The 2020 NHL Entry Draft is scheduled to begin at 7pm ET on Tuesday, October 6, 2020. The event will be held virtually due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The Flyers, as things currently stand have the 23rd overall pick in the draft. With the surprising retirement of Defenseman Matt Niskanen, the team may look to add a blueliner to its young crop. They could also go the route of taking the best player available. Neither is a bad choice as this year’s draft is loaded with talent at every position.
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The draft always comes with guarantees: players will be traded, and franchises can go from playoff hopeful to championship contender overnight. While some things are different this year, those will remain the same. The Flyers have been reportedly connected to many players since the playoffs ended last week. They have also had players rumored to be on their way out of town. Here is an updated look at where they currently stand.
Patrik Laine
Wouldn’t you love to see Laine in the orange and black? The Flyers have been connected to Laine since their exit in the playoffs at the hands of the New York Islanders. Laine’s current deal with the Winnipeg Jets has 1 year left and carries a cap hit of $6.75 million according to CapFriendly. To make a deal with the Jets, Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher would likely have to include the 23rd pick in this year’s draft, 1 of Travis Sanheim or Shayne Gostisbehere, and Nolan Patrick. Giving up any defenders right now is not a good move because the Flyers will be without Matt Niskanen next season, and Philippe Myers is still an RFA (Restricted Free Agent). Also, Nolan Patrick is a pending RFA, and the Jets most likely don’t do the deal without Patrick being under contract. A trade for Laine, at least at this point, seems out of reach for the Flyers. That could change at the trade deadline if Winnipeg has an underwhelming season and gets the sense their young star could walk in free agency.
Johnny Gaudreau
Checking in on everyone’s favorite hometown kid, Johnny Hockey is still 2 years away from becoming a UFA. He is under contract for 2 more seasons at $6.75 million each. Gaudreau registered 58 points in 70 games on 18 goals and 40 assists. Over the course of his career, however, he has been almost a point per game player. The Calgary Flames have been pretty quiet on the trade front so far this offseason and they are not expected to do any major wheeling and dealing during the draft. That being said, they are listening to offers on some of their top players, including Johnny Hockey. The haul for Gaudreau would be similar to the haul for Laine. At this time, it doesn’t work for the Flyers. In another similarity to Laine, if the Flames underperform this season and don’t make a playoff push, Gaudreau could be more available next offseason with Calgary potentially more motivated to move him.
Alex Pietrangelo
The biggest fish in the free agency waters this offseason is Alex Pietrangelo. Coming off a year in which he captained the St. Louis Blues to an incredible Stanley Cup winning campaign, Pietrangelo had another strong season this year. With 16 goals and 36 assists in 70 games, Pietrangelo continued to put up big numbers. The cap-strapped Blues likely can’t afford to keep him unless they are able to move a few players and free up cap space. At age 30, Pietrangelo could command north of $8 million average annual value (AAV), and no one would be surprised to see him sign a deal for more than $10 million AAV. His camp will be looking for long term offers only. A contract of 7 years and $65-70 million seems like a fair estimate. The Flyers should probably sit out the bidding here. Yes, Matt Niskanen just retired leaving a hole on the blue line. Yes, his contract is coming off the books, but they also have a franchise goalie who will be due an extension after this coming year. If Carter Hart follows his performance this year with another strong year next year, he will command a lot of money. The Flyers would be wise to use some of their cap space to sign a defender, but locking down Carter Hart for the long term is the better play than signing Pietrangelo.
James Van Riemsdyk
JVR returned to the Flyers in the 2018-19 season on a 5 year/$35 million deal. He carries an AAV of $7 million. 2 years into the contract, Van Riemsdyk has been okay. He was good for 19 goals and 21 assists in 66 games played this season. Serviceable? Yes. Worth $7 million per year? Debatable. When JVR gets hot, few players in the league can play like him. He’s at the front of the net tipping pucks in, or he’s screening the goalie. He was not brought here to be a healthy scratch in the playoffs. Simply put, as good as he can be, the streaks of going cold come too often and last too long. If the Flyers can find someone to take most of his contract, and they do not have to give up too much, they should pull the trigger on the deal. He has been a total pro, mentoring his younger teammates, but in order for some more young guys to grow, JVR is going to be the odd man out and some of that has to do with his contract.
Shayne Gostisbehere
Gostisbehere is probably the most polarizing player on the Flyers roster currently. He reminds me of Carson Wentz. Ghost put up 65 points in the 2017-18 season and has been average offensively since. That’s similar to Carson Wentz being the best player in football in 2017 and being an average quarterback since. Ghost dealt with knee injuries all throughout the regular season this year, missing over games. When he did play, he was ineffective. He registered career lows in goals with five, assists with seven, and points with 12. With three-years left on his deal, at $4.5 million AAV, this is not the time to trade Gostisbehere. The Flyers are faced with a big hole on the blue line now, and instead of having to sign or trade for an expensive defenseman, Gostisbehere should slide back into the lineup. He looked very good in the playoff games he played in, and he should be given another opportunity to show he can be an elite defenseman in the NHL again. If by the trade deadline and he has still underperformed with a healthy amount of minutes per game, then he should go. For now, it is in the Flyers’ best interest to keep him.
