Breaking down the Flyers’ free agents, available cap space, and draft picks this summer

Summertime may be a time to sit back and unwind, but not for the Flyers.

General manager Danny Brière and his staff have much to do, now that the first big box on the checklist is done. Of course, that box was checked last week with former Flyer Rick Tocchet being hired as the team’s head coach.

» READ MORE: Q&A: New Flyers coach Rick Tocchet talks systems and strategies, his ideas for fixing the power play, and more

And this season, unlike last, there is more cap space available, thanks to a rising salary cap, less dead money on the books, and an ever-growing prospect pool, including a few players who should push for roster spots come September. Having 11 picks to play with at the NHL draft is pretty exciting, too.

The possibilities are endless. But first, The Inquirer breaks down everything you need to know as the Flyers head into the offseason, where things can change quickly.

The following players are expected to play at the NHL level next season for the Flyers and are under contract.

Forwards (8): Bobby Brink, Sean Couturier, Nick Deslauriers, Garnet Hathaway, Travis Konecny, Matvei Michkov, Ryan Poehling, Owen Tippett

Defense (6): Emil Andrae, Jamie Drysdale, Rasmus Ristolainen, Travis Sanheim, Nick Seeler, Egor Zamula

Goalies (2): Sam Ersson, Ivan Fedotov

Ristolainen will miss training camp and the start of the season after undergoing surgery on a ruptured right triceps tendon in late March. He is expected to start the season on injured reserve.

Also under contract for next season are forwards Jett Luchanko, Nikita Grebenkin, Karsen Dorwart, Devin Kaplan, Denver Barkey, Anthony Richard, and Alex Bump; defensemen Oliver Bonk, Adam Ginning, and Hunter McDonald; and goalie Aleksei Kolosov, who all could vie for roster spots. All of those players outside of Luchanko are expected to play in the NHL or AHL next season. While Luchanko may also turn pro, due to CHL rules, he is not eligible to play in the American Hockey League because he is under 20 years old and does not turn 19 until late August.

The Flyers also signed depth forwards Oscar Eklind and Rodrigo Ābols to one-year deals after the Phantoms’ season ended.

Of the NHLers, Poehling, Deslauriers, Brink, Drysdale, Zamula, Andrae, and both goalies will be restricted or unrestricted free agents on July 1, 2026. Could we see another early extension like the one Hathaway signed last year?

» READ MORE: Flyers prospect Jett Luchanko showing ‘why he was a high pick’ with impressive run in AHL playoffs

Forwards (3): Noah Cates, Tyson Foerster, Jakob Pelletier

Defense (1): Cam York

All four players are restricted free agents, so they must receive qualifying offers at a minimum set by the collective bargaining agreement.

Cates and York are arbitration-eligible and have minimums set at $2.625 million and $1.6 million, respectively, which is the same they made this past season. According to Daily Faceoff, Cates would prefer to bet on himself with a one-year deal. Foerster and Pelletier are guaranteed slight raises at a minimum of $874,125 and $840,000, respectively. Pelletier is also arbitration-eligible, while Foerster will probably receive a substantial bump in terms of average annual value after a 25-goal season.

Forwards (5): Elliot Desnoyers, Olle Lycksell, Givani Smith, Zayde Wisdom

Defense (1): Helge Grans

Goalies: None. Cal Petersen and Eetu Mäkiniemi will be unrestricted free agents on July 1 and are not expected to be re-signed.

Desnoyers, Wisdom, and Grans are restricted free agents and would need to receive qualifying offers. All qualifying offers are due to players by June 30.

» READ MORE: Flyers prospect Zayde Wisdom’s career is back on track thanks to his ‘do-or-die’ approach to this season

Time to do some math.

The good news is that the salary cap is rising from $88 million to $95.5 million in 2025-26. Already under the cap this season, the Flyers will have room to play with come July 1. While they have to sign the restricted free agents above to deals, they should still have a decent amount of money left over.

According to PuckPedia, as of May 21, the Flyers’ roster has a projected cap hit of $70,779,762 with a projected space of $24,720,238.

That number does not include the four restricted free agents they need to sign or the contracts of players like Luchanko, Bump, or Bonk; all three are expected to push for NHL roster spots come September.

