Flyers’ General Manager Chuck Fletcher was left with a gaping hole on the blue line when Matt Niskanen officially announced his retirement one day before the NHL Draft was set to commence. Niskanen was a very reliable Right-Handed Defenseman that was on the top pairing, while being paired with a work-horse in Ivan Provorov.
With that being said, the trade deadline has come and gone with Erik Gustafsson being traded to Montreal for a 7th round pick in 2022, Michael Raffl was also traded last minute to the Washington Capitals for a 5th round pick in 2021, and Fletcher will wait until the offseason to conduct a shakeup of some sort. The Flyers have many glaring holes to plug, to include, fixing the Power Play and Penalty Kill, finding a 1B defenseman to pair with their 1A Ivan Provorov. In addition, the Flyers could use a solid forward too just in case one of the youth prospects do not plan out as planned right away.
What Fletcher did do though was re-sign Scott Laughton to a 5-year $15 million deal, worth an AAV of $3 million a year. Many teams called for Laughton’s services, but they couldn’t get a deal done.
Gustafsson was traded to Montreal for 7th round pick in 2022, and the Flyers also retained 50% of his salary ($1.5 million). Shayne Gostisbehere will never be benched for Gustafsson again.
Click here to shop for our latest sporting apparel, and accessories
Raffl is a versatile player who can play all up and down the lineup to include every forward position. He has played every forward position this season for the orange and black, and he is an excellent Penalty Killer. Fletcher did retain 25% of his salary as well to make the deal work.
This Flyers team needs a Defenceman that is reliable, logs minutes, and plays a really sound two-way hockey. Dougie Hamilton could be this player as he is a strong and well-balanced skater. Hamilton possesses solid puck-moving and passing skills, and he is not afraid to be physical as he stands at 6’5, and weighs 220 pounds. Since Fletcher elected to stand pat at the deadline, then why not make a push for such a player in the offseason. Hamilton can log minutes, and could be paired easily with Provorov.
It will be a tall task to replace the leadership, and on ice tutelage that Niskanen possessed. However, this is a must this offseason. Fletcher cannot head into next season without shoring up the defensive position.
