Rebuild or Retool? How Should The Flyers Approach Their Future?

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The Philadelphia Flyers are currently on a 10 game losing streak and showing no signs of improvement gameplay-wise. Even after the firing of Alain Vigneault, the team has looked uninspired and lackluster in their effort on the ice. Many fans are frustrated with this season’s Flyers team and are unsure about the future of the organization. 

With such uncertainty comes the debate of how the Flyers need to proceed and what they should do moving forward regarding the makeup of the team. Considering this, whether the Flyers should rebuild or retool has been a hot topic of discussion amongst the media and Flyers fans alike. Below I’ll be delving into the arguments for both options and what I believe would be the best course of action going forward to ensure the Flyers can return to relevancy within the NHL landscape.  

A Flyers Rebuild:

With the Flyers going through several years of a quasi rebuild under Ron Hextall and no superstar talent to show for it, the future of the team is looking quite concerning. As the years have gone by it has become abundantly clear that in terms of replacing one of the franchise all-time greats in Claude Giroux there are no players on the horizon and roster that can match the skill level of the Flyers longest-tenured Captain in history. Coupling that with another lost season in the making and the frustration has set in for much of the Flyers fan base. 

As a result, it’s been proposed by media pundits and fans alike that the Flyers should tear down the roster and go through a full rebuild. With the team lacking dynamic players that have game-breaking ability this is an idea that makes a considerable amount of sense. Out of the players that would be deemed untouchable you likely have Carter Hart and Joel Farabee but in regards to the remainder of the roster, anything and everything would be on the table.

In the immediate future, it’s likely the Flyers would begin unloading players such as Claude Giroux (if he waives his NMC), Justin Braun, Derick Brassard, Keith Yandle, Nate Thompson, and Rasmus Ristolainen who are all currently on expiring contracts. The return for such players above will be prospects and picks. However, by stocking up on draft capital the Flyers will begin to try and add talent through the entry draft. 

Essentially, the main purpose of the rebuild would be to obtain as many high-tier drafts picks as possible in the next few seasons to potentially draft a generational talent or several dynamic players that are needed to compete with the top-tier teams in the league in today’s NHL. Along with unloading the players listed above in this rebuild scenario, the Flyers would need to make decisions on whether or not they should keep a variety of other roster players. The likes of Travis Konecny, Sean Couturier, Ivan Provorov, and Travis Sanheim could all be on the trading block to gain even more draft picks, prospects, and cap space to reshape the roster. 

Ultimately, if the Flyers were to go the rebuild route it could be very lucrative in terms of the picks and prospects they could obtain for the talent they have on the roster at the moment. With enough savvy moves made in relation to trading said players, as well as, the capital acquired the Flyers would be in a position to add an array of young talent with various skill sets. Not to mention having the cap flexibility to add in whatever players they believe could effectively supplement said younger talent and create a team that is constantly competitive in the Eastern Conference for the better part of a decade to come. 

Obviously, the Flyers would need to bottom out to acquire the players through the draft that can have such a significant impact. Cementing the fact that the team would likely be one of the worst in the league for roughly the next 3 to 5 seasons. As the saying goes this would be a situation where short-term pain likely results in a long-term gain for the Philadelphia Flyers. 

A Flyers Retool:

Another route the Flyers could go instead of rebuilding would be continuing with the path they are already on. Such a path would entail doubling down on retooling. This would mean Fletcher continues to trade current roster players for other NHL roster players in hockey trades if he sees fit and is looking to make a deal. 

Also, swapping out some of the expiring contracts on the roster for other new players that will be available in free agency. There’s an abundance of routes the Flyers GM could take to improve the team in this manner. Shedding salary and signing free agents in key areas that the team is lacking talent in could be an option. 

The 2022 free-agent market is certainly very enticing with the level of talent that may be available. Johnny Gaudreau, John Klingberg, Tomas Hertl, Filip Forsberg, Nazem Kadri, David Perron, Josh Manson, Evgeni Malkin, Patrice Bergeron, Kris Letang, Vincent Trocheck, and Ondrej Palat are all potentially going to be free agents. With even some other interesting names I forgot to mention.

Hypothetically, if the Flyers shed the salaries of James van Riemsdyk, Claude Giroux, Travis Konecny, Justin Braun, Keith Yandle, and Derick Brassard they would accumulate 24.3 million dollars in cap space. This doesn’t factor in the likelihood of the cap going up next season as well by at least a few million dollars which also plays into the Flyers favor. Let’s say the Flyers re-signed Rasmus Ristolainen for 5.5 million dollars that would remove about 100 thousand dollars from the cap equation leaving the team with 24.2 million dollars to spend in free agency. If spent wisely the team has the funds to add some valuable pieces that could turn the team around performance-wise.

With the players above having a chance to hit free agency once the season is over this would be one of the best years for a team to use the cap to their advantage especially if they can create some flexibility budget-wise. For the Flyers freeing up that much cap space could enable them to sign one dynamic forward and defenseman realistically. It should be noted that the Flyers ability to create cap flexibility for themselves could allow them to buy their way into having a much-improved team if the correct free agents are pursued. 

What Should The Team Actually Do?

When dissecting the Flyers outlook going into next season it’s clear that the team needs to find a defined plan moving forward and stick with it. In specific circumstances, a rebuild could possibly be the smartest move but there’s also risk involved. Look at the Buffalo Sabres and Arizona Coyotes who have essentially gone with this method for the better part of the last decade and their organizations still do not have much at all to show for it. One could argue they may be worse off. 

Retooling instead of rebuilding if the incorrect talent is signed and traded for is also something that could backfire. An example of that is the Flyers from this past off-season. Chuck Fletcher made a dearth of moves that included trades and free-agent signings changing about 45 percent of the Flyers roster and the team is potentially worse than the 2020-21 team. Additionally, if a bad contract is signed with a free agent or a trade is significantly lost that could hamper a team and its ability to build a winner moving forward. Evidently, this is a view into how a retooling method may not work out favorably for the Flyers. 

Due to the above, the best chance for the Flyers to get back on track and become competitive again is to do both a rebuild and retool. Consisting of several different moves that could be made to bolster the roster.

With the way they’re performing it would not be surprising to see the Flyers get a top 5 pick. Giving the team the chance to draft a franchise-changing type of player. Trading up in the draft to select a Shane Wright by using your own 1st round pick and adding on a roster player with a lot of value to try and make that deal could be a route to go. 

So effectively the Flyers should have the opportunity to add a top 5 player in the draft this off-season to their roster next season. From that point, the main goal should be to shed salary as best they can. If over 10 million dollars are freed up and a player of John Klingberg’s caliber is added with said cap space on defense that could change the look of this team drastically. All of a sudden just with 2 additions alone and some other free agent signings this team could look completely different. Depending on the cap space that is available the Flyers could even potentially try to sign a forward of the ilk that is Johnny Gaudreau or Tomas Hertl.

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Though this Flyers season seems that it may be slipping away the team does still have a grasp on its future. Either through a rebuild, retool or a combination of both the Flyers have full control of how they can reshape their roster for the upcoming season. With the potential cap space the team can free up and a top 5 draft pick looking like an option the team’s path back to competitiveness could be closer than it appears at the moment.