That number does include the contracts of Dorwart, Kaplan, Andrae, and Kolosov, who were with the Flyers at the end of the season. All but Andrae should start in the AHL next season. It also includes dead money, which is the buyout money owed to former Flyer Cam Atkinson ($1,758,333) and the retained salaries on Kevin Hayes ($3,571,429) and Scott Laughton ($1.5 million). All three come off the books after this season.

So let’s subtract Dorwart, Kaplan, and Kolosov’s money, as they should be in the AHL, and the money owed to Ryan Ellis, who will go on long-term injured reserve again. That means a cap hit of $61,708,095 and approximately $33.8 million of cap space.

Of course, add in the minimum the Flyers need to pay Cates, Pelletier, Foerster, and York, and the projected cap hit rises to $67,647,220. That leaves cap space at just under $28 million, with the expectation that all four RFAs will get above their qualifying offers for next season.

Although there’s a decent amount of room now, the interesting angle is that the cap limit is expected to rise to $104 million in 2026-27 and $113.5 million in 2027-28. It leaves a lot of room to make a trade for a player with term, or to spend when free agency opens on July 1 at noon … or an offer sheet?

The end is almost near.

Acquired from the Nashville Predators in 2021, the defenseman has not played since suffering a career-ending back injury on Nov. 13, 2021. The Flyers have two seasons left, next season and the year after, to finish paying out Ellis’ contract. He has a cap hit of $6.25 million per year.

The Flyers’ offseason wish list is not the length of a CVS receipt, and while there are only two must-haves on the list, they are valuable ones.

“I’ve talked to all the goalies. They know they have a lot to prove, and it’s not going to be good enough to come back at the same level,” Brière said at his end-of-season presser. “If we have a chance to improve, we’re going to have to seriously consider it.”

Well, the unrestricted free agency market for netminders isn’t very deep. If the Flyers are truly committed to Sam Ersson being their No. 1 or top tandem goalie, someone like Jake Allen or Anton Forsberg could be cheapish options to work with and mentor Ersson. If they were to go the RFA route, St. Louis’ Joel Hofer is probably the best option.

As for centers, the expectation is the Flyers are still growing and looking for youth down the middle — Brière reiterated the rebuild’s timeline has not changed with the hiring of Tocchet — so that probably knocks off most options above the age of 30, even Claude Giroux. Unrestricted free agents under 30 include Ryan Donato, who had a 31-goal season with Chicago, Jack Roslovic of Carolina, and Pius Suter, who notched 25 goals under Tocchet this season. Florida’s Sam Bennett, 28, is the top UFA center available, but probably will be a bit too pricey for the Flyers’ taste.

» READ MORE: 10 restricted free agents the Flyers could target with an offer sheet

And of course, Brière has not been shy to say that the Flyers could utilize an offer sheet. Marco Rossi is one player they could consider, with the Minnesota Wild more and more unlikely to sign the 23-year-old, 60-point center because of Kirill Kaprizov’s upcoming mega-contract. Anaheim’s Mason McTavish, 23, and Winnipeg’s Gabriel Vilardi, 25, also fit the bill as talented 20-somethings down the middle, and several young wingers, like Matthew Knies and JJ Peterka, could also spike interest from the Flyers.

The good news is the Flyers have the draft capital to use for offer sheets and trades. Could the Flyers even make a move on defense? Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman has reported that Buffalo defenseman Bowen Byram is another RFA on the table. Time will tell what the team’s plan is, but the clock is ticking with puck drop coming in October.

The Flyers have a plethora of picks in this year’s draft, with 11 selections to make, including seven in the top 57. Whether the Flyers keep them all is to be determined, but it’s a rare luxury to have.

Three of those picks are in the first round, at Nos. 6, 22, and the Edmonton Oilers’ pick that will fall 30-32. Whom the Flyers get at No. 6 will depend on several factors, notably what the first five teams do, but there should be good options available, especially at center. Caleb Desnoyers, James Hagens, Jake O’Brien, and Anton Frondell could all help down the middle, while Victor Eklund or even Porter Martone, if the board breaks the right way, could be options on the wing.

» READ MORE: Flyers mock draft: Sizing up their three first-round picks and adding help at center