This week marks the first time there are hints of it not being summer. Most of us are continuing to do the same things — unless you are a student reading this, which I am empathetic to — but are bracing for the fact that soon we will be stuck home, with the crawling frost sweeping across the country. Fewer things to go out and enjoy and be social, but you know what there will actually be more of? Hockey on our screens.
We have been so, so patient for our beloved Philadelphia Flyers to return. Twiddling our thumbs until we get to overreact to every little mistake that happens on the ice and think about what could have been until the very next moment that will result in the same never-ending cycle. And this summer has been really making us stretch out some storylines for what is going on in the Flyers’ world.
Of course, Matvei Michkov coming over filled an entire month of conjuring for us. The 2024 NHL Draft and following free agency was middling in entertainment. And then we got a late-summer Ryan Johansen contract termination and resulting legal battle (the start of it all, anyways). But other than that, there have not been any real, true and hard transactions for us to sink our teeth into.
We can’t dream up of any cool additions other than Michkov, or even think about potential young players seizing more of an opportunity because some veteran player was moved out in a rebuilding transaction. Not a whole lot in that world has gone on for Philadelphia, and it all could be the right move in the end but we are left a little bit bored and impatient for these trades or signings to be made.
It is possible to hold both statements of “making this year focused on development of current young NHL players” and “I wish there were more transactions this summer, so it was more exciting” in your head at the same time. So, speaking on the latter, we’re thinking about moves that we kind-of-sort-of wanted to happen these last few months.
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