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The big list of pending unrestricted free agents the Flyers can steal from their Metropolitan Division rivals

The Philadelphia Flyers don’t have much cap space, and they could ‘sell’ more than they ‘buy’ in the offseason. But maybe they will also shock us with a few signings.

By Todd Matthews

Philadelphia Flyers v New York Rangers
Philadelphia Flyers v New York Rangers / Bruce Bennett/GettyImages
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Kaapo Kahkonen, Goaltender/New Jersey Devils

Perhaps Briere decides to think Ivan Fedotov should play a season in the AHL regardless, so he signs a proven 1B like Kaapo Kahkonen to a deal, re-signs Fedotov, and assigns him to Lehigh Valley following the preseason so he can get more used to the North American game. 

This is assuming something like this happens regardless of what Fedotov shows us in what is a small sample size at the NHL level. It also doesn’t mean Briere would sign Kahkonen to a one-year deal while Fedotov receives time in the AHL, as he could always bring him in on a multi-year deal and subsequently trade him if Fedotov adapts to the North American game quickly. 

Overall, it would be a win for Fedotov and a win for Kahkonen. The former would develop better in North America with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, and Kahkonen could also show that he can be one of the better 1B goaltenders in the NHL, which would make him highly attractive to contenders in 2024-25. 

If the Flyers contend, they can hang onto him and give Fedotov a full season in the AHL. It’s worth stressing that this would be the preferred method for Fedotov regardless of how many games he gets and how well he performs in his trial phase with the Flyers. 

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