kevin Lankinen here because of my insecurities surrounding Ivan Fedotov, who, despite the Flyers signing him to a one-way contract, remains a massive risk. Last season, Fedotov saw action in just three games, so it’s tough to garner a real sample size here. That said, an 0.811 save percentage and a 4.95 GAA is rough no matter how you look at it, and adding some insurance shouldn’t hurt.
The Flyers could always take a buried cap hit in this situation and let Fedotov play in the AHL for an entire season while someone like Lankinen and Samuel Ersson take reps at the NHL level. This would allow the Flyers to develop Fedotov more properly as opposed to throwing him into the NHL immediately. But Fedotov isn’t your typical first-time NHLer, or better yet, NHLer getting ready to play their first full season.
He will already be 28 years old, but the Flyers also sped up their rebuilding process this past season when they found themselves in strong playoff contention. Rolling with a pair of inexperienced goaltenders doesn’t make a ton of sense. But a backup like Lankinen, even if the Flyers opted for an infamous three-goaltender rotation should Fedotov (likely) remain at the NHL level, would benefit.
Lankinen would give Philadelphia someone they can play for between 20 and 22 games, and his numbers - 0.912 save percentage and a 2.79 GAA over the past two seasons, also haven’t been bad. Overall, this realistic option is solid if the Flyers felt they needed a little more insurance at goaltender.
Bargain Free Agent: Matt Roy, LA Kings
To be real, I highly doubt the Flyers would go after someone as expensive as Elias Lindholm, and the overall vibes tell me they’ll also stick with just two goaltenders, or at least early on. However, it’s always worth exploring such options, just in case Daniel Briere rolled in such a direction.
But if there is one position and an ultra-realistic option available to them in NHL free agency, Matt Roy of the LA Kings would work well. The Flyers have one RFA and a pair of UFAs on the defensive rotation, which opens three spots in the lineup - two regulars and a seventh defenseman before taking in re-signings, like Adam Ginning.
Roy, who played top-four minutes last season, would be a great value add, as Dobber Hockey has him at a projected $2 million cap hit, something much more manageable for a productive player. He would bring not just top-four potential but even more physical play to a Flyers team that landed over 2,000 hits last season and 24.6 per game.
Best yet, Roy set career-highs in body checks and blocks, and you can also add a 91.4 on-ice save percentage at even strength, plus a career-high 71 on-ice goals for. Better yet, his Corsi For at even strength hit 52.9, over three percent better than his total of offensive zone to defensive zone starts ratio.
Roy would also give the Flyers short-handed help, and when you factor in how well the team played on the penalty kill last year, he could be the missing piece to give them arguably one of the best units in the league.
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