Plenty of Philadelphia Flyers fans are frustrated with the pace of the rebuild. It has been a long time since the Flyers have been in the Stanley Cup conversation instead of the wild-card, middle, or worse, the draft lottery. The team last made the playoffs in the 2019-20 COVID season, and since the 2012-13 season, they have only made the playoffs four times.
Of those four times, the Flyers advanced past Round One only once.
It’s a maddening time to be a Flyers fan–now more than ever as the playoffs are within reach, but general manager Daniel Briere remains committed to the long game.
The current state of the Flyers is not too bad. It could be worse. The Buffalo Sabres, Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings have undergone complete rebuilds only to re-enter the mushy middle.
Surely, we won’t shed a tear for the Pittsburgh Penguins, either. Their rebuild has been delayed, and they’re stuck watching Sidney Crosby toil with castoffs trying to win now but sit below the Flyers in the standings.
If that doesn’t bring a smile to your face, nothing will.
The Flyers have as good of a chance to make the playoffs as any other team. Don’t expect Briere to go on a spending spree before the NHL trade deadline, and if he can recoup some future assets for veterans, he’ll make those trades again, just as he did with Sean Walker.
Enjoy the ride.
This coming offseason will be the pivotal moment for the Flyers’ direction in the Briere and Jones era. The Flyers’ front office has done quite the job of accumulating draft capital for the 2025 NHL Draft. Assuming the picks they have acquired fall after their protection (COL Top-10, EDM Top-12), the Flyers will have three first-round and three second-round selections (PHI, ANA & CBJ).
There is a real chance the Flyers will have six picks in the top 50 selections of the draft. In fact, it’s pretty likely.
The Flyers could add even more draft capital or prospects if teams are willing to meet Briere’s asking price on guys like Scott Laughton and Rasmus Ristolainen.
Even more first-rounders?
Taking this windfall to the next level, no rebuilding team needs to pick six or more times in the first 50 picks/two rounds in a single draft. The Flyers have the opportunity to really improve the roster this offseason by moving those picks for help, preferably players who figure into their long-term plans.
The Flyers are currently 22-20-6 and just two points shy of the playoffs. There is still a lot of the season left to play, but it is hard to see the Flyers landing a top-three or top-five pick without any lottery help.
The Flyers would need to trade up in the draft to get one of the top-end centers out of the draft, like James Hagens, Michael Misa, or even Roger McQueen. The good news? The Flyers have a plethora of draft capital to get it done.
It would be naive to say the Flyers do not have the assets to move up in the draft (assuming they fall in the pick 10-15 range). Heck, they could even make a jump into the top 10 If they are closer to 20, though, it would likely cost two firsts this year, if not all three if they decide to make a long jump into the top three range.
The Flyers will more than likely have enough extra picks in the 2025 NHL Draft to make a move for a top-six forward.
This season will likely be the second straight year that the Flyers outplay their expectations and play themselves out of a high draft pick. The view from here shows that the Flyers are closer than most people think.
With Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett’s extensions and Matvei Michkov’s early arrival, the foundation for the future is well underway. This summer will mark the most pivotal offseason since Ron Hextall botched the transition from the aging Stanley Cup Finalist team toward the next era (See also the talent selected behind Ivan Provorov in 2014, German Rubstov, and Nolan Patrick).
If the Flyers fail to significantly improve the current roster, whether that be drafting a couple of high-end prospects or trading for a top-six guy (maybe with top-line upside), preferably both, then the handwringing can begin. But with what the Flyers have in their arsenal right now, don’t hit the panic button just yet.
