Emil Andrae looked like one of the Flyers’ most promising young defensemen entering this 2025 Training Camp, with his puck-moving skills, hockey IQ, and compete level shining through in Pre-Season games and last season’s NHL cameos. Sending him down to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on September 30 feels like a head-scratcher, especially when he’s waivers-exempt and arguably outperformed some of the bubble guys still hanging around (looking at you, Egor Zamula). But let’s break down why the Flyers pulled the trigger anyway, based on the latest reports and chatter.
Why It Happened: Size Over Skill (For Now), the big issue?
Andrae’s frame, at 5’9 and 189 pounds, he’s the smallest guy in the mix for that third-pairing spot, and Head Coach Rick Tocchet seems spooked about layering on too many undersized puck-movers. The Flyers already have Cam York (5’11) and Jamie Drysdale (5’11) handling that role up top, and General Manager Danny Briere has publicly flagged the need for more physical balance on the blue line—remember his draft-night comments last June about avoiding “too many small guys” like Andrae when trading down for Jett Luchanko?
In two Pre-Season games, Andrae managed just one shot on goal and finished minus-4, which didn’t scream “NHL-ready dominance,” even if his overall Camp was solid.The roster math also played a role: With injuries to guys like Karsen Dorwart, Lane Pederson, Ethan Samson, and Oliver Bonk, the Flyers are down to 28 players, but expect to trim more once those bodies heal.
Andrae’s assignment creates flexibility—no waiver risk, and he slots right into a top-pair role with the Phantoms, where he can rack up AHL minutes without stalling his development.
Unfortunately, choosing size over the better player, or player that outperformed Adam Ginning, Noah Juulsen, and Dennis Gilbert is the wrong move. It can really mess with a young prospect like Andrae, and it goes against the regime of Briere and Keith Jones saying, “The better player will play.”
Silver Lining: This Isn’t the End
At 23,, Andrae’s still young and under team control through 2026-27 (entry-level deal). He thrived in Lehigh last season and could force his way back up by December if injuries hit or the third pair flops—think how he earned those 42 games last year after starting in the AHL.
Briere’s preached patience with prospects, and this smells like a “park it for now” move rather than a burial. If the Flyers keep sputtering (as one pessimist put it, “perennial mediocrity” with Zamula over Andrae), the fan pressure will ramp up fast.
Bottom line
It makes little sense if you’re judging pure talent, but in Tortorella/Briere’s “build a winner” lens, it’s about avoiding a small-D nightmare that dooms them in a physical Metro. Still, yeah—feels shortsighted. Keep an eye on Phantoms games; Andrae could light it up and make them eat this.
Jacob Gaucher sent back to Lehigh
Gaucher was sent to Lehigh today, leaving the Flyers with 24 healthy players, including Jett Luchanko, Nikita Grebenkin, Rodrigo Abols, Dennis Gilbert, Noah Juulsen, and Adam Ginning.
The Flyers only have to make one more cut, before the season begins on October 9, 2025.
Oliver Bonk will be out approximately two weeks with an Upper Body Injury. He is currently on the Flyers roster,as they cannot send injured players back to Lehigh, the same goes for Lane Pederson.
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Your fascination with Andre makes absolutely no sense. He is not better than the remaining defenseman. Otherwise he would still be with the team. Tocchet talked about that last spot on defense and how it has to be a penalty killer. Andre is not a penalty killer. Zamula is bigger and better than Andre is. I’m not sure of your thought process on this matter, but you’re off base on this. The team has Zamula as the 5th dman, and Andre as needing more seasoning in the ahl. I agree 100%.
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