The Flyers came into the summer swinging, and they’re heading into the season still hunting for the kind of move that changes the temperature around the roster.
Their biggest stab was the offer sheet for Anaheim center Leo Carlsson, a five-year deal at an $18-million AAV. Anaheim matched it, and Philadelphia walked away empty-handed on the headline grab. GM Danny Briere did make a few additions - goaltender Joseph Woll, forward Noel Acciari and 2025 first-round pick Porter Martone, who arrived last spring and is viewed as a Calder Trophy favorite this season - but it was not the kind of offseason many around the team expected.
That hasn’t shut the door on more work. The Flyers are preparing to open the year with a group that looks a lot like the one that was swept by the Carolina Hurricanes last spring, but team sources told Daily Faceoff the club is still “looking to improve.” That’s true of every team in the league, of course, but the sense here is that Philadelphia is pushing for a meaningful add, even if nothing is close.
One name that had been on their board was Columbus right winger Kirill Marchenko, who ended up in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ blockbuster six-player, one-pick deal on Monday. The centerpiece going back to Columbus was left winger Matthew Knies, a younger top-six winger who came with serious cost certainty. With Knies signed through 2031 at $7.75 million per year, the Blue Jackets got the kind of immediate help they wanted instead of a futures-only package.
Marchenko then landed a six-year extension worth $12.5 million annually starting next season.
The Flyers, according to team sources, had been willing to go with a package built around “three assets” for Marchenko, with the thinking that elite defenseman Quinn Hughes fetched four assets less than a year ago. A possible framework discussed internally included forwards Alex Bump and Noah Cates plus a first-round pick, though those are not players Philadelphia has actively shopped or formally floated in proposals. In the end, once Knies became the return for Columbus, it was easy to see why the Flyers couldn’t make the math work.
If Marchenko was the preferred target, Detroit center Dylan Larkin may be the more obvious fit. Larkin recently expanded his trade list to eight teams, but sources said Philadelphia is still not on it. Even so, the Flyers are monitoring the situation closely.
There’s a reason Larkin keeps coming up. He’s a center, which fills “more of a need” for Philadelphia than Marchenko’s wing spot, and he remains a strong value on an $8.7-million AAV contract that runs through 2031. He’s already 30, but team sources described him as a top-30 centerman in the league.
Philadelphia would be willing to put together a similar three-asset package for Larkin, but whether that gets it done is another matter. Interim GM Shawn Horcoff is trying to steady things in a messy situation, and one source suggested there’s a belief he could try to repair the relationship with Larkin, which might stretch the process out.
The real issue is what Detroit would demand back. If the Red Wings want a hockey trade like Columbus just made, the Flyers’ preferred three-piece offer may not be enough.
The cleanest comparisons on Philadelphia’s roster to a player like Knies are wings Tyson Foerster and Owen Tippett, both of whom are locked up long term through 2035 and 2032, respectively. But both are younger than Larkin, and there doesn’t seem to be much appetite from the Flyers to move either one.
If Larkin ever did become a real possibility, the Flyers wouldn’t necessarily need to clear a center spot first. Trevor Zegras or Cates, if he isn’t part of the return package, could slide to wing, according to sources. For now, though, the whole discussion is mostly academic as long as Philadelphia remains off Larkin’s list.
There’s also some defensive shopping on the radar, though it’s secondary. Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported Sunday that the Flyers are checking on blue-line depth, and sources said that if they do add a defenseman, size will matter. Philadelphia already has two smaller defensemen in the starting mix in Jamie Drysdale and Cam York, so a bigger-bodied option - the kind of player represented by Zach Whitecloud of the Calgary Flames - would fit what they’re after.
One more name worth watching inside the organization is David Jiricek. There have been whispers the team isn’t thrilled with the defenseman, who was acquired from the Minnesota Wild at last year’s NHL Trade Deadline for winger Bobby Brink. Jiricek, 22, had been projected to open the season as the Flyers’ third-pair right-side defenseman.
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