Flyers Reward Important Prospects with Entry-Level Contracts; What it Means

The Philadelphia Flyers got two important pieces of business done Tuesday, signing forward prospects Alex Bump and Devin Kaplan to their respective entry-level contracts.

Kaplan, 21, is perhaps the most unexpected and intriguing part of Tuesday's news.

Kaplan and his Boston University saw their season end in heartbreak, with Bump and Western Michigan University taking the Frozen Four championship with a 6-2 triumph on Saturday.

Kaplan had an assist in the championship game, earning a helper on Cole Eiserman's first-period goal, and picked up another key assist against Penn State in the game before that.

Overall, though, the 6-foot-3 winger opted to sign with the Flyers after the least-productive season of his collegiate career. In 38 games with Boston, Kaplan managed just 10 goals, eight assists, and 18 points. Kaplan had scored 23 points in each of his two prior seasons.

Many, including myself, were surprised that the Flyers offered Kaplan a deal with another year remaining before his rights expired.

Kaplan's three-year, entry-level contract will expire in 2027, since he will burn a year by joining the Flyers right away to finish out this seson.

That aligns with other contracts the Flyers might have coming off the books in the future, as rugged fourth-line forward Garnet Hathaway will be a 35-year-old free agent in the 2027 offseason.

Forwards Ryan Poehling and Nicolas Deslauriers will become free agents in 2026, and who knows what Karsen Dorwart and Jakob Pelletier will become in Philadelphia?

Looking at other Flyers prospects, Kaplan will have to compete with Samu Tuomaala, who has missed significant time with an injury for a second straight season, and Zayde Wisdom, who put himself back on the map with a personal-best 30-point season, for a bottom-six NHL roster spot going forward.

Effectively, the Flyers are letting all their horses race to see who, if anyone, comes out a winner. Kaplan is the latest to join the stable.

Alex Bump has clearer path to NHL future

As for Bump, his three-year, entry-level contract will kick in starting next season, so any additional hockey for the NCAA champ this season will come under an amateur tryout offer with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL.

It's been pretty clear, at least since the 2024 development camp, that the Flyers really like the 21-year-old and his prospects of becoming an impact NHLer.

Bump, an offensive dynamo who can and will shoot the puck, finished his second and final NCAA season with 23 goals, 24 assists, and 47 points while generally being regarded as Western Michigan's best player.

He's a heady winger who knows how to work on opposing defenses, and playing with someone with vision like Matvei Michkov's, for example, could really unlock his offensive potential.

We can expect Bump to push hard for an NHL roster spot out of the gate next season, though Nikita Grebenkin will be doing the same.

Michkov, Travis Konecny, Owen Tippett, and Tyson Foerster will have the top-six winger positions on lock. Pelletier is a pending restricted free agent, and Bobby Brink will get his due thanks to his hard work and success alongside Foerster and Noah Cates for most of this season.

There are no guarantees for Bump, Kaplan, or any other Flyers forward prospect for the time being, but the Flyers can and will make room if they earn their place, regardless of when it happens.