When the Philadelphia Flyers announced “The New Era of Orange” under their remade front office entering 2023-24, they knew the Stanley Cup Playoffs weren’t on the immediate horizon.
Danny Briere and Keith Jones chose to field a competitive team, however, despite the external calls for “tanking” partly because they wanted to prioritize internal development of young players at the NHL level as a key focus of the rebuild.
Flyers in 2023-24
They entrusted John Tortorella to coach and evaluate the young talent within the organization while the front office pursued long-term goals to free up salary cap restrictions and acquire top-end talent.
The plan succeeded in 2023-24. The upstart Flyers narrowly missed a playoff berth, but the internal development of key pieces like Owen Tippett, Cam York, and Tyson Foerster inspired optimism about the roster taking shape with key future pieces.
“A lot of players have opened our eyes and realized that they were maybe more ready than we thought. There’s obviously guys that jump out at you when I say that. Tyson Foerster – the way he’s taken his game – we didn’t think he’d have as big of an impact. I don’t think we expected Bobby Brink to be a regular for most of the season with us going into the season. Cam York – the way he’s taken his game to an extra level. Travis Sanheim – how he’s stepped up big time after being challenged last summer.” -Danny Briere (2023-24 exit interviews, April 19, 2024)
Flyers in 2024-25
Briere again emphasized the goal of internal development before training camp, pointing to the continuous process of development that players must consider throughout an NHL career.
He addressed the hope for similar steps for younger players like Jamie Drysdale, Bobby Brink, and Noah Cates.
“There’s no doubt that Jamie Drysdale is a big one. Being healthy, we’re excited to see him. Maybe a guy like Bobby Brink. (He) had an up and down season, but we didn’t have him pegged in to make the team last year. When he showed up, he had a great training camp, provided some sparks here and there throughout the season, so maybe he can expand on that.” -Danny Briere (2024-25 training camp, September 17, 2024)
“Another one from me would be Noah Cates. He had an excellent rookie season. Last year was a little tougher for him. I expect him to bounce back, but again, the exciting part is we’re a young group, still developing.” -Briere
The Flyers still lurk outside the playoff picture at the unofficial quarter mark of the 2024-25 season. They’ve seen the desired brilliance of Matvei Michkov and additionally encouraging signs from developing players like Emil Andrae.
Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim have also given substance to the idea of player development as a continuous process. Both players have reached arguably their highest peaks just shy of a decade into their NHL careers.
However, several players early in their NHL careers that Briere mentioned have either regressed or failed to make strides in the next level of their development.
Tyson Foerster, Jamie Drysdale, and company certainly still have the majority of the season to put the underwhelming start behind them, but arguably the biggest accomplishment of the first season of the rebuild doesn’t look as impressive considering early struggles in 2024-25.
Stats through the estimated quarter mark of the 2024-25 NHL season through 21 games at the end of play on November 23
All advanced stats at 5-on-5, courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, unless otherwise noted
Owen Tippett
The centerpiece of the Claude Giroux trade made enough of an impression for the Flyers to hand Owen Tippett an eight-year contract worth $6.2 million in average annual value in January 2024.
The 25-year-old brings top-six value to the lineup as a power forward. He scored 27 goals in 2022-23 and 28 goals in 2023-24. Both landed him second on the Flyers behind only Travis Konecny.
Tippett has scored only four goals this season, which puts him on pace for 16 over 82 games.
His powerful shot is an indispensable element of his game. However, he’s hit the net less frequently in the first quarter of the season. Tippett has raised his shooting percentage up to 7% after a slow start. He’s kept confidence in his raw skill by ignoring outside noise and continuing to fire.
He spoke about his (perceived) lack of accuracy on November 4.
“I think that’s something you guys (media) look into way more. Obviously, I’ve played my whole career shooting whenever I have the chance, and sometimes they go in, sometimes they don’t… I’m trying to do the best I can, and I think it’s only a matter of time before they start going in.” -Owen Tippett
Tippett followed up the statement of conviction with his best stretch of the season on a three-game road trip when he drove offense aggressively and attacked the net.
However, when he returned home, his momentum slowed with one goal for his only point over the next six games.
Tippett must find better consistency to live up to the contract and the status as one of the key success stories of the internal development the Flyers hope to become a hallmark of the rebuild.
Tyson Foerster
The hype about Tyson Foerster before he reached the NHL focused on a laser shot that could potentially help him become a dangerous sniper.
However, he also showed a tremendous ability during his rookie season in 2023-24 to win board battles and drive offense to opponents’ zones even when he didn’t find the scoresheet. His contributions arguably became more valuable than his impressive 20-goal season.
John Tortorella hesitated through the early weeks of the 2024-25 season to credit Foerster for the same strengths. The young winger remained confident in his potential on November 18.
“I’ve been emphasizing on my stick battles and winning all the loose pucks in the d zone. I feel like I’ve been doing that a little bit better than I was.” -Tyson Foerster
However, he’s left something to be desired after his rookie performance inspired tremendous confidence inside and outside the organization.
Jamie Drysdale
Danny Briere projected Jamie Drysdale as a top-pair defenseman the night of the stunning Cutter Gauthier trade in January 2024.
Injuries and poor performance have kept him from gaining that kind of traction in 39 games with the Flyers.
Drysdale hasn’t yet gained the conviction to decide when to push offense and when to securely maintain position defensively. The Flyers place a tremendous amount of confidence in Brad Shaw to coach young defensemen and teach that kind of selection.
Drysdale exited the lineup after November 8 with an upper-body injury with only one goal and two assists in 15 games. He had also struggled with defensive lapses allowing chances back toward the Philadelphia zone.
A limited amount of action doesn’t mean Drysdale can’t ultimately fulfill Briere’s expectations in the long-term pursuit of a Stanley