In this edition of Examining Flyers Offseason Moves we will take a look at veteran defensemen Justin Braun. Braun was acquired from the Sharks last June, for a 2019 second round pick, and a third round pick in this year’s 2020 draft. Braun has proven some wrong with his play this season. In what way has he proved them wrong some may ask? It’s simple, since settling in after a slow start in October he has hit the ground running ever since. Proving that he can play away from San Jose Sharks star defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic. Braun has established himself as a staple of the Flyers defense this season pairing at many times with youngster Travis Sanheim. Braun’s veteran leadership, as well as, the fact he is a stay at home defensemen first and foremost has really helped a guy like Sanheim to grow this season. Braun when paired with Sanheim, allows Sanheim to play his full game which of course, is a developing top four two-way defensemen, with very good budding offensive skills where Braun is more of a stay at home defender. This works perfect since in the worst case scenario, a veteran stand-up defender is back to try to stop the opposing rush. So even before getting into Braun’s stats, we can already tell that he has been yet again another effective pickup for Flyers General Manager Chuck Fletcher.
Time to now get into those stats of Flyers veteran defensemen Justin Braun. In 62 games on the season, Braun had three goals and 16 assists for a total of 19 points. He had a plus minus of minus two to go along with those stats, improving from a -14 the season prior. So it is safe to say, after a slow start, while adjusting to a new system, Braun has fit just like a glove into Head Coach Alain Vigneault’s system. That slow start of a -8 for October is also the main reason Braun is a minus on the season, which again was time he was adjusting to the system. In addition, Braun is an effective defenseman for a stay at home defender, but we can see Braun had a very solid offensive season. As fans, I’m sure many of us would take 19 points any day of the week from a stand up defender such as Braun. Braun has proven to be effective along the boards all season using his bigger frame to knock players off the puck, and shielding others from getting the puck. He has also shown the ability more than I would think many expected, to be able to move the puck up the ice helping to lead to his 16 assists. Braun like Tyler Pitlick, whom I wrote about in the last offseason article that was published earlier in the week, has been very reliable this season only taking 18 total penalty minutes. This is key due to the fact that Braun is often used on the penalty kill, a position he has been effective in all season.Â
It’s rather easy to see how and why Braun has fit into the Flyers system rather well. So the only question left to answer is will the Flyers re-sign him? As stated in the Pitlick article, if it was up to me due to how well Braun has fit into the system, as well as, helping youngsters along the way, he would be re-signed. Moreover, he would also be re-signed if the money worked. With the uncertainty surrounding how the cap will adjust after this season due to the pandemic, the Flyers are bound to have to make a decision on someone in terms of letting them go. Will that person be Braun? Who knows. All that is know at this point is Braun has certainly done enough to warrant an extension from the Flyers. Yet again though, hockey is a business, and if the Flyers were to loose a veteran defensemen to free agency or trade, they should be confident Fletcher has his eyes on another to potentially slot right in, or of course a potential in-house option stepping up and taking the reigns like a Shayne Gostisbehere, Samuel Morin if healthy, or Mark Friedman just to name a few. All in all, Braun has had a very solid season with the Flyers, proving Chuck Fletcher was right in giving up two picks for his services.
Braun was not worth two high draft picks. Bad trade.