Although the final decision might not have been expected until July 10, the dreams of Leo Carlsson being Philadelphia’s first-line center were foiled Thursday afternoon. Anaheim matched the five-year, $90 million offer sheet the Flyers extended to Carlsson on July 3. Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek and the team’s ownership painted a rosy picture on the outcome, as if they were over the moon realizing they’ve put themselves in cap hell for a little while for a negotiation they screwed up completely last summer.
Flyers fans and faithful are now lamenting the loss of Carlsson, even though he never played a game for the franchise to begin with. It’s a swing Flyers general manager Danny Briere took whole-heartedly, realizing the need the Flyers have at that position while also using a great deal of leverage with the bonus structure in creating a contract that sees Carlsson as the league’s highest paid player. Some might argue he should’ve gone for the maximum contract on Carlsson. But landing Carlsson for $100 million over five years might have put Philadelphia in a precarious cap position, particularly with some youngsters like Porter Martone and Matvei Michkov to take care of in the near future.
However, while Carlsson in a Flyers uniform would’ve been a huge boost to the club, the team has still done a very credible job in filling some holes, improving their positional depth, and seemingly on the verge of locking up two former Ducks to extensions that should see them in Philadelphia for a while. There’s still the obvious “to do” on Briere’s to-do list, and Carlsson’s arrival would’ve resolved that for the next little while. But the fact Anaheim agreed to match doesn’t make Briere’s summer any less of a positive than it was prior.
What Briere has done
Prior to the offer sheet, Briere did a very nice bit of business in securing winger Tyson Foerster to an eight-year, $56.8 million deal ($7.1 million average annual value). It might have been a pre-emptive measure from the offer sheet may (or may not) and the possible blowback heading in Philadelphia’s direction. Or simply wanting to get the deal done now before a possible 35-goal to 40-goal season hiked that number significantly. Regardless, it got done. And should Foerster pan out, it will be a good contract moving forward.
In terms of the backup goaltending situation, Sam Ersson was shipped off to Toronto along with Emil Andrae (and a 2026 third-round pick) in exchange for goaltender Joseph Woll and defenseman Simon Benoit. Woll should most likely be a substantial upgrade on Ersson, who was later dealt to Ottawa by the Leafs. Woll posted decent numbers, much closer to that .900 number then Ersson was the last two regular seasons. Woll’s play should give Philadelphia a greater chance at locking up wins earlier in the season than last year, and easing the strain on Dan Vladar to essentially win every start he gets. As for Benoit, he’s a big depth defender, possibly an upgrade on Noah Juulsen as the team’s sixth or seventh defenseman.
Speaking of Vladar, Briere signed him to a five-year, $27.5 million contract extension which kicks in next summer. Again, some might have took a wait-and-see approach to see if Vladar’s 2025-26 wasn’t just a one-hit wonder. But the general manager, as he said during a recent presser, acknowledged getting him now at that number avoided going into a much higher, crazy figure he wasn’t keen on entertaining. So, another piece of the puzzle that should give Philadelphia a better chance at being a contender than a pretender down the road.
Adding more pieces, keeping more pieces
While signing a handful of players to beef up the Lehigh Valley Phantoms next year, Philadelphia also took care of their fourth line needs. The Flyers shipped out Garnet Hathaway in a deal (while retaining half of his cap hit for the last year of his contract) and signed former Penguin Noel Acciari to a two-year $5.6 million contract ($2.8 million AAV). Acciari, 34, should be an upgrade on Hathaway and possible waiver pickup Luke Glendening and provides a pick of offensive punch. Nothing earth-shattering, but it’s another problem that Briere appears to have upgraded through free agency.
As for the draft, the Flyers went big in round one, drafting the mammoth Maksim Sokolovskii with the twenty-seventh pick. Sokolovskii is raw, but he’s big, and could end up being a huge and important part of the Flyers defensive corps down the road. Again, not a piece that’s going to help the Flyers now, but in a few years time when they could be closer to serious contenders.
Meanwhile, most likely the next order (or orders) of business should be the contract extensions to forward Trevor Zegras and defenseman Jamie Drysdale. There were early reports that Drysdale’s deal is for four years at a cost of $25 million over the span. Nothing’s been confirmed yet. Assuming they’re not exorbitant, the contracts should secure two other pieces that look to be fitting in comfortably to the rebuild. The fact both filed for arbitration shouldn’t reflect on an impasse between the sides. Most likely it prevented offer sheets from possibly being extended to them. Again, it’s another box or boxes checked off this summer’s agenda.
Flyers will move on but are open for business
As incredible as it would’ve been to land Carlsson, Philadelphia has to realize they’re still on the rise. Not landing a piece that would’ve sped up the contention process dramatically might leave a sour taste in many mouths for some time. Briere and the front office have to move on and see if anything can be done logically to enhance their centers. Some are suggesting the Flyers have an offer sheet being made for Adam Fantilli of Columbus. It’s possible, but seems unlikely. They can’t do something rash or hasty because Carlsson is no longer available.
Some might look at the failed attempts at trying to land John Carlson, trying to possibly put a package together for Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski, and now Carlsson’s offer sheet failure, as huge steps back for the club. The one which might smart the most is Leo Carlsson, but in the bigger picture, the offer sheet was a statement that the Flyers are open for business. And they’ll pay top dollar for top talent.
The Flyers are in good shape for next year. They’ll have a whole year of Foerster and Martone (barring injuries), a dependable backup, possibly a strong offensive defenseman (and young’un) in David Jiricek, and a hunger to get back to the playoffs to see if they can go further. That’s not to mention Denver Barkey and Alex Bump and what they might bring to the table next season in a full 84-game schedule. And should something arise between now and the start of the season, they still have an adequate amount of cap space (and moveable parts) to make something else happen if it makes sense.
The offer sheet could’ve been the icing on a very rich cake for the Flyers and Briere. As it stands now, the cake tastes pretty good looking at 2026-27.
