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The Philadelphia Flyers held a full-team practice on Tuesday at the FTC in Voorhees. Players took the ice at 11:30 a.m. EST. The rest of the week is going to be very busy with three games in less than four nights. The schedule:
Wed: Road game vs Capitals (7:00 p.m. EST)
Thu: Road game vs Rangers (7:00 p.m. EST)
Fri: Off day
Sat: Home game vs. Bruins (3:00 p.m. EST)
Trade deadline outlook: Ristolainen
The NHL trade deadline is March 6. The Flyers are barely on the playoff bubble as the stretch drive approaches: nine points out factoring the regulation wins tiebreaker, three teams ahead of Philly for third place in the Metro Division. Philadelphia’s nosedive in January will likely prove fatal no matter what the team does the rest of this season.
Consequently, most Flyers fans focus now more on the trade deadline (and Draft lottery odds) than on the team’s scant playoff chances. However, the organization is unlikely to do anything dramatic before the deadline.
Both Travis Sanheim and Rasmus Ristolainen played outstanding tournaments at the Olympics. That has naturally fueled calls for the Flyers to trade one or both players. Let’s start with Ristolainen.
There is a realistic chance the Flyers could move the 31-year-old Finn by the deadline. He has one year left on his current contract at a $5.5 million AAV. If not traded, the 2026-27 campaign is likely to be his final season with the team regardless. Additionally, Ristolainen’s recent injury history creates concern. He was healthy and productive at the Olympics. The Flyers may want to pull the trigger this season. It’s not about whether they like the player or consider him easy to replace. The team misses him when he’s out for long stretches.
Rather, it’s all about practicality. In fact, I would not be surprised if general manager Daniel Briere is willing to absorb a contract a potential trade partner needs to unload. However, don’t expect an earth-shattering return if the Flyers trade Ristolainen. They’ll get a Draft pick asset or two. Long term, the team needs to find or develop a big, physical right-shot defenseman who can play 20+ minutes a night. They don’t grow on trees but a trade makes practical sense if they get a decent asset.
Ristolainen has never played a Stanley Cup playoff game in his career. However, he’s the type of defenseman that teams look for at the deadline.
Trade deadline outlook: Sanheim
Travis Sanheim will not be traded any time soon. Put that idea out of your mind because it’s not happening.
- Sanheim has a full no-trade clause this season and next. He hasn’t been asked to waive it nor has he expressed a desire to consider other teams. Without that, no trade is even possible in 2025-26 or 2026-27.
- Replacement cost: Sanheim’s $6.25 million AAV is extremely reasonable in today’s market. Can the Flyers find another 22-plus minute defenseman in his late 20s/early 30s with a comparable cap hit and long-term cost certainty. No, they can’t. Sanheim’s contract has become very team friendly in the marketplace.
- Briere is not interested in tearing the team down to the studs. Even in an ongoing rebuild, a team needs to keep at least SOME of its veterans.
Flyers trade deadline outlook: Owen Tippett
The Flyers are still waiting for the 27-year-old Tippett to reach his full offensive potential. He’s flirted with 30-goal seasons twice. He’s on pace to do it again this season. He’d need 11 goals over the remaining 26 games to reach 30 this season. It’s doable.However, whether he finishes this season with 26, 28 (matching his career high) or 30 goals, Briere and the Flyers are very reluctant to move the player.
Tippett was one of the first players Briere extended long-term. Tippett is signed through 2031-32 at $6.2 million cap hit. Moreover, Tippett has improved his overall game under the current coaching staff. He’s now an all-situations player. Tippett has added a more consistent physical dimension to his game to go along with his rare combination of size and exceptional speed.
In terms of raw offensive production, Tippett is still streaky. He goes through stretches where he struggles to put pucks on the net from distance. When he’s on top of his game, he can score from various spots, but he’s still best at taking the puck to the net himself. He’s never really been a “get open and score” type. He’s clicked at times with Travis Konecny. In the past, he had hot-and-cold offensive chemistry with former teammate Morgan Frost. Overall, hTippett has always been a better individual offensive talent than anything.
Additionally, Tippett does not have no-trade protection this season. He has a partial no-trade clause next season through 2029-30. For these
The concern with Ristolainen: durability. He’s dealt with frequent injury-related absences in recent years. Most notably, he’s had two surgeries to repair torn right triceps. The Flyers are a better hockey team with Ristolainen than without him. Nevertheless, the pros of a trade may outweigh the cons even when factoring replacement cost specific to the player’s on-ice role.
Ristolainen entered the NHL at age 18. He’s now 31 years old. He still has productive years left if healthy. Unfortunately, Ristolainen’s ability to stay healthy remains questionable. He has logged a lot of hard minutes during his 795-game NHL career with the Buffalo Sabres and Flyers. Moreover, he’s never played in the Stanley Cup playoffs. If not traded this season or over the summer, 2026-27 will likely be the big Finn’s final campaign with the Orange and Black.
Trade deadline outlook: Other players
Christian Dvorak signed a five-year contract extension ($5.15 million AAV) very shortly prior to the Flyers’ January plunge. The deal took Dvorak off the impending unrestricted free agent rental market. The deal, which takes effect on July 1, 2026, carries full no-trade protection for two years and a partial no-trade (20 teams in 2028-29 and five teams in 2029-30).
Briere indicated that he was not enamored at all by the free agent market for centers this summer, even in terms of potential Dvorak replacement players on one-year or two-year deals. That was part of the reason why the GM agreed to the extension despite its lengthy term. Dvorak turned 30 earlier this month. Had the Flyers elected not to extend Dvorak, they probably could have gotten a late first-round pick in a rental trade. Nevertheless, Briere said he preferred the extension when also considering Dvorak’s versatility and comfort level within the team and its systems.
In terms of other players who may be of interest to other clubs, young puck-moving defenseman Emil Andrae could draw interest in the off-season. The Flyers want to add size on defense and neither Cam York nor Jamie Drysdale are likely to go anywhere in any non-blockbuster deals. Drysdale in an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent this summer. York is signed through 2029-30.
Defenseman Noah Juulsen perhaps could fetch a late-round Draft pick at the deadline. He’s an unrestricted free agent this summer. Playoff bound teams often collect depth pieces for the war of attrition ahead in the postseason. Juulsen ($900,000 cap) is the type of player who often gets moved for a sixth-round or seventh-round pick at the trade deadline before he becomes a UFA. Veteran enforcer Nic Deslauriers has expressed a desire to play beyond this season, but his role is increasingly rare in today’s NHL. If the Flyers can find a trade partner, they’d almost certainly move the 35-year-old to a team that wants him for depth.
Flyers Daily: Mondays with Meltzer
Now the Olympics have ended with a Team USA gold medal, Jason Myrtetus and I discuss the the possible effect win will have on hockey in the USA. Additionally, we continue our pre-Olympic discussion on what we are both looking to see out of the Flyers before this regular season concludes.
