Throughout the Flyers’ opening series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the team’s star goaltender Carter Hart was able to conceal his team’s defensive weaknesses. Then, in their last game, goaltender Brain Elliott was able to come in and play lights-out for the team in order to hide their defensive woes. I get it- the Flyers were put in a tough spot after the playoffs last season when 1st pairing defenseman Matt Niskanen decided to retire a year before his contract was set to expire. This left the Flyers with a short time to find a replacement for Niskanen who averaged 21:54 minutes of ice time last season (that was good enough to rank him second on the team only behind his now-former partner Ivan Provorov). The Flyers did not need replacing Niskanen to add to an already lengthy list of decisions that their general manager Chuck Fletcher had to make this off season- as far as which restricted and unrestricted free agents to re-sign, and what new available players could serve as replacements for the ones he let depart.
But the decisions that Fletcher decided to move forward with seemed like a series of panic moves: Re-signing of the team’s 33-year-old defenseman Justin Braun- who was a member of the team’s 3rd defensive pairing last season and bringing in defenseman Erik Gustafsson. Bringing back Braun may not seem that bad of a deal because he obviously came back on a team-friendly deal of just $1.8 million a season- a bargain compared to his last contract. Rather, it was the term of two years that has most scratching their heads, especially since the team had a bevy of other defenseman already signed to contracts that could have filled that role as the team’s sixth defenseman this season with players like Mark Friedman, Egor Zamula, Shayne Gostisbehere, and Sam Morin. Not to mention the fact that the team has defensive prospects Cam York and Wyatte Wylie who might be ready for the NHL as soon as next season. This was not the only possible mistake that Chuck made concerning the defense though: Bringing in Gustafsson for a year at a cost of $3 million who, although he looks great while on the team’s power play thus far, is not the right-hand shot, 1st line pairing defenseman the team needed. He is rather the 2.0 of a left-hand shot, offensively-minded defenseman the team is already stuck paying $4.5 million a season to because he turns over the puck to much and neglects his duties in his own end: Shayne Gostisbehere.
You may be saying that the Flyers are 3-1; why is this guy bringing this up? I assure you that the Flyers have not played anyone that is a true contender yet! The Penguins are not the dynasty team they once were. Sure, they may have a few big names let over from those years still hanging around the locker room, but they are on the down slide. Sure, the Flyers beat the Buffalo Sabers, but they were a below .500 team last year who finished the season with the same number of points as the last place Metropolitan Division team the New Jersey Devils.
I understand that Chuck’s hands may have been tied with the uncertainty of just what it would cost to re-sign his own restricted free agents, and I in no way expected him to bring in defenseman Alex Pietrangelo or Torey Krug on a multi-year deal that would cost the team millions of dollars that they do not have available, especially seeing that next season they have to re-sign both Carter Hart and Travis Sanheim; but why waste $4.8 million on Braun and Gustafsson when all the team needed was one right-hand-shot defenseman who could play top four minutes? Why did they not overpay or take back a very minimal return in order to get rid Shayne Gostisbehere and his inflated salary if all they see him is a healthy scratch now?
However, I could think of four right-hand-shot defensemen, who were unrestricted free agents this year and who signed a one-year deal, who could have been much better to fill that role for a season. For example: Tyson Barrie (signed a 1 yr. deal worth $3.75 million with Edmonton), Sami Vatanen (signed a 1 yr. deal worth $2.0 million with New Jersey), Travis Hamonic (signed a 1 yr. deal worth $1.25 million with Vancouver), or Cody Ceci (signed a 1 yr. deal worth $1.25 with Pittsburgh). What’s better is that all of them have played in a top-six role before.
Instead, the Flyers now have Justin Braun (who is having trouble just keeping up with the kind of players he is facing on a nightly basis this year) lining up as a 1st paring defenseman playing alongside of Ivan Provorov when, last season, Braun was the team’s 6th defenseman. To go along with that, newly-signed 3rd pairing defenseman Erik Gustafsson (who has been making some big turn overs already at times this season) is getting paid more than the Flyers’ young star defenseman Philippe Myers does. Does this make sense to anyone else?
If this assessment is right, then who might the Flyers look to for help if they do indeed find themselves in need of it? The vast majority of free agents have now signed, and the Flyers’ lack of cap space is going to make a trade for a quality defenseman very unlikely. That is why the Flyers should look to get creative and call up a guy who is currently out of hockey- but who could prove to be as good once as he ever was (that is, if Philadelphia could be willing to wait until just before the trade deadline to try and sign him). That player (who just so happens to be one of the most feared men to ever play the game) is Dustin Byfuglien (or Big Buff). Big Buff is a now 35-year-old defenseman who last played for the Winnipeg Jets and (like so many others that played before him or currently still find themselves stuck playing for them) had a falling out with management. This falling out got ugly (to say the least) and caused Dustin and the Jets’ general manger to eventually agree to a termination of his contract. Byfuglien has since had surgery on his ankle but has still yet to officially retire from the game. Although his agent has said that he thinks it is unlikely that Dustin will ever play again, I, among others around the league, think Byfuglien might be convinced to give it one more shot if a true contender were to come calling closer to the trade deadline. Why go after Byfuglien you might be asking? Well, where else are you going to be able to find a 6’5 260-pound behemoth who just so happens to be a right-hand shot defenseman with a Stanley Cup ring already on his finger? One that could offer the size, physicality, and toughness that this team currently lacks but will surely need come playoff time? One who the Flyers would not have to give anything up for besides cold hard cash that late in the season? Think about it: If a 43-year-old Zdeno Chara was willing to leave Boston and sign with Washington for just $795,000 to play the whole season in order to make one last real push at another cup, then it should be plausible that Byfuglien might be willing to join a team like the Flyers at the deadline to do the same.
In the meantime, we will have to see if the Flyers goaltenders will be able to remain strong in net in order to make up for their defensive core’s weaknesses? Some true tests are coming with games against the offensively-talented Boston Bruins, the speedy New York Islanders, and the always dangerous Washington Capitals right around the corner. So, it would wise for Chuck Fletcher to get a jump on this and begin the process to convince Dustin to sign for one last playoff push.
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