The Philadelphia Flyers went from a dormant team during the early part of the Stanley Cup Playoffs to the most active team in the NHL by the end. While the Vegas Golden Knights were making their way to the league’s top spot, Philadelphia general manager (GM) Danny Briere was working the phones to get the rebuild started. Sandwiched between all the trade rumors, the Flyers reignited the outrage about hiring team alumni by appointing John LeClair and Patrick Sharp to front office roles as Special Advisors to Hockey Operations.
LeClair, Sharp Rejoin the Flyers
The two newest advisors both come to the Flyers with impressive resumes from their playing careers but no front-office experience. LeClair spent 10 of his 16 NHL seasons in Philadelphia. The peak of his career came playing next to superstar Eric Lindros and right winger Mikael Renberg on the “Legion of Doom” line that led the Flyers to an appearance in the Stanley Cup Final in 1997. The team made 10 postseason appearances and advanced to the Eastern Conference Final four times during his tenure.
Sharp struggled to find his footing in former head coach Ken Hitchcock’s system, and the Flyers made one of the worst trades in franchise history by sending him to the Chicago Blackhawks with Eric Meloche for Matt Ellison and a third-round pick in 2005. He went on to play a key offensive role on three Stanley Cup teams for the Blackhawks, including the 2010 team that beat the Flyers in the Final. His connection to the Kyle Beach scandal in Chicago also drew criticism from the local media and fan base.
Keith Jones complimented Sharp and LeClair for a “powerful combination with their vast hockey knowledge and a ‘team-first’ mentality” that they’ll bring as part of the newly-constructed front office. The Flyers also recently hired Riley Armstrong and Nick Schultz as part of their effort to emphasize player development as a priority of the rebuild.
Jones spoke on 97.5 The Fanatic on May 30 about correcting the organization’s past mistakes in trading Sharp, Justin Williams, and Sergei Bobrovsky before their careers took off. He called better player development “one of the number one things on both my (Jones’) mind and Danny Briere’s mind.”
“We don’t want to make those mistakes. We want those young guys to turn into, like Sharp and Williams, very good players down the road. Maybe Morgan Frost is one of those guys. We’ve got to be sure before we commit, but that’s the type of thing that we were hoping for. Owen Tippett could be one of those guys. I think Florida’s going to regret (trading Tippett). He’s got the package. Now, we’ve just got to cultivate it and bring him to the next level,” Jones said.
The decision to hire former Flyers to key positions has angered parts of the fan base because of a dependence on internal ideas from an organization that hasn’t succeeded over long periods of time. The long front office tenures of formerly beloved heroes like Bobby Clarke, Bill Barber, and Paul Holmgren have made the fan base uneasy about an apparent comfort level that shouldn’t always exist for legendary players after their careers.
4 Veterans on the Trade Block
Moving Ivan Provorov got the entire league interested in trading with the Flyers. Carter Hart, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton, and Tony DeAngelo have come up in rumors most often.
Carter Hart
The situation with the young goaltender seems a lot more complex than hockey. While the acquisition of Cal Petersen looked like a major indicator that the Flyers would move Hart, extenuating circumstances have put trade talks on hold.
“The thing that hasn’t really been said publicly but is definitely under the surface behind the scenes is a lot of teams are leery about any player’s connection to the 2018 Team Canada World Junior team. Knowing that the investigation is complete, and knowing that there may be punishment or they may not be on the other end of it. Nobody wants to go crazy and acquire a player and potentially have that player sit out. I am not saying anything about Hart and his potential involvement in that. I think it just covers the entire roster. A bunch of GMs are sitting around saying ‘What do we do,’ and that could potentially impact a deal involving Carter Hart until we have some clarity,” said Frank Seravalli of The Daily Faceoff.
Travis Konecny
While Briere and the Flyers might not want to move all their valuable veterans, they’ll still need to listen to all offers as they enter the rebuild. Konecny had the best offensive season of his career in 2022-23, and the organization constantly praises his attitude and leadership skills. However, his trade value will never be higher.
