NO UNTOUCHABLES ON FLYERS BLUELINE
It does not take a mathematical genius to figure out that the Philadelphia Flyers currently have more veteran defensemen -- plus several prospects in the wings -- than they will have roster spots come the start of the 2015-16 season.
At present, the team has eight veteran defensemen under NHL contract: Nick Schultz, Mark Streit, Andrew MacDonald, Nicklas Grossmann, Luke Schenn, recently signed Russian import Evgeni Medvedev, 2015 trade deadline acquisitionRadko Gudas, and Phantoms/Flyers shuttle defenseman Brandon Manning.
The team also still has to re-sign restricted free agent defenseman Michael Del Zotto. He signed a discount contract last summer when he cast on the NHL scrap heap and became an unrestricted free agent but enjoyed a generally strong bounceback season in Philadelphia. One year away from earning unrestricted free agent status based on his age and years of experience (rather than because he was not tendered a qualifying offer), the negotiation with the Flyers on a new deal will be a dicey one. A one-year deal will carry a lower cap hit but a longer-term deal keeps an asset in-house and also increases potential trade value because he'd be more than just a short-term rental player.
In addition, 2013 first-round pick Samuel Morin will be in the mix to push for a job out of training camp. So will second-year pro Shayne Gostisbehere, who lost all but the first month of his rookie pro season to a partially torn ACL. The silver lining to the Gostisbehere injury is that he's already put on 15 to 20 pounds of muscle compared to the start of training camp last year and, with a diligent summer of preparation, could be poised to better handle the battles in the defensive trenches without compromising the speed and puck skills that are his strongest assets.
Nothing will be handed to either Morin or Gostisbehere -- they will not enter camp with NHL jobs to lose -- but it is likely that new head coach Dave Hakstol will give both players a long look at camp with a chance to outplay veterans enough to unseat someone. The same goes for 2014 first-round pick Travis Sanheim, who may have the highest long-term NHL upside of any defenseman in the system. However, it seems more likely that Sanheim returns to the Calgary Hitmen for one additional year of WHL seasoning as well as a strong chance of playing for Team Canada at the 2015-16 World Junior Championships.
Something has to give somewhere. Both Grossmann and Schenn are a year away from unrestricted free agency, so they are the most likely candidates to get traded this summer. However, that is not a certainty. Grossmann will be the subject of a blog planned for next week.
No one on the Flyers' blueline, at least none of the veterans, are safe from being traded this summer. It all depends on the trade return. Also keep in mind that most NHL teams are in the market to add blueline depth and even tend to horde their own defensemen because of the high attrition rate most every season. As such, any defenseman who achieves longevity in the NHL -- which is always for the reason that they excel at something even if they have other limitations -- holds a certain value in the right situation, even if it's as a supporting cast player.
Streit seems fairly secure. He is the closest thing the Flyers have to Kimmo Timonen at this point in terms of veteran leadership on the blueline, plus he is still an effective offensive defenseman. Nevertheless, there are still plausible scenarios under which the 37-year-old could be traded. Streit's contract runs through the 2016-17 season.
MacDonald is coming off a disappointing first season of a new long-term contract that carries a $5 million cap hit and runs through 2019-20. The Flyers paid him full unrestricted free agent market value to pre-empt UFA status last year, ahead of Hextall's ascension to the general manager role. He almost certainly would have gotten a comparable deal elsewhere, but does not necessarily mean the Flyers had to be the ones to pay it proactively.
Right now, MacDonald's contract may be difficult to trade -- more because of the length of the remaining term than strictly because of cap hit -- but it is not impossible. Unfortunately, dealing MacDonald would have to be done from a position of weakness rather than leverage, which is not how Hextall (or any GM) wants to approach a deal. As such, it is more likely that MacDonald stays put and the Flyers hope for a bounceback year under a new head coach.
Schultz is likely to be kept, too. Hextall clearly likes the player and he is coming off his best season in years. He's also a well-respected figure in the dressing room.
Schultz signed a two-year contract at a hometown discount ($2.25 million cap hit; a discount of $750K to $1 million off what he probably could have gotten on the open market). He did so as a tradeoff to ensure some stability again -- which he'd had in Minnesota -- after having to uproot his young family multiple times because of two trades and signing in Philadelphia. Had he not signed the extension, he very well may have gotten traded at the 2015 deadline (a fourth move) and then a free agent this summer (a potential fifth move).
Nevertheless, nothing is set in stone. Players such as Schultz can go from a "secure" job to a spare part in a hurry because of injury, outside acquisitions or a downturn in their play.
The Flyers do not currently have any "bonafide stars" on their defense corps. Pretty much all of the veterans are role-playing specialists of one type or another. Del Zotto at his best last season was a step above that but can still improve his consistency in avoiding being a one-dimensional player. Philly could also really use a bounceback from MacDonald to the form he showed as a reliable puck-mover upon his initial arrival from the Islanders.
Most of all, though, the Flyers need to be patient with their young defensemen, with Sanheim, Morin, Gostisbehere and Robert Hà¤ggbeing the top long-term candidates to lead the future. In an ideal scenario, one or more will take off in their pro-level development sooner rather than later. However, the process has to be dictated by reality (how ready is the player right now?) rather than necessity.
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MEMORIAL CUP SCHEDULE
Two Flyers prospects will be on hand as the CHL's Memorial Cup championship tournament gets underway this weekend: Samuel Morin and Tyrell Goulbourne.
Morin is a mainstay shutdown defenseman for the QMJHL champion Rimouski Oceanic, while the sidelined Goulbourne (surgery to repair a torn calf muscle) can only root on his WHL champion Kelowna Rockets. The other two participating teams are the OHL champion Oshawa Generals and the tournament host (and QMJHL runner-up) Quebec Remparts.
The tournament opens on Friday with Kelowna playing Quebec. Rimouski's round-robin portion schedule will see them play Oshawa on Saturday, Kelowna on Monday and the Remparts on Wednesday. On Sunday, Oshawa opposes Quebec. On Tuesday, the Rockets play Oshawa.
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FLYERS ALUMNI FANTASY HOCKEY CAMP
The Flyers Alumni will host a fantasy hockey camp from August 21-24 in Atlantic City, open to anyone age 21 and older. Instructors and Alumni participants will include Bernie Parent, Brian Propp, Ian Laperriere, Todd Fedoruk, Andre "Moose" Dupont, Dave "the Hammer" Schultz, Joe Watson and Bob "the Hound" Kelly.
The registration deadline is June 1. Participation costs $3,000 apiece but it is free to register a spot online. Over on the Flyers' Alumni website, there is more information on camp-related activities and on-ice schedules.