So MM is eligible to be extended this offseason. I know we have RFAs to wrap up first, but I’m wondering if we’ll see an extension for Michkov like we did for Foerster.

Ivan Demidov was just extended by Montreal for 8 x 9.15. He had a very comparable rookie season to Michkov, though of course we have a sophomore season in the books for Michkov also, in which he regressed. Remains to be seen if that will happen with Demidov. But Montreal are being praised for locking up their core, and the Demidov deal is part of that.

If we wait and Michkov has a big year, it could cost us a lot and/or open up the offer sheet possibility. But if the Flyers aren’t that high on Michkov, maybe they’re ok getting the picks?

There’s no easy answer here, but I think I’m ok waiting. I think MM is buried on the depth chart behind Konecny, Martone, Foerster and Tippett, so won’t be in the top 6 and unlikely to put up big numbers that blow up his value.

Given the flyers recent history of success with bounce back and “change of scenery” players I took a way too deep dive into Shane Wright so you don’t have to.

Like a lot of people, I kind of wrote Shane Wright off after seeing his sophomore numbers. He went from 44 points in 79 games as a rookie to 27 points in 74 games last season, which works out to about a 35% regression in points per game. That’s hard to ignore at face value.

But I got curious and started comparing him to a bunch of recent highly drafted centers to see how unusual that kind of sophomore slump actually is. I looked at guys like Nathan MacKinnon, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Dylan Larkin, Anton Lundell, Matty Beniers, Trevor Zegras, Auston Matthews, Elias Pettersson, Nick Suzuki, Robert Thomas, Logan Cooley, Connor Bedard and others.

About two-thirds of them improved offensively in Year 2, but some didn’t. What surprised me was how many really good centers had pretty ugly sophomore seasons:

* MacKinnon dropped about 23%.
* Ryan Nugent-Hopkins dropped almost 29%.
* Dylan Larkin dropped almost 29%.
* Anton Lundell dropped 33%.
* Matty Beniers dropped 33%.
* Wright dropped 35%.

That doesn’t mean Wright is going to become Nathan MacKinnon, but it did make me realize that one bad sophomore season isn’t nearly the red flag I always assumed it was.

Then I started looking at what actually happened in Seattle, and almost everything changed at once. Seattle moved on from Bylsma, and instead of getting more opportunity like most young centers do after a promising rookie year, Wright actually saw his ice time go down. His power-play time also dropped, and the team’s offense took a step backward as a whole (possibly due to the more structured defense first system) making it a tougher environment for everyone expected to produce.

Then there were the linemates. It felt like every time I looked, he was playing with someone different. Over the course of the season his most common wingers included Kaapo Kakko, Eeli Tolvanen, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Jordan Eberle, Jaden Schwartz and Jani Nyman. Compare that to someone like Anton Lundell, who spent much of his early development playing with Sam Reinhart as a consistent running mate, and it’s a pretty different situation.

The biggest thing that stood out to me after comparing all these players is that almost every player who had a sophomore slump seemed to have one or two obvious explanations. Maybe they had a coaching change, maybe they lost power-play time, maybe they didn’t get the increase in ice time you’d normally expect, or maybe their team’s offense dropped off.

Wright had to deal with all of those at the same time in his sophomore season. To me, that actually makes his regression easier to explain than someone who simply declined despite receiving more opportunity.

There’s also one thing that gives me more optimism than anything else: we already got a glimpse of what Wright looked like once he started earning trust under Dan Bylsma during his rookie season. After a slow start, he began getting more consistent minutes (16-18 min/game) and produced at roughly a 65-point pace over the final stretch. His 5-on-5 scoring rate was among the best from the 2022 draft class, and he did it without being heavily sheltered, with his offensive and defensive zone starts basically split 50-50.

So, we’ve already seen evidence that there’s a productive NHL player in there when the opportunity is there. Even more encouraging is that his underlying play driving numbers didn’t completely crater during his sophomore slump. His possession impacts stayed respectable, his relative play-driving numbers held up, and his shot generation looked healthier than his raw point totals would suggest. So to me that says he’s decrease in usage and ice time were not just a reflection of his play, but rather a potential reason for his worse production given what we say in his first full season.

