Heading into his second full season as a Flyer, Jamie Drysdale was facing a bit of a crossroads. He wasn’t horrible in 2024-25 by any means, but he lacked the sort of high level play that was expected of him when he was drafted 6th overall in 2020. While he did serve as a consistent top-four defender throughout last season, he didn’t really get trusted with high leverage minutes in difficult matchups, and never seemed to fully gain the trust of John Tortorella.
| Games Played | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM | Shots on Goal | Shooting % | Average T.O.I |
| 78 | 8 | 24 | 32 | 33 | 101 | 7.9 | 21:33 |
And while it is no fault of his own, Drysdale will always be inextricably linked, in the minds of some fans, to being the main piece in the return for Cutter Gauthier. And last season especially, there was an expectation that Drysdale would take a step and become a true top-end puck-moving defender in what was his fifth NHL season.
It may have taken a little bit longer than was originally expected, but during the 2025-26 season, things finally started to come together for the now 24 year old.
| 5v5 Points per 60 | Primary Points per 60 | Shots on goal per 60 | Shot Attempts per 60 | Expected goals per 60 |
| 0.75 | 0.49 | 3.6 | 9.06 | 3.16 |
From game one, where he played 22:54 in a 2-1 loss to the Panthers after averaging just under 20 the year prior, it seemed as if Drysdale was more focal to Rick Tocchet’s plans than under the previous regime. And that trend helped throughout the entire season. Drysdale played the third-most minutes of any Flyer on the man advantage, upped his point total from 20 to 32, and played 78 of 82 games.
And by the end of the year, it seemed as if he had become just as reliable an option as Cam York and Rasmus Ristolainen. Crucially, you stopped really worrying about him playing in the defensive zone and getting overwhelmed. He possessed a poise that you didn’t really see in his first few years in the league, outside of spurts.
| (5v5) Goals For % | Expected Goals For % | Corsi For % | High-Danger Attempts For% | PDO |
| 50.5 | 52.98 | 52.51 | 57.03 | 1.006 |
He increased all of his advanced analytics, cut down his number of giveaways from 73 to 54 despite playing more games, and nearly doubled his shots on goal in the regular season. And once the Flyers got to the playoffs, Drysdale stepped up to the occasion and met the level that was required to thrive in a hotly contested rivalry series against the Penguins.
Not only was he ready, he was the one who got the Flyers off the mark in game one with his first career playoff goal.
Drysdale would score again against the Hurricanes, and finish his first playoff run having tallied four points in 10 games, while looking the best that he has in his entire career.
A particular thing that stood out was nothing flashy or highlight reel, but rather his willingness in the Pittsburgh series to retreat into his own zone and make plays without fear, while knowing that he was going to be under constant pressure and take some hits. He was still able to think things through, and create in a responsible manner; that shows growth, and it seems as if the growing pains for Drysdale may be finished, and giving way to a true top-four defenseman on a championship contender.
Did Drysdale live up to expectations?
Drysdale improved over the year prior leaps and bounds, and I think this year sets the groundwork for him to become a mainstay with his new team. With his old Anaheim buddy in Trevor Zegras just as likely to stick around, it seems like things are finally looking up for a player who silenced a lot of critics with his play this past season.
He may never be the elite offensive defenseman that people thought he was going to be out of the draft, but he has shown that he can be a more than capable puck mover who is mobile, and capable of wreaking havoc when he activates in the offensive zone. He hasn’t really gotten the hang of being a true PP1 quarterback, but I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that the entire team and organization can’t grasp the concept of a PP1.
At 5-on-5 especially, Drysdale seemed to really take a step forward, and became a pleasant surprise for a team that was caught a little lacking this year on the back end, especially while Rasmus Ristolainen was injured. He didn’t turn into prime Erik Karlsson overnight, but Drysdale showed that he can be a real contributor for the future, and I don’t think anyone can be too upset with what he showed
What can we expect from Drysdale next season?
It remains to be seen if Drysdale remains alongside Cam York to start next season, but that pairing was really good in spurts during the Flyers’ playoff run and if there could be some stability there, you could see a new long-term second pair emerge that could be together for a significant time period to come. Drysdale himself however, has likely shown us his new baseline standard of play. The improvements he made this year, the steps that he took, are largely concrete, and I would be very surprised to see him regress in the decision-making department.
While it remains to be seen if the Flyers bring in someone else to try and quarterback their currently anemic power play, Drysdale is currently pencilled in to at least get some chances with PP1, if not be the full-time QB. He’ll be relied upon to play at a minimum 20 minutes a night, and it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that he could even crack the half a point per-game mark with a little more puck luck.
Things are looking up for the Dry Guy, and we may not even know his ceiling just yet.
What can we expect from Drysdale next season?
It was a solid step forward for Drysdale this year. He didn’t make any major leaps, but he really rounded out his game in a way that he sorely needed to in order to keep his career on the ascendency. He peaked at the correct time late in the season, and wasn’t swallowed up by a playoff moment that could have very well been too big for him. He wasn’t a top pair offensive juggernaut, and he might never be, but he proved that at the very least, he could be a part of a contending team that plays a style that places a premium on hard work and defense.
He did the little things right consistently, cleaned things up around the edges, and had a solid season that should secure his future in Philadelphia for quite a while longer.
Grade: B
