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Flyers Trick or Treat: Early surprises and letdowns this season

It’s spooky season and it’s time to determine which Philadelphia Flyers players have been a TRICK or a TREAT so far.

Posted on by Jason MacNeil

The Philadelphia Flyers’ 2025-26 season is still in its infancy with lots of hockey left to be played. But already there have been players for the Flyers who have been a bright spot or have surprised some people. And then there are others who are still looking like they’ve been getting some of the rust off or having a bit of a slump to begin the year.

So, with Halloween set for Friday, it’s time to take an early look at just who has been underwhelming or not great so far (the tricks) and those players who have been fun to watch as well as surprisingly good (the treats). We’ll look at each player regardless, whether it’s Emil Andrae who has had one game to his credit thus far, or Owen Tippett, who looks like he’s developing into the player Philadelphia dreamed of when he arrived in the Claude Giroux trade from Florida. And some might have specific treats tied to them, depending on how well they’ve played.

Dan Vladar: Treat

Vladar has played five games heading into Tuesday’s game against the Penguins. And each game has seen him do an outstanding job of making the saves he needs to make while also coming up with some big stops at crucial times. Vladar has a .932 save percentage and a very impressive 1.82 goals-against average. He has been everything Flyers general manager Danny Briere could’ve hoped for and then some. Whether Vladar continues this solid play the rest of the way remains to be seen. What he has done is give the skaters in front of him the confidence that any mistake or giveaway won’t automatically end up in the back of the net.

Nic Deslauriers: Trick

With this fourth-liner and enforcer possibly seeing his playing time on par with last season (30 games) or lower, Nic Deslauriers appears to be playing out the string in the final year of his four-year contract with Philadelphia. In the exhibition season he dropped the gloves with Florian Xhekaj and so far in two games he fought Marcus Foligno which momentarily got the Flyers crowd revved up. Overall though, Deslauriers might find himself on the outside looking in, particularly if players like Rodrigo Abols and especially Nikita Grebenkin continue to play well and aren’t huge liabilities in the minutes they’re given.

Nobody would suspect an aging bottom-six forward who has made his living as an enforcer to be a star. Yet it seems that Deslauriers isn’t going to be part of the Flyers rebuild after this season. Heck, if a team is looking for a little bit of depth and toughness heading down the stretch, a few teams might be kicking the tires on him. As it stands now though, Deslauriers hasn’t done much.

Travis Konecny: Trick

Konecny has a goal and three assists through eight games. The goal was the game-winner against Seattle. He also has one power play point, an assist versus the Canes. But Konecny hasn’t been a play-driver so far into the 2025-26 season. In fact, he’s often looked like he’s on the wrong side of the puck, or far too deliberate at times in his decision-making, whether making the pass out of the zone to start a rush or waiting far too long to shoot, reducing his own time and space just by hesitating.

When he was paired with Sean Couturier and Matvei Michkov (34:02 time on ice five-on-five) the line had only 38.10 per cent of the shot attempts share. In a short stint with Trevor Zegras and Owen Tippet it wasn’t much better at 38.46 per cent of the shot attempts share. Now with Couturier and Tippett, that stat is finally above the 50 per cent mark, but much of that could be due to just how stellar Tippett has been thus far, consistently looking like he’s making a difference. Konecny might get hot soon, but so far a lot of his decisions as well as the eye test have been problematic. After finishing 2024-25 with just seven goals in his final 44 games, having just one tally (so eight goals in his last 52 regular season games) so far isn’t great. It isn’t even that good.

Cam York: Treat

He missed the first few games recovering from an injury. But when he returned boy did Cam York look good. He has only solidified the first pairing with Travis Sanheim while more than holding his own in some defensive metrics. Although not getting the spotlight or recognition that Sanheim deservedly receives, York has been great in each of his appearances with three assists and a few of those on the power play. It’s a fantastic (and slightly delayed) start to the season and a good look at what York may provide for most (hopefully all) of the five-year contract he signed this summer. Possibly having York and Sanheim locked up at roughly $11 million AAV combined for what some stud defensemen could be commanding in the coming seasons elsewhere is money extremely well spent.