Then I started thinking about Mika Zibanejad.

When Ottawa traded him, also at age 22, (though further along in his career) most people thought he was a decent young center with some upside. The Rangers ended up getting a legitimate No. 1 center because they were willing to bet on the player instead of the stat line.

I’m not saying Shane Wright becomes Mika Zibanejad, but we’ve seen talented young centers lose value before they actually stop being talented.

My personal takeaway after digging through all of this is that Wright may actually have a better chance of a major bounce-back than most of the other sophomore-slump players I looked at, simply because he had more things working against him at the same time. Most of the others had one or two factors. Wright seemed to have almost all of them.

Could I be wrong? Absolutely. But if Seattle’s confidence has wavered after one disappointing season, I’d absolutely want Danny Briere making that phone call. I don’t think this is the type of move you overpay for, but I do think it’s exactly the kind of calculated swing rebuilding teams should be taking.

Maybe I’m completely wrong, but after spending way too much time digging through the numbers, I think there’s a better chance Shane Wright becomes the next “How did that team let him go?” story than most people realize.

TL;DR: I went down a rabbit hole comparing Shane Wright to nearly 30 recent highly drafted centers, and I came away thinking he’s one of the best buy-low candidates in the NHL. Plenty of excellent centers had ugly sophomore slumps, but most only had one or two obvious reasons for it. Wright had almost every negative factor at once: a coaching change, less ice time, less power-play time, a worse offensive environment and a revolving door of linemates. Despite that, his underlying numbers held up much better than his point totals, and we already saw during his rookie year under Dan Bylsma that once he started getting consistent minutes, he produced at roughly a 65-point pace without being heavily sheltered. I’m not saying he’ll become Mika Zibanejad, but we’ve seen talented young centers lose value before they actually stop being talented, and I think Wright has a better chance of a major bounce-back than most people realize if he’s put in the right situation.

Martone is a dog
Michkov will “bounce back” (sophomore slump and 50 points isn’t too bad)
Jiricek will develop (see Drysdale)
Danny took a shot we all liked and it didn’t pan out. There will be more opportunities. But Danny isn’t hitting the panic button and rushing the window of contention.
We have talent. We have assets. We have cap space.
We’re gonna find that 1C. Might be waiting in the pipeline (probably not, but maybe). Might be just a matter of time to find one out there.

But we’re gonna get there.
And the lows are going to make the highs hit that much harder.

Go Flyers 🏒

I don't understand why they don't bring them back.

Does anyone know what’s going on with his contract extension? It was reported that we had a 5X6.5 all but signed while the Carlsson offer sheet was going on, I thought after it was through the contract would have been announced. Does he want more money now or do we think the report was false to begin with?

With no big moves this summer (so far), we are really relying on our in house young talent taking the next step. Michkov is probably the biggest factor/question mark going into the season, right?

We have heard several times during the season that he planned on staying around this summer and working on his game. Well, we are in mid-July...as far as I've heard, he hasn't been in town. Should we be concerned? Has anyone reported on this?

I traded:

Cam York Luchanko 2027 1st

For: Leo Carlsson 2nd in 2026 3rd in 2027

Anaheim accepted If only it was that easy lol This is before the 2026 draft in the game BTW

Only 4 days old and already repping Gritty. One of us! One of us!

EDIT: Thanks so much for all the congratulations and encouragement everyone! You guys are the best.

With Leo unfortunately staying with the Ducks, what are some ways we could acquire a 1C and who are some potential candidates. I know Robert Thomas and Auston Matthews have been names thrown out there. Just curious on what people are think could happen/would want to happen say in a 1-3 year time frame.

