Philadelphia is one of the league's bubble teams once again this season as they have the talent to push them into the playoffs as well as the holes to keep them out. The offence is good and with young future superstars on the defence, that end of the game should match the offence in a couple of years. If Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth form a good goaltending tandem. the Flyers will be a playoff team but if not they will once again be on the outside looking in.
Arrivals/Departures
Arrivals: Brian Elliott, Jori Lehtera, Philip Varone, Corban Knight
Departures: Brayden Schenn, Steve Mason, Michael Del Zotto, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Nick Cousins, Roman Lyubimov
Forwards:
Claude Giroux is still a number-one center in the NHL despite his drop off in point production from 93 in 2012 all the way down to 58 in 2017. Giroux is also still the Flyers' best player and it will be up to their captain to take them back to the playoffs. Wayne Simmonds has turned into the best net-front presence in the league as he dominates on the power play scoring all of his goals from the blue paint putting up back-to-back 30-plus point seasons. The top line left wing spot could use an upgrade as Michael Raffl is an up-and-down player who would be better suited on the second or even third line. Jakub Voracek has not liven up to his massive contract extension over the past two seasons but after an improvement from his horrific 2015-16 campaign, there is reason to believe he will return to his form from 2014-15. With Brayden Schenn gone, Sean Couturier will be upgraded to the second-line center spot; Couturier is a good defensive forward but he will need to work on his offence as his career high is 15 goals. Travis Konecny was good during his rookie season so he should be upgraded to the second line left wing spot but he could also join Giroux and Simmonds on the first line. This past draft's number-two overall pick was Nolan Patrick and if he is healthy for the start of the season, he should quickly make the jump to a top-nine forward in the Flyers lineup. Valtteri Filppula is the perfect third-line center for this Flyers team as he can score, play defence and mentor Nolan Patrick, After a fantastic rookie season Jori Lehtera has struggled during the last two years and since he had a large cap hit, he was moved to the Flyers. Lehtera is skilled so if he can get back into the 40-point range, he could get boosted off the fourth line. Jordan Weal showed up during the final quarter of the season for the Flyers so they kept him around meaning he will get a full-time roster spot out of training camp. Dale Weise is a good fourth-line winger too as he provides some goal scoring and toughness. Scott Laughton has been a disappointment in Philly so this will be his make-or-break-it year to finally crack the roster but it is not looking good for him as there are 12 forwards ahead of him on the depth chart. Taylor Leier and Colin McDonald will also compete for roster spots.
Defenceman:
The defence is not very good at present but if all of the prospects pan out, it could be one of the best defensive cores in the league for a while. After an amazing rookie campaign, Shayne Gostisbehere struggled in his second season as the pressure was on the be a number-one defenceman but even after the season, Ghost is still the best defenceman on the Flyers. Ivan Provorov had a good rookie season and is one of the NHL's best young defenders so expect big things from the Russian during his sophomore season. Radko Gudas is a big physical sometimes-dirty defenceman who plays on the edge; he is the guy you want on your team but you hate to play against. The other top-four defenceman is Brandon Manning who struggles to score but since he is still young there is hope he can become an all-around contributor. It is time for the Flyers' best prospect in Samuel Morin to make the leap to the NHL bringing his massive frame and physical play to the mix. Travis Sanheim is also ready to make the jump to the NHL after some outstanding seasons with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL and one with the Leigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL. Andrew MacDonald has been terrible for what he is payed since coming to the Flyers and it is time for him to spend some time watching from the press box with the rookies coming up. Nick Schultz is still a reliable defenceman but with the young talent on the blue line, he will spend most of the time in the press box too.
Goaltending:
The Flyers are another one of the many teams in the league that don't have a starting goalie and will go with a tandem that could decide the fate of their season. Brian Elliott had an awful season in Calgary except for a small portion after he was expected to solve their goaltending woes so he signed with Philly during free agency. Michal Neuvirth can be a very good starter at times but at other times he can be terrible so lots will depend on his play.
Projected Lineup:
Michael Raffl
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Claude Giroux
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Wayne Simmonds
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Travis Konecny
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Sean Couturier
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Jakub Voracek
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Nolan Patrick
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Valtteri Filppula
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Matt Read
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Jordan Weal
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Jori Lehtera
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Dale Weise
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Taylor Leier
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Scott Laughton
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Colin McDonald
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Ivan Provorov
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Shayne Gostisbehere
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Brandon Manning
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Radko Gudas
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Travis Sanheim
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Samuel Morin
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Nick Schultz
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Andrew MacDonald
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Brian Elliott
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Michael Neuvirth
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Anthony Stolarz
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Top 10 Players:
10. Brain Elliott
9. Travis Konecny
8. Nolan Patrick
7. Ivan Provorov
6. Valtteri Filppula
5. Sean Couturier
4. Shayne Gostisbehere
3. Wayne Simmonds
2. Jakub Voracek
1. Claude Giroux
Projected Finish: 91 Points (6th in Metropolitan)
Last Year: 88 Points (6th in Metropolitan)
Photo credit for Brian Elliott goes to http://calgaryherald.com/. Claude Giroux goes to https://www.nhl.com/. Shayne Gostisbehere goes to https://www.si.com/. Wayne Simmonds goes to http://www.sportsnet.ca/.