Egor Zamula: Trick

When he entered training camp this season, Egor Zamula should have guaranteed himself a spot on the third pairing. Put in the work, don’t look foolish, and don’t give the likes of Noah Juulsen, Dennis Gilbert, Oliver Bonk, or Emil Andrae a chance to overtake you. Throughout the camp and the exhibition season, Zamula was awful, not distancing himself from those other blueliners but instead doing everything he could possibly do to self-sabotage his chances. And while he has been mildly less horrid the last handful of games, the fact he’s played only five of the eight games is alarming. Particularly for someone entering their third full season in Philadelphia.

Had Bonk not gotten injured, had Juulsen and Gilbert not looked as poor as they have, it’s possible Zamula would be still looking to start his first game of the season. Given the circumstances had Zamula just been average he probably would’ve silenced skeptics. As it stands now, with Rasmus Ristolainen’s return looming sooner than later, Zamula might find himself being a healthy scratch far more in 2025-26 than at any point in his career. The situation called for the big defenseman to take a step forward. Now it appears as if he’s going to have to play far better to prevent himself from taking a step or three back.

Garnet Hathaway: Trick

Granted, Garnet Hathaway should be cut a little bit of slack. His linemates on the fourth line thus far seemingly included everyone but Michkov, Keith Jones and Gritty. With the rotating fourth line including Deslauriers, Nikita Grebenkin, Jett Luchanko, Rodrigo Abols, and even Owen Tippett briefly, Hathaway hasn’t exactly found a great deal of chemistry thus far. The combination that has seen him with Grebenkin and Abols, however, has been a small bright spot on the bottom six. And with Jett Luchanko sent back to the Ontario Hockey League recently, that combination might become more concrete. They haven’t mustered much offensively, but generally they’ve found themselves on the right side of the puck more often than not.

The veteran antagonist and manure disturber is looking for his first point of the season as well as his first game where he’s a plus on the plus/minus scale. So far he’s been okay, but it’s probably safe to say that he’s not going to be part of the Flyers future by the end of next season when his contract ends. If he plays well and the Flyers find themselves out of a playoff spot, perhaps he’s a piece they move out to obtain a mid-round pick down the road. Regardless, there hasn’t been a lot of things to get excited about with Hathaway.

Bobby Brink: Treat!

What a difference a season or two make. Bobby Brink is not the most imposing forward in the National Hockey League. He would probably be on the wrong end of fisticuffs if the situation presented itself. Yet over the last season plus, Brink has developed into an excellent winger who might not be the biggest, but is going to work his ass off to prove he belongs. A smaller body who is willing to outwork opponents in the corners and in one-on-one battles, Brink has found his footing on the line with Noah Cates and Tyson Foerster, one of the most consistent lines not just on the Flyers but around the NHL.

The line has an expected goals for percentage of 57.43 five-on-five in 81:55 ice time thus far. And Brink has been no slouch, scoring a pair of goals alongside three assists for five points. As well, Brink has been on the minus side of plus/minus just once this season. And that came against the Jets, the reigning President’s Trophy winners. In brief (I won’t use the word short here), Brink has been a grin-inducing surprise both for his determination, consistency and doing the hard little things to keep plays going or stop the opposition cold.

Noah Juulsen: Trick

Noah Juulsen was one of two free agent signings Danny Briere used to try to add some help on the back end. Dennis Gilbert was the other. Gilbert is now in Lehigh Valley after clearing waivers. As for Juulsen, his role is probably teetering more on the health of Rasmus Ristolainen than anything else. Juulsen threw one or two heavy hits in the exhibition season to make his case. Too often he was on the wrong end of a miscue or just incapable of making the simple clears or plays to end an opponent’s chance. Through eight games, Juulsen has no points and he’s been on the ice for just a 40.44 per cent share of the shot attempts five-on-five. Perhaps the only thing that can be positive about Juulsen’s play is that it hasn’t resulted yet in a late-game loss in regulation. A bit underwhelming, even for a bottom-pairing defender.

Trevor Zegras: Treat!