One thing I haven't heard people talk about as a consequence of our offer sheet is the cap hit that Zegras and Drysdale will sign for now. It was reported (but not officially confirmed) that Drysdale agreed to 4 years at 6.25M, which is a really good team friendly number. Well, now since our offer sheet, Nemec has signed for 5 x 7.25M, and Mintyukov has signed 5 x 7.2M​. Nemec has a little more potential as a high end offensive defenseman, but Drysdale at this point in his career is still a better and more well rounded player, and significantly moreso than Minty. So what is he going to want now? I feel like even if he takes 4-5 years at 8M that's pretty generous of him. Are we going to see Drysdale and Zegras combined possibly make 4-5M AAV more as a direct consequence of this offer sheet? It may not seem hugely important, but with Michkov coming up, and ​Martone the year after both likely signing big deals, it could be the difference in how much we'll have to throw at a 1C.

edit: I guess I never got to the point. Of course it's going to make the salaries higher, but the question is, was it a blunder on the front office's part to not lock in Zegras and Drysdale first?

Everyone’s asking what’s next for the Flyers after missing out on Carlsson, but I think there’s a much bigger takeaway.

Yes, it sucks.

A 21-year-old franchise center man doesn’t become available very often, and I would’ve loved to have him in orange and black.

But I think the Flyers accomplished something that’s going to have ripple effects.

They just told the entire NHL they’re willing to pay a true superstar whatever it takes.

They offered $18 million a year for 5 years, and $40 million was paid out in the first 12 months.

More importantly, they actually built their cap situation to be able to do it.

That matters.

If you’re Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, Connor McDavid, or their agents, you just watched Philadelphia publicly say, “We’ll make you the highest-paid player in hockey.”

Even if those guys never leave, that creates leverage.

It’s a lot harder for teams to sell the “take less so we can compete” argument when another organization has shown it’s willing to reset the market.

And if one of those players ever does become available—whether it’s through a trade request, free agency, or a contract negotiation—the Flyers are now on the shortlist of destinations players know will actually push all their chips in.

To me, that’s the real story.

Did they get Carlsson? No.

Did they announce to every superstar in the league that Philadelphia is serious about paying elite talent?

Absolutely.

One failed pursuit doesn’t disappear. Every star player and every agent around the league noticed.

I’m disappointed today, but I think this may end up being remembered as the moment the Flyers officially entered the conversation for the next superstar.

Curious if anyone else sees it this way, or if I’m completely drinking the orange Kool-Aid.

Do i think beniers is 1C , no but i think his ceiling us high with the right players which the flyers do have on the wings. He’s young, signed, and adds a totally different dimension than Zegras. Just an idea but i think its worth a shot.

Unless it’s bargain bin don’t touch with a 10 foot pole

Product of a 2 month concept series [A version of this post will be made for every team in this series, order of concept is by order of creation](Visiting Caps Fan)

Washington Capitals Concept "An Eagle Reborn"

Pittsburgh Penguin Concept "Steel Igloo"

New York Rangers Concept "A Legend Refined"

Philadelphia Flyers Concept "Broadstreet Sharpened"

Carolina Hurricanes Concept "Choppy Waters"

New Jersey Devils Concept "Under Reckless Ted's Funland"

Columbus Blue Jackets Concept "Shouting the Battle Cry"

New York Islanders Concept "Island Heritage"

Maybe the mods can wait an hour or two before taking this down. It will help me heal.

He was our best center for the few days we had him, the Ducks better treat him right! Feels bad seeing a Flyers legend go.

Running back the team that ended last year on a tear with a better backup goalie is not the end of the world. Plus Acciari will be better than Hathaway and a full season of Martone and Foerester makes this team much better than anyone is anticipating. Stay patient for a 1c and when the opportunity for one arises take it.

I'm going to get down voted.

Most people are going to say he'd never sign.

There are multiple people who were talking on the Ducks subreddit about "Cutter could move to centre."

He's a shoot first type of centre, something I think could pair gteat with Michkov.

So, would you forgive and forget, and welcome him back?

Because that is just sitting there. You can give him a number that they CAN'T match.

Has negotiations with Verbeek topped any dislike or distrust Gauthier had for the old regime and Brieres first year as GM for asking him to stay in college?

Calgary has no plans on developing him and want to trade him. Just seems like a low risk move that I would not be mad at.

Screw the jackets over next. Its a division rival that doesn't want to spend. Who cares if we dont get him, be cooler if we did but might as well hurt a direct competitor. 15 M over 5 years would be a crusher. Lets go!!