Quick Hits: June 5, 2024
1) On Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. EDT, Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones and Comcast Spectacor CEO/Flyers Governor Dan Hilferty will hold an offseason press conference at the FTC in Voorhees. There will not be any major announcements made. Rather, it's a post Exit Day followup to the Danny Briere and John Tortorella press conference sessions right after the end of the regular season.
Hilferty and Jones will be available to discuss the 2023-24 season and look ahead to both the hockey and business future of the organization moving forward.
I am currently in Texas -- I will return to Philadelphia in two weeks for a couple work-related meetings and to cover the Flyers Alumni's annual fundraising golf tournament -- and will not be able to attend the press conference in person. The press conference will be posted on the Flyers social media formats and Facebook.
2) Several people on Twitter/X have asked me to clarify the contractual status of Carter Hart, in light of all the issues surrounding him. It is unlikely that Hart or any of other four former 2018 World Junior Championship roster players from Team Canada -- Mike McLeod, Cal Foote, Dillon Dube, and Alex Formenton --who have been criminally implicated in a sexual assault scandal will play again any time soon. However, the Flyers will still have a decision to make this offseason regarding Hart's NHL rights unless the NHL issues guidance otherwise.
Hart, who will turn 26 on August 13, is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent this summer. If the Flyer tender a qualifying offer ($4.479 million, which was Hart's real-dollar salary in 2023-24), they will retain the player's rights. Otherwise, he will immediately become an unrestricted free agent, able to sign with any NHL club without compensation to the Flyers.
This, of course, is not simply an asset management decision or a hockey issue. Those aspects, at present, are nowhere near the top of the considerations list.
In any event, the Flyers' goaltending plan for the 2024-25 season is to go with Samuel Ersson and Ivan Fedotov as their NHL tandem and the duo of veteran Cal Petersen and rookie Alexei Kolosov (who, from all indications DOES plan to stay in North America) at the AHL level with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Ersson will enter the first season of a two-year extension at a $1.45 million cap hit (including a $300,000 signing bonus). Fedotov also has a new two-year contract, carrying a $3.275 million cap hit ($2.5 million signing bonus, $775,000 cap hit).
3) Congratulations go out to the Flyers in-house content team for winning three Gold Tellys at the 45th annual Telly Awards in the Sports category. The Telly Awards honor excellence in video and television across all screens and are judged by leaders from video platforms, television, streaming networks, and production companies across the country.
The three awards won by the Flyers:
* Gold Winner | Sports — Branded Content: The Standard: Inside Flyers Training Camp * Gold Winner | Sports — Social Video: Series – Sports: Liftoff: Embarking on a New Era of Flyers Hockey * Gold Winner: Sports — Promotional Video: General-Sports: A New Era of Orange | Flyers Uniform Unveil 4) Each year, a few weeks before the NHL Entry Draft, I select a sleeper pick whom I feel is potentially a high-value selection relative to his publicly forecasted selection range. I'll post my reasoning in the upcoming blog, but my 2024 Draft Sleeper is Medicine Hat Tigers (Western Hockey League) left winger Andrew Basha.
Only once has my Draft Sleeper pick been selected in the actual Entry Draft by the Flyers. Back in 2017 -- weeks before the Flyers acquired 2017 and 2018 first-round picks from the St. Louis Blues in the Brayden Schenn trade -- I selected Morgan Frost as that Draft year's sleeper pick. A few weeks later, when the Flyers acquired the 27th overall pick on Draft day, Philadelphia selected the Soo Greyhounds (OHL) center. The next year, with the 2018 first rounder acquired from the Blues, the Flyers selected Joel Farabee with the 14th overall.
The Draft Sleeper selection isn't done with the Flyers specifically in mind. It's just a fun exercise that can either make you look smart or foolish in hindsight. For every Jordan Kyrou (my 2016 sleeper), there are several Jayce Hawryluk (2014), Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson (2015) and Nils Lundkvist (2018) types who did not become NHL regulars. The jury is still out on Philip Tomasino (2019), Fabian Lysell (2021), Jimmy Snuggerud (2022) and Andrew Cristall (2023).
5) Current Flyers winger Cam Atkinson celebrates his 35th birthday on June 5. Flyers Alumni with June 5 birthdays: Radko Gudas (1990) and Andre Lacroix (1945).
6) Today in Flyers History: June 5
1995: The Flyers fall into a two games to zero hole in the Eastern Conference Final with a 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils in Game 2 at the Spectrum. The Flyers were unable to protect or build upon 1-0 and 2-1 leads provided in the first period on goals by Legion of Doom linemates Eric Lindros and Mikael Renberg. Tied at 2-2 heading into the second period, New Jersey took over the game in the second period with a three-goal outburst. Dominic Roussel replaced starter Ron Hextall in ne for the final 22:58 of the game.
1997: The Detroit Red Wings take a three games to zero lead over the Flyers in the Stanley Cup Final in a 6-1 blowout at Joe Louis Arena. Ron Hextall faced 29 shots, stopping 23.