When he was acquired, Trevor Zegras was supposed to be that center that the Flyers desperately needed. Well, with Christian Dvorak on his line, as well as Matvei Michkov the last few games, Zegras is playing a “hybrid” of sorts between wing and center. Nobody really gives a damn about the positioning when he can make jaw-dropping, did-I-just-see-that plays like he has a handful of times so far this year. The first was the comically clever pass against the Panthers from behind Florida’s net. Avoiding two high elbows, including one from Sam Bennett, Zegras passed the puck through a maze of opponents to a wide open Sean Couturier who rifled it home. And on Saturday against the Islanders, Zegras made a lovely feed to a charging Dvorak who beat the goalie for a beautiful tally. No Michigan yet, but nobody cares!

Zegras has eight points, and he’s slowly but surely helping Michkov with his own woes. He didn’t hit the ground running, but he’s been becoming a far more valuable piece of the core and the future (assuming Briere extends him) with each passing game. Besides, when he’s nagging Tocchet after games late at night about plays and ways to improve, that’s never a bad thing.

Sean Couturier: Treat

Remember when he was a healthy scratch last year? Well, for now it seems like those days are done. Flyers captain Sean Couturier is working well and looking good. Couturier was never a speed demon on the ice. What he’s always been is smart, being in the right place at the right time in his own end while helping create offense up ice. Like Zegras, Couturier has eight points in eight games, and all at even strength. He didn’t get his eighth point of the 2024-25 season until Nov. 5 with a pair of assists against Carolina. So he’s ahead of schedule in that respect. And he’s had a four-point game early this year in a win over the Panthers, similar to the five-point, hat-trick game against the Wild last year.

Couturier might be the beneficiary of playing alongside the leading point-getter last year in Konecny (although he hasn’t been great) and the warhorse that is becoming Owen Tippett. He is still delivering quality minutes and is chipping in offensively. That’s basically all you can ask for from a guy who is probably going to become the longest-tenured Flyers player in franchise history barring injuries. With any luck, he gets a taste of the playoffs to whet his appetite in the spring.

Nick Seeler: Treat

The blocked shots are still piling up, albeit somewhat slower than previous seasons, but Nick Seeler is developing some great chemistry with Jamie Drysdale from the start of this year. Seeler and Drysdale have been one of the stingier duos at even-strength this year. He’s not quite as much of a revelation as he was a few seasons ago. Maybe it’s because that level of play he’s had the last few years is becoming the rule, not the exception. He’s still looking for his first goal of the year to go with a pair of assists. And he seems to be the perfect partner for Drysdale who can become a rover at times depending on the circumstances and if Philadelphia is trailing in the third. A middle-pairing, stay-at-home, tough-as-nails defenseman is something any team in the NHL wants to have. And Seeler fits that bill to a science.

Jett Luchanko: A tricky treat

So we’ve made exceptions to the trick or treat rule. Sue us! Luchanko will play the rest of the season in the Ontario Hockey League after a four-game stint that didn’t quite live up to the high expectations some may have had. Luchanko’s statistics mirrored his 2024-25 numbers. However, the buildup and tire-pumping former Flyers coach John Tortorella had for Luchanko this year didn’t quite appear to be the same this year with Rick Tocchet. Tocchet and Briere were more in synch with their bigger picture and the thought process behind not rushing a youngster too quickly.

Luchanko hopefully will have a healthy, productive final season in junior. Using him in a fourth line role was definitely not something anyone with the Flyers wanted to transpire this year. Unfortunately, with the change in policy among NHL teams and junior teams not happening until next year, Luchanko couldn’t end up being that one player assigned to the American Hockey League and see his game develop with the Phantoms against better talent. As it stands now Luchanko had another taste of the NHL. With any luck next season that taste is far more than a cup of coffee.

Matvei Michkov: Treat (mini-KitKat Halloween bar edition)

Matvei Michkov swore he would come into this season ready for bear. He was going to wow the pants off Rick Tocchet, Danny Briere and anybody who was sharing the ice with him. Well, an ankle injury in the summer put those quick start plans on the backburner. Michkov has three points in eight games after going pointless in his first three games. He also saw a few missed shifts, namely after a few missed assignments during games. But he seems to be slowly turning a corner. Since finding some mojo with Christian Dvorak and Zegras, Michkov is starting to look like the rookie phenom fans and followers fell in love with. The shootout goal against the Islanders Saturday was another plus, as was seeing him on the ice in three-on-three overtime in the same contest.

