The '25-'26 Philadelphia Flyers thread

[LegoDoom]

My concern is that Briere's hand is basically face up at this point and won't get the best value trying to offload contracts when teams already know what he has to do.

[bigegypt0417]

This last draft was weird but the 'flyers can't dfaft" ignores the better position this system is in now

[zambonir]

It's a good problem to have if this actually works. Still seem unlikely it will. But if it does, the face up thing is just part of overpay (because it's all still an overpay) for this very specfic and rate opportunity to get a player of that age and talent level and positional fit.

Speaking of draft gripes, the Flyers signed Nolan Foote to a minor-league deal. He has the same agent as Gauthier, Buium and Johansen. So, business is business. (Also, not to be confused with his brother, who was one of Carter Hart's fellow defendants).

[LegoDoom]

No issue with the player. The contract and compensation are definitely up for debate, but I highly doubt that Tippet is the only player shown the door and none will likely be given the value before this offer.

[Pat_Burrell]

I saw Elliott F reported that Ducks management and Leo’s reps met for several hours prior to the offer sheet being tendered. He reported Ducks best offer was between 12-13 mill per year. If another team offers Mintyukov today as expected, that could put Anaheim in an even bigger bind. Presumably they would likely lose either or

[Austinfan]

If uou watched Sokolovskii in the scrimmages, there is nothing weird about this draft.

They passed on the higher floor, limited upside player in Lin to take a "unicorn" - very few players Solokovskii's size skates the way he does, and the hands have potential. And they picked up a low ceiling, high floor D-man in Liske and a goalie as well.

[Austinfan]

He has enough different options (players) and enough different teams (attractive players) that I don't think it'll have much impact. This isn't like a player with a big contract (only a few suitors) who'll only waive his NMC for 3 teams.

[LegoDoom]

You also said that Martone was a good skater, which he definitely is not right now. The rest is just "he's big'. A shot between the legs is an odd observation as every player at that level can do that.

The were working on his skating from day 1, which is smart.

[LegoDoom]

It's about teams knowing he will likely take lower value because he has to offload contracts.

[Austinfan]

Martone is a fluid skater in a short area, he needs to work on speed, as does Michkov.

Solokovskii is a good skater period, a lot of big guys look a bit awkward, Morin was straight line fast but not that good skating laterally. Solokovskill is a more fluid skater than I expected, easily changes direction and looks comfortable skating backwards.

He really is a freak, 6'7 238 and he has yet to turn 18, and doesn't look like a "giraffe," a young guy still trying to develop body control after his growth spurt. For a lot of big guys, this doesn't come until they fill out at 20-21. And you can see where that skating can make him special on defense, with his size and reach, the ability to smoothly position yourself and skate with your head up makes you very hard to skate around. And he has the mean streak that makes a big man more effective, he doesn't like to get beat and will use his big body to lay the lumber.

[LegoDoom]

. Solokovskill is a more fluid skater than I expected, easily changes direction and looks comfortable skating backwards.

I would hope so given his position.

Look, you like your players and that's fine. The truth is you know very little about him. Hey, I don't either as all of his film is hitting and fighting. I said he has decent footwork, but I have seen like 5 shots and can't even gauge his hockey IQ.

Do you think you can?

[Austinfan]

That's why he's a low floor/high ceiling compared to Lin.
Scrimmages are about raw talent, no real structure or strategy.
But he showed that he's not a total stiff handling the puck (again, compare to Morin who struggled with puck handling and had to see the puck, i.e., skate with his head down).

His offensive upside is totally unknown, he'll spend another season in London (basically semi-pro) before going to college.
But he only played one OHL season and as a July B-day he's a year behind his draft peers.

[LegoDoom]

You are wrong about the low floor compared to Lin. Your thought is that he'll at least be good in his own zone. You don't know that. And if he's not good in his own end, then his floor will be really low.

[Dirk41]

Could the Flyers be playing 4D chess?

Leo accepts you have your 1C at a big price right now and a reasonable deal in a few years. You also set the market for RFA Centers and show them what you are willing to spend. Bedard apparently wants 17M and the Hawks are reluctant.

Anaheim matches and you go right to Bedard with the same exact deal.

[LegoDoom]

Bedard got injured like yesterday.

The Flyers are going to have to shed multiple players, will lose 4 first rounds picks, and the 2+ year rebuild turns into a win at all costs until 2030.

Edit: 4D chess isn't move onto the next one. It would be to drive up the price on McDavid to like $25M+ and leave him on a team that can't compete because he makes too much money.

Edit #2... unfortunately the Habs can likely afford that for McDavid.

[zambonir]

Of course, but it's more likely this just forces the Hawks to pay him (or match an offer, whether from the Flyers or not).

[dicemen99]

You also said that Martone was a good skater, which he definitely is not right now. The rest is just "he's big'. A shot between the legs is an odd observation as every player at that level can do that.

The were working on his skating from day 1, which is smart.

You are so anti-Martone and pro Mishkov, yet every single thing you read from every writer views Martone as a future star, while Michkov is viewed as a talent that may be a star, but there’s a lot of risk.

And every insider when discussing possible trades lists Martone as the first ask, while Mishkov is generally viewed as not a chip that’s getting a deal done on his own. These reports are not being made up out of thin air, but are being created from info by multiple organizations in the NHL.

It must just be because Martone is bigger and most NHL GMs don’t know that size doesn’t matter in hockey.

[zambonir]

But this may not even happen, and that's fine too. I don't think if they whiff on Carlsson it means they have to pursue a different RFA, go crazy with a possible trade or be in go-for-it mode this season. They can just lock up Giroux, keep or not keep Risto (he'd be missed but might be worth it to just let Viricek get the playing time even if it hurts them in the short term), and maybe wait until March for another d-man (or C for that matter). And they are still going to be attractive to McDavid and (especially) Matthews (because he's American) down the line.

[LegoDoom]

I have said Martone has an elite shot, which he does. His decision making and skating are not there yet.

I'm not anti Martone. I didn't even think he'd be there at the pick. I wouldn't trade Martone unless it was a great offer.

I also admitted that Tippett improved his lateral skating. I still don't think he's a great hockey player despite that he has all of the talent.

Michkov is a low ask because the organization seems to hate him.

[LegoDoom]

It must just be because Martone is bigger and most NHL GMs don’t know that size doesn’t matter in hockey.

Oh, we are back to size? Aaron Donald is/was maybe the best DT in NFL history. How big was he? Leverage, speed, quickness, footwork, etc is a thing.