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.