“My understanding is the Flyers would listen on Travis Konecny if a team really stepped up. I don’t believe there’s been anything thrown at the first-time GM (Briere) yet on that front. But from what I’m hearing from league sources, I’m confident in saying that the Flyers will get a least one or two serious offers this summer on Konecny,” noted Pierre LeBrun (from The Athletic, LeBrun rumblings: Gavrikov gets NHL trade market rolling, Dubois wants out, DeBrincat’s list of teams and more, 6/7/23).
Scott Laughton
Anthony DiMarco reported on the Stick 2 Hockey podcast that the Flyers had turned down a trade offer for Laughton that included a late first-round pick in return. They value Laughton’s intangibles even more than Konecny’s, but they’ll need to carefully determine his long-term value before insisting on keeping a player best suited for a bottom-six role at the cost of acquiring potential top-end talent.
Related: Flyers Trade Rumors Are Missing Key Information
“They’re turning their team over. They’re going to have a lot of young players. You need good veterans around them. In a perfect world, I think they’d like to keep Laughton, but…if they get the right price, they’ll consider it,” Elliotte Friedman said on Hockey Night in Canada.
Tony DeAngelo
DiMarco spoke as a guest on The O&B Puckcast about how DeAngelo “might have more landing spots than we originally thought.” He mentioned the Detroit Red Wings as a potential fit. The 27-year-old blueliner struggled to handle defensive responsibilities in his first season in Philadelphia in 2022-23. He also sat out the final five games of the regular season because of a disagreement that he and head coach John Tortorella insisted on keeping within the locker room.
Trade Targets, Reclamation Projects
The return package in the deal that sent Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets included draft capital and veterans involved more for financial reasons. The return packages for any trades involving big-name Flyers veterans could include players who will factor into the NHL depth chart immediately. Friedman called Nick Robertson “the kind of guy who could need a fresh start and probably would like one” after struggling to find his footing with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The success of Tippett in 2022-23 pushed the Flyers to look for situations similar to the ones Jones talked about with talented young players as potential reclamation projects. Robertson fits the profile as a former 53rd-overall pick and offensive star in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).
The Edmonton Oilers drafted Philip Broberg with the eighth-overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. The Swedish defenseman has failed to make enough of an impression in two North American professional seasons spent back and forth between the American Hockey League (AHL). He logged under 10 minutes of ice time in each of his 10 playoff games in 2023, and he sat as a healthy scratch for two games. He could come to Philadelphia in any deal with the Oilers, but the Flyers are unlikely to send Hart back to his native province in return.
Anthony DiMarco mentioned potential trade partners for Hart throughout the entire eastern part of Canada. In addition to the Maple Leafs, the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens also might have interest. Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach, or Kaiden Guhle might be on the table if the Flyers sent such a valuable trade chip like Hart to Montreal. The Senators don’t have much valuable draft capital that could come back in a trade, so a top prospect like Ridly Greig, Tyler Boucher, Lassi Thomson, or Jakob-Bernard Docker would have to be at the center of a deal.
Loose Pucks: Camillo, RFAs, Expansion Record
Alternate franchise governor Valerie Camillo will leave Comcast Spectacor on July 1, according to Anthony SanFilippo. The news comes as a surprise after the organization featured her prominently in their “New Era of Orange” press conference on May 12. Camillo spent five years with Spectacor, and her work in business operations included major renovation projects at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Flyers announced qualifying offers to restricted free agents Noah Cates, Morgan Frost, Cam York, Olle Lycksell, and Ronnie Attard. Cates, Frost, and York worked themselves into key roles at the NHL level in 2022-23 while Lycksell and Attard spent more time with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Evan Barratt, Kieffer Bellows, and Wyatte Wylie did not receive qualifying offers. No player can officially accept an offer until the start of free agency on July 1.
The contract of Ivan Fedotov will also remain valid for the 2023-24 season, but no official word has come down about the Russian netminder’s ability to travel to North America.
Vegas became the fastest expansion team in history to win the Stanley Cup after entering the league just six seasons ago. They’ve made the rest of the NHL rethink the way they look at expansion franchises, just like the team whose record they broke. The Flyers were the first to topple the Original Six when they won the Stanley Cup in 1974, seven years after the league expanded from six to 12 teams.
