What's next for the Philadelphia Flyers?

2x NHL Rookie of the Month Matvei Michkov is the key piece for the Flyers

The Flyers ended the 2024-25 season with the 4th worst record in the NHL. There were plenty of talking points in the season. Rookie star Matvei Michkov won the Rookie of the Month award twice on the way to a 63 point season (second only to Lane Hutson who was on the ice for a significantly greater period of time). Cutter Gauthier returned to Philadelphia with a chorus of boos and chants of "Jamie's better". The Flyers traded away Laughton, Farabee and Frost. Not to forget when Cam York got head coach John Tortorella fired (more of less).

It's definitely time to look ahead to the 2025-26 season. Not only did the Flyers self-sabotage their own tank at times, they then lost 2 places in the NHL draft lottery and will have the 6th overall pick on the 27th June in Los Angeles. They will also pick 22nd thanks to owning Colorado's pick and at the time of writing either 31st or 32nd as the Edmonton Oilers continue to impress in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Flyers will also have 4 picks in the 2nd round.

The draft class isn't seen as hugely strong class, however the Flyers should still be able to pickup a good player. Outside of the expected top 2 of Schaefer and Misa, it is looking pretty hard to predict who will be available. The Flyers will likely select who is left out of centres James Hagens, Anton Frondell, Caleb Desnoyers or Jake O'Brien. There is also a chance that the Flyers could draft RW Porter Martone at 6. We will look more closely at the draft post-combine, although it may simply come down to who is left.

Rocky Balboa is of course well-loved by all in Philadelphia. The same cannot be said for Power-Play coach Rocky Thompson, who, to the relief of everyone has been relieved of his duties. He lead the Flyers to the 32nd, 29th and 32nd ranked power-plays during his tenure in Philadelphia. New Head Coach Rick Tocchet has yet to name his staff, but surely things can only get better?

The Flyers goaltending was also historically poor last season no matter if it was Ersson, Fedotov or Kolosov between the sticks. The Flyers might stick to their guns with Ersson and Fedotov entering the last year on their respective contracts, or may look for a stop-gap free agent until young prospects Bjarnason and Zavragin are ready to make the NHL jump in 2-3 years time.

The obvious bright-spot was rookie sensation Matvei Michkov. The Flyers got an absolute steal with the 7th overall pick from 2023 being one of the top rookies, despite often having limited time on the ice under Tortorella. Other youngsters Jamie Drysdale, Tyson Foerster and Cam York showed some flashes, but will be expected to make further steps if they seek to make Philadelphia their home for the long-term. We should expect to see more of Jett Luchanko and new acquisition Nikita Grebenkin in the coming year.

The 2025-26 season for the Flyers may well end up looking similar to the previous season, flashes of quality amidst a losing record. The focuses should be on continuing to develop Michkov and the other young players, nailing the draft picks and getting the right coaching staff around Tocchet. The 2026 draft class looks like it should be a strong one, and the Flyers may position themselves for a good pick next year. The Flyers have been getting younger, have plenty of draft picks and plenty of cap space. There definitely is some light starting to appear at the end of the tunnel.