The Mad Russian has been a treat, but in the style of those miniature KitKat bars: you are happy with the meager chocolate found inside the wrapper, but you desperately want more. Like seventeen of them. And soon.

Sam Ersson: Trick

It’s hard to knock Ersson, particularly after the game-saving stops he made against the Islanders late in regulation and especially in overtime. Ersson was terrific when he needed to be. However, the numbers are the numbers. And in three games thus far, Ersson is still looking for his first game where his save percentage is at or above .900. That’s the bar he has to reach. Last season, he had his moments at that level. But far too often he was far, far under that standard. Thus far he has a win but save percentages of .897, .714, and .885. It’s not that he’s far off the .900, it’s just that you want him to get there, not close to it.

If the Islanders game is a forerunner of what’s to come, Flyers fans will rejoice. Ersson is going to be given a chance this season to make a case for himself. But he’s in tough it appears if the other half of the tandem in Dan Vladar is playing this fine. We’d like him to be a treat, but have been burned too often in the past to avoid the bottom line. He has yet to stop an average of nine out of ten shots over the course of a game. Until he does the jury is still out.

Emil Andrae: Treat

One game. That’s been it. Was a very good game. But he’s been one-and-done so far. Andrae is probably going to get the call up from Lehigh Valley again this year. And he deserves a longer look than three periods. But for now we’ll base it on the one game he dressed in Philadelphia. Also, heading into Tuesday’s action, Andrae was atop the National Hockey League in shot attempts share at 87.5 per cent. Yes it was only one game. But it was, as mentioned, a very good one.

Noah Cates: Treat (Gigantic Halloween dream treat)

After inking a four-by-four deal (four years, $16 million), center Noah Cates is becoming one of the best two-way centers in the league. Put him and his wingers Bobby Brink and Tyson Foerster against the best of the best, and the best will be one-upped by this hard-working, play-driving, and possibly promising power play trio. He has three goals and two assists so far, a game-winner, and a power play tally. His expected goals for percentage is 60.27 currently heading into Tuesday’s game against Pittsburgh, nearly matching his career high of 60.75 back in 2023-24.

Cates is leading by example, working his tail off on both ends of the ice while playing against the opponent’s best line most of the time. And not as a shadow, tightly checking the stars and limiting their chances. Cates and his line are using the adage that the best defense is a good offense, taking it to the opposing top lines routinely. Cates has been another huge bright spot on what has been a up-and-down start to the year.

Jamie Drysdale: Treat

While he won’t be a sniper and score between 30 to 40 goals a season like the guy the Flyers shipped off to acquire him, Jamie Drysdale has taken strides in his game. And particularly in his decision-making. He still occasionally seems stationary with the puck, not sure quite what to do and paying for it with a turnover or a needless hit. More often he’s making the right decision, getting the puck out or using his speed to get out of danger and lead the rush. He’s also becoming more comfortable on the power play, thanks in part to Zegras and the chemistry the pair seem to have.

Drysdale still has some work to do. If he can begin to gather some power play goals or assists with shots from the point, he’ll be quite valuable and the extension he needs following this year should be a quick and rather painless negotiation. Getting the power play going isn’t his calling or obligation. Helping it get off the mat will be a huge step forward for a 23-year-old defenseman with a healthy season under his belt following a hellish few years with the Ducks.

Rodrigo Abols: Treat (small licorice)

Rodrigo Abols is one of the happier stories so far with Philadelphia. An afterthought in training camp, Abols kept making the cut, and making the cut, until finally he had made the roster. Abols has no points in four games in a fourth-line role. He has also made a case for himself to be that center the rest of the way considering Jett Luchanko won’t be around. If he continues to play will, do the little things and keep the mistakes in coverage to a minimum, it could be a good year for the 29-year-old forward.

Tyson Foerster: Treat

With the way Bobby Brink and Noah Cates have come out of the gates, Tyson Foerster is not slouching. He has three goals and three assists for six points. And he’s been fine in each and every game in 2025-26. On the ice for just one goal against while five-on-five, Foerster is scoring at one end and shutting down in the other two zones. Like any other Flyers forward being used on the power play, if he can get going there he will be even more impressive.

Consistency has been the greatest description you can tie to a professional, and Foerster has been that. With any luck, he starts potting a few on the steadily improving “second unit” on the power play and takes his game to an even higher level.

Travis Sanheim: Treat (Don’t overdo it on the candy though)

Tocchet realized just how much Sanheim was being used in a few games early on as Cam York was injured. He also knew that he can’t run a horse that hard that early without injury or exhaustion rearing its ugly head. So Sanheim has been playing a wee bit less thanks to York’s arrival but has looked fantastic most nights. A few periods he would probably like to forget, yet overall the blueliner is making a case to be not just in the conversation for Team Canada’s roster at the forthcoming Winter Olympics, but a case to be one of the locks when Team Canada’s brass meet and hash out who is on the team and who won’t be.

If York and Drysdale can pick up the slack and start producing on the power play, that should be another huge plus in keeping Sanheim healthy for longer and reducing some minutes. This year is going to be hellish with two highly-concentrated sprints on either side of the Olympics. With any luck he can handle the workload he’s going to be given, and those further down the depth chart can carry their fair share.

Owen Tippett: Treat

He started a bit slow, the questions started creeping up. Then something clicked. Instead of waiting for Couturier or Konecny to lead the way, Tippett turned into the bull in the china shop. He has taken control of that line and he is willing to use the body, take the body and blow past anybody to be successful. He’s also winning the Cy Young award on the team with five goals and zero assists. Tippett is shooting and scoring, not thinking about passing first. It’s the start fans have been dreaming of for some time. And it could finally be here for a while. Hopefully it’s not just one of his hot streaks and he ends up going in a 10-game or 15-game goalless stretch a week or two from now. Tippett looks like a forward possessed. He’s got the speed and the power to change games and fortunes for a team. Tocchet has tapped into something Tippett already had in spurts. It makes one wonder if he’s going to surpass his goal total from last year far, far earlier than expected.

Adam Ginning: Trick

Adam Ginning has played three games, has been spotted time on the top pairing and has been a healthy scratch for five games. But he hasn’t really pushed the needle enough to make him overtake Noah Juulsen or Egor Zamula, which can’t be a good feeling considering how poorly both have looked. Ginning might end up being an adequate seventh defensemen for chunks of this year. But so far, his time hasn’t been incredible. It’s been passable at best.

Nikita Grebenkin: Treat (a surprise bag)

Grebenkin deserved a spot on the roster with his style of play and going into the dirty areas to win pucks. If something were to fall apart on the top lines, it’s conceivable Grebenkin would get time in the middle six or top six. He’s still got some things to learn away from the puck and has been a -4 thus far with one assist to his credit. The youngster Philadelphia acquired in the Scott Laughton trade looks like he has room to grow, and can handle himself when playing against heavier teams.

Grebenkin is still looking for his first NHL goal after 13 NHL games. He is going to be a fun player to watch no matter what. And being on the fourth line as an energy player seems to be the perfect fit for the time being.

Christian Dvorak: Treat (a bag of chips)

The price tag was high. A worthwhile overpay it appears so far on a one-year deal. Christian Dvorak is looking like the responsible anchor down the middle while Zegras and Michkov sort themselves out and their chemistry continues to build. Dvorak is a steadying presence, big at an important position but with some talent to go alongside that. If Dvorak maintains that level of play while watching Zegras and Michkov begin to go off night after night, Philadelphia might have got a steal of a deal with the forward who could be playing himself into a short extension. The goal he scored against the Islanders was extremely pretty.

It’s early, but at this rate, Dvorak could crack the 40-point mark for the first time in his career. That would only improve Philadelphia’s playoff chances. Or at least be in the hunt when late March and early April rolls around.

All stats courtesy NHL.com and Natural Stat Trick

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