The Philadelphia Flyers are in the first official season of their rebuild. Sitting in a playoff spot despite that, their future looks promising as is on the surface. Their prospect core, highlighted by maybe the best non-NHL player in the entire world in Matvei Michkov, is solid. But there is still a lot of work to be done.
Even if the Flyers have a good prospect core, if they want to win a Stanley Cup, a player like Michkov will need more help around him. As is, the Flyers aren’t a star-studded team, with Travis Konecny undoubtedly being the highlight of the roster. Soon to be 27 years old, that likely won’t be the case for a long time unless he defies the aging curve. The way to fix this is through acquiring more young talent.
Considering the Flyers have been rumored to be talking with the Anaheim Ducks regarding star forward Trevor Zegras, even if a move of that magnitude is unlikely to be made, the Flyers at least know that they need more talent. It’ll take a big sacrifice to fix this problem, but it could be worthwhile. What are some ways they can make it happen?
Trading for Young Stars
Zegras fits the mold of trading for a young star to try and advance the rebuild. For the Flyers, this type of move makes sense. They fancy themselves as competitive but still need another piece to get them over the hump. Instead of tearing it down, they’d be building their team up.
Unfortunately, trading for a star player such as Zegras would cost a lot. Essentially, anyone but Michkov is on the table. It might take several first-round draft picks, a good prospect such as defenseman Oliver Bonk, or really anything else. True stars are not easy to get, so good players have to be given up to get them.
If the Flyers could get a few of these star players on their roster, they’d be set up for long-term success. Since trading for one might be expensive, it’s not something the Flyers would be able to pull off more than once. Every team needs them, so the likelihood of Philadelphia being outbid is high. Premium assets are required.
Something like the Matthew Tkachuk trade only happens once in a blue moon. When those deals work out for the team buying the young star, it can make them an annual Stanley Cup contender — the Florida Panthers went from getting swept in the second round in 2022 prior to the deal to going to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023 and becoming the second team to reach 40 wins this season.
Bring On the Tank
Probably the most traditional route for a rebuilder to get top-end players is through “tanking”, or selling off as many players on the team as possible to have one of the worst on-paper rosters in the NHL. This was the approach that the Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks took this season, while the Flyers did not — unsurprisingly, those are the two worst teams in the NHL by record. They will likely land a star such as Macklin Celebrini or Ivan Demidov in the draft.
There would be a few tough seasons for the Flyers if they were to try and reach a top-end player through the draft, and it might ruin the culture they’ve built up. They have been tremendous this season, so following that up with a few bad ones would be a hard sell. It might not even guarantee they get a star.
There are major risks involved with a full teardown of a roster. But the major benefit is that it costs nothing other than a few throwaway seasons to get potential stars. It is both the hardest and easiest way to rebuild. It’s a tedious process, but landing stars isn’t easy to do without a high draft pick.
Trading Up in the Draft
Another thing that the Flyers might explore is trading up in the draft to get a star player. If they are consistently not bad enough to get one of those higher-end picks, they’re going to have to trade for one. Now, most teams won’t be willing to give up what could be a golden ticket with their pick, but others might.
Forward Alex DeBrincat was traded to the Ottawa Senators by the Blackhawks for the seventh-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft a few seasons ago. For the right player or price, getting a good draft choice can be done. But, just like with trading for star players, it could be costly.
Someone like Konecny would have to be in consideration for this. If a team wanted to make a push to contention status instead of hoping their draft pick can help them do that in a few seasons, that would be a logical approach. These trades happen very rarely, but it’s one way to acquire future stars.
Hoping to Get Lucky
The Flyers would need a miracle for this to happen, but they could always just get lucky in the draft. Selecting superstars or star players is not an easy thing to do after the first few picks in the draft. But it can be done. The Boston Bruins took David Pastrnak with the 25th overall selection in the 2014 NHL Draft, and he is one of the best players in the entire NHL.
Related: Mid-First-Round Draft Picks Succeeding for NHL Teams
Similarly, Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning, taken with the 58th-overall pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, is another superstar. It could be argued that he is the best player in the entire league. It’s rare for a top player like that to be selected so late in the draft, but it is always possible.
It would be irresponsible of the Flyers to assume they can land stars without top-end picks. It just doesn’t happen very often. It’ll be a treat if it does, but it probably won’t. If this is the path the Flyers take, they’ll need everything to go right.
Testing the Free-Agent Market
It would apply more to the future when Michkov is ready to play for the Flyers, but free agency can be a huge asset to the Orange and Black. If they want to get some star talent for him, getting it without giving up draft capital or any prospects is possible in the free-agent market.
Free agency can be hit-or-miss, but when players hit, it can substitute for taking a top-end player in the draft. For the New York Rangers, Artemi Panarin has been just that. He is a star even to this day, and he was signed all the way back in 2019. It’s definitely an option for the Flyers to consider.
The Flyers can use a variety of approaches to get star players. And they should. Whatever it ends up being, it won’t be easy to get more elite players on the roster. In the end, however, it might be just what they need to make a run at Lord Stanley for years to come.