While the 2022-23 season was pretty successful for the Philadelphia Flyers in terms of getting the most out of their players, there are some candidates going into this season that could see some improvement in their overall game.
Joel Farabee
Coming off of disc replacement surgery the summer prior to last season, Joel Farabee was bound to have some potential hiccups in his offensive game early on. The 23-year-old certainly saw some inconsistency in terms of production throughout the year.
During a lengthy span starting on the Flyers’ last game in November and ending on March 14, Farabee eclipsed just four goals and nine assists for 13 points in 45 games. By the time this skid ended, however, the winger went on a five-game point streak in which he totaled four goals and three assists. Finishing with 39 points in 82 games, his season was a bit disappointing, but he did manage to finish off strong.
It is very clear that Farabee has the potential to be a top-six player in the NHL, but he just needs to find some consistency in his game. He seemed to find it by the end of last season, which inspires a lot of confidence for a comeback. With some significant offensive upside, the youngster can establish himself as a true star this season.
Travis Sanheim
The Flyers were open to shopping Travis Sanheim during the offseason but chose to hold onto him after not seeing the attention they thought he was worth, so general manager (GM) Danny Briere and his crew decided to rescind his availability on the market.
Related: Jets Made a Mistake Not Trading for Sanheim
Signing an eight-year, $50 million contract on Oct. 13, 2022, Sanheim was seen as being a key piece to the future of the Flyers’ defense before last season began. Last year, he damaged that philosophy quite a bit.
It would be unfair to say the year that Sanheim had was awful, but it was definitely not up to his standards. In the past, the 27-year-old defender was seen as someone who could potentially serve on the Flyers’ first pairing. There was a reason why he signed such a lucrative deal in the fall; it was because he was a genuinely good player for the team.
Sanheim’s struggles defensively were more noticeable, but he also saw some regression in terms of his offensive output. His 31-point output was reduced to just 23 last season, and he could only register a single power play point over the course of the entire year, even if his minutes were minimal.
As a result, Sanheim saw his playing time go from 22:58 per game to just 20:24 in the matter of a single season. In a new campaign, he will have to be better. His GM in Briere backed him up by not trading him for damaged goods during the offseason, meaning he still has some confidence in him.
Sanheim is poised to at the very least be better than he was last season. A return to form would be terrific for the player and team alike.
Cal Petersen
As for the first member that was not with the Flyers last season, Cal Petersen is probably the player with the most room to grow out of anyone else listed.
Petersen had the worst season of his career last year, and he has not come particularly close to matching it in his past, either. In ten games with the Los Angeles Kings, the 28-year-old netminder had a 5-3-2 record, but finished with a .868 save percentage (SV%) and a 3.75 goals-against average (GAA). His SV% ranked sixth last in the NHL among all goaltenders who appeared in a game, while his GAA was 14th to last among the same group of 107 members.
Signed to a three-year, $15 million contract on Sept. 22, 2021, the Kings felt they had to dump his salary in order to remain a contender. The Flyers were gladly willing to take on the last two years left on his deal in exchange for some compensation.
Petersen still has the potential to be not just a serviceable backup, but an elite one for Philadelphia. He was paid starting goaltender money by the Kings because he was seen as a future starter. Even though that wasn’t the case, the recency of this thought process gives some hope that he can be a valuable piece for the Flyers.
Petersen genuinely has nowhere to go but up after what was a disaster of a season last year, so it will be interesting to see if he can return to his old form in a new situation.
Bounce Back Chances Seem Plausible
For a few members of the Orange and Black, this season could mark a turning point in their careers. There should be true faith in some of the players who were not at their best last season to be better with a new season and mindset.
