In the weeks leading up to the 2024 NHL offseason, we had asked whether or not Danny Briere would provide a “good faith” move for the team. Yet as the draft and free agency are in the rearview, we’re left with a nearly identical team to the previous season with no new rebuilding pillar in place.
It’s unreasonable to expect a push for a Stanley Cup in one offseason, nor was that the ask. The ask was that they make one big move that indicated a genuine build to the future, as in moving up in the draft, taking a chance on a disgruntled prospect like Rutger McGroarty, or even a main roster young pillar like Trevor Zegras.
Yet, they came back empty handed. The Flyers made some questionable calls at the draft and experts didn’t look fondly at most of their selections. Free agency came and went with the only Flyers’ signing being the return of 36-year-old Erik Johnson and an extension for 32-year-old Garnet Hathaway a year early for some reason.
Yes, they did officially sign Matvei Michkov to his entry-level contract Monday afternoon, surely the timing being just coincidence coming in the afternoon hours of day one of free agency and definitely not their way of covering their otherwise disappointing week.
As the dog days of summer are about to ensue with a roster that’s nearly identical to last season’s it’s hard not to be disappointed. Was it a lack of effort from Briere? Was it a lack of killer instinct to take a risk in the first place? Or is it all part of the “rebuilding” super secret plan?
Briere has been quick to point towards 2025 as the year the Flyers will actually do… well, anything. And maybe they actually have a plan for the 2025 offseason, but considering they didn’t sprinkle any breadcrumbs this summer to suggest they’re capable of rising to the occasion, putting some blind faith that Briere somehow turns into an NHL GM version of Rambo next season is sorta far fetched.
If Briere can’t rise to the occasion to do a single thing to insulate his top prospect Matvei Michkov during his first year in North America (which should be the absolute bare minimum he could’ve done this year) what evidence is there to suggest he can pull off some major, franchise-altering move in 2025?
In the one percent chance Leon Draisaitl hits free agency in 2025, what are the odds the Flyers throw $15 million a season at him? Typically they reserve that kind of cap hit for fourth liners only. What are the odds they move up into the top five of the 2025 draft if they balked at the price to do so this season?
The front office upping the ante to 2025 at least piques the interest around the team, however, because it’ll either be a spectacular success or spectacular failure with really no in between.
Staying inactive with a promise of future movement is some high level Ron Hextall PTSD. It may be too early to make direct comparisons, but Briere sure didn’t do much to differentiate himself from his predecessor either.
And it’s worth noting that the Flyers’ front office’s willingness and overall ability wouldn’t be under the microscope if they just did literally a single thing of note this summer in the first place. There would be no comparisons to Hextall. Briere would be his own man with his own vision. But so far the parallels run too similar to ignore considering it was less than 10 years ago we lived an indistinguishable reality.
Is there time to turn things around? Sure! In fact, the Ducks need help getting to the cap floor, so there’s still a chance to make a trade to cut some cap and still land Zegras before the summer is over. And if they somehow make something happen the questioning nature will subside, but without that good faith move, the ball falls back in Briere’s court to prove he’s the man for the job.
Trust is a two-way street and the Flyers certainly didn’t hold up their end of the bargain this summer. The skepticism will remain as long as the stagnation continues. Is Danny Briere the man for the job? Time will tell, but he surely didn’t earn that trust from this beaten down, weary fan this summer.
By: Dan Esche (@DanTheFlyeraFan)
photo credit: nhl.com
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