5 goalies Flyers could sign in free agency this week

There is no way to prove it but the 2024-25 Philadelphia Flyers probably would have finished close to making the playoffs if they had just slightly-better-than-average goaltending. It was historically awful. We’re talking about a team that, among all seasons in the last 18 years, had the worst save percentage by a considerable margin. A miserable .872 team-wide save percentage sits at the very bottom of the 552 seasons in that timespan. Five-hundred and fifty-two seasons where two (or more) goaltenders tried to stop pucks, and the Flyers’ last season sits dead last.

So, yeah, they’re going to do something about it this offseason.

While a trade could certainly happen for whichever halfway-decent netminder is available, general manager Danny Briere could look to a barren free agent class in between the pipes for an answer. There is not a whole lot of goaltending talent available in free agency, but here are some names that the Flyers might sign as soon as this week to try to improve the goaltending, and why they might sign them.

Jake Allen

Allen is easily the best goaltending option available in free agency. The 34-year-old netminder just played 31 games last year as the New Jersey Devils’ backup but did earn a .908 save percentage and a 2.66 goals against average, leading the entire free agent goaltender class in both categories.

Considering that he is the Big Fish in this market and since almost every team could use an upgrade on their goaltending, the Flyers are no doubt going to face some tough competition for his services. It has been reported that Philadelphia will only go as long as two years with a free agent goaltender, and that makes perfect sense since they’re not committing long-term to anyone and this pursuit for some help in between the pipes is just to get someone and not waste another season.

While Allen would be the top target and most ideal signing, it does feel like the Flyers are going to be priced out fairly quickly and some team that just needs someone to be a backup as they contend for the Stanley Cup — *cough* Edmonton Oilers *cough* — are going to be desperate enough to give Allen a three-year contract and for more dollars than the Flyers want to commit.

Dan Vladar

Dan Vladar is maybe the most interesting option on this list. The 27-year-old netminder had a below-average save percentage of .895 and a 2.86 goals against average with the Calgary Flames last season, but both would be a substantial upgrade from what the Flyers ran last season.

Considering he is the youngest option, there could be a little bit more of a runway for the Czech netminder. Vladar doesn’t have much of a pedigree, so he would sign for much less than the other top targets with more of a lengthy reputation. Evolving-Hockey has his contract projected as a one-year, $1.6-million contract and that feels more than worth it if the Flyers want to have an upgrade but not go all-out with someone older and expecting much more than a team trying to just not be as bad as they were the previous season.

Vladar doesn’t have a considerably high ceiling, with just 105 NHL games played and a career .895 save percentage, but even if he is just that in Philadelphia, that is enough to consider it an upgrade.

Anton Forsberg

Anton Forsberg feels like the next-best option when it comes to goalies available in free agency, beyond Allen. The Swedish consolidation prize had a .901 save percentage and a 2.72 goals against average in 30 games for the Senators. He is perfectly responsible to just throw out there in between the pipes in a backup role, so it will be up to the Flyers to see if he might be able to handle a slightly heavier workload.

The 32-year-old would, just like Vladar, also come in as a projected one-year deal but even cheaper than the 27-year-old Czech, with a projected salary of just $1.414 million, according to Evolving-Hockey.

Forsberg feels like the signing with the least narrative behind it. The Flyers aren’t getting the big fish like they would be with Allen, they aren’t getting the young netminder with Vladar, or as we would see later, they aren’t getting the reclamation goalie — it’s just someone potentially stable to sign for a year or two, to calm the chaos in the crease.

Alex Lyon

Ah, our old friend, Alex.

It might be a little bit of a fun story to have Alex Lyon coming back to Philadelphia, but could it be too much pressure put on him as someone to consistently rely upon? He could potentially face a bit of backlash since we have already seen him in the Orange and Black, and he was below average back then.

Although, the most interesting thing about Lyon is how at age almost 33 years old, he is coming off two seasons where he played more than several past season combined. After signing with the Detroit Red Wings for two years in 2023, Lyon has played a total of 74 games, earned a 35-27-6 record, a .901 save percentage, and a 2.96 goals against average. Perfectly mediocre in a good way. What is most important is that number 74, though. Before Detroit, Lyon had only appeared in a total of 39 games from 2018 to 2023.

At 32 years old, adding Lyon would be yet another short-term deal and a temporary solution for a lengthy problem. But, even considering his worst years of his career were already in Philadelphia, it couldn’t get much worse and him just being average is good enough.

Ilya Samsonov

Signing Ilya Samsonov to be the foundation and stable force in a goaltending tandem might be the worst thing any general manager could do this offseason. The 28-year-old netminder has the worst statistical profile of any candidate on this list and considering how his time in Toronto went — the last time he had any pressure whatsoever put on him to perform — this could be disastrous.

Samsonov is certainly one of the last options the Flyers should consider, but it could be someone they go after if the rest of the free agents sign elsewhere and they do not like the look of the trade market. He’s fine. An NHL goaltender, at least. Last season with the Vegas Golden Knights, Samsonov earned an .890 save percentage and a 2.82 goals against average. His Goals Saved Above Expected was just above neutral, with a 0.6 GSAx over 29 games this season. For reference, Alexei Kolosov led the Flyers in GSAx last season with minus-9.0 and Sam Ersson, who will be sticking around, accumulated a minus-19.9 GSAx in 47 games last season.