Flyers Enter 2026-27 With Momentum and a Few Loose Ends

Philadelphia made the playoffs for the first time since 2020, finished third in the Metropolitan Division, and then did the smart thing: kept almost everyone. Locking up Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale to extensions while adding Joseph Woll in goal shows a front office that knows what it has. The unresolved power play and a preseason injury to Dan Vladar are the reasons this does not grade higher.

Last season in review

The 43-27-12 record and 98 points look solid on paper, but the Flyers nearly talked themselves out of a playoff spot. They went 5-10-3 across a brutal stretch from late December through January, and needed an 18-7-1 run after the Olympic break just to climb back to third place in the Metro.

Offensively, Travis Konecny (27 goals, 41 assists, 68 points) and Zegras (26 goals, 41 assists, 67 points) carried the load up front, with Christian Dvorak adding 51 points in a reliable secondary role. The team scored 250 goals, a respectable total, but the power play was a genuine liability at 15.7 per cent, the worst in the league. Vladar was the backbone of the whole operation, going 29-14-7 with a .906 save percentage and earning legitimate Vezina consideration. The defence held opponents to 25.5 shots per game, fourth fewest in the NHL, which is what kept the goals-against (243) manageable.

Ins and outs

• In: Joseph Woll, G (acquired via trade from Toronto, with defenceman Simon Benoit, for Samuel Ersson, Emil Andrae and a 2026 third-round pick)
• In: Noel Acciari, F (signed as a free agent, two-year deal)
• In: David Jiricek, D (acquired from Minnesota, March 6)
• Out: Samuel Ersson, G (to Toronto in Woll trade)
• Out: Emil Andrae, D (to Toronto in Woll trade)
• Out: Garnet Hathaway, F (traded to Florida)
• Out: Noah Juulsen, D (signed with Colorado as a UFA)
• Out: Rodrigo Abols, F (to Switzerland)
• Out: Luke Glendening, F (UFA)
• Extension: Trevor Zegras, four years, $36.5 million ($9.125M AAV)
• Extension: Jamie Drysdale, four years, $26 million ($6.5M AAV)
• Extension: Grebenkin, two years, $2.2 million (one-way)
• Attempted: Offer sheet to Anaheim's Leo Carlsson (matched by Ducks)

The big question

Can the power play become functional? General manager Daniel Briere has acknowledged it is the priority, but the fixes are coming from within rather than outside additions. Tyson Foerster missed 49 games last season after injuring his right arm Dec. 1, and the power play dropped from 17.1 per cent to 14.5 per cent without him. A full season from Foerster, plus the development of Porter Martone as a net-front presence, is the plan. Whether that is enough to lift Philadelphia out of the league's basement on the man-advantage is the question that will define their season.

X-factor

Matvei Michkov arrived at training camp this fall with noticeably improved conditioning and completed his first English-language press conference, both signs of a player settling into the league. He is already under pressure to deliver, per reporting heading into the season, and if the development clicks, he has the skill to be a genuine difference-maker in the top six.

Bold prediction

Philadelphia returns to the playoffs, but the power play stays below the league average and forces another white-knuckle finish in the Metro standings.

The outlook

The Flyers open at home against Pittsburgh on Sept. 30 with a roster that is largely intact from a team that proved it can compete in the Metropolitan Division. The core is signed, the goaltending tandem is upgraded, and Rick Tocchet is entering his second season with a group that knows his system. The ceiling is real. So is the floor, if the power play and Vladar's preseason upper-body injury become bigger issues than they look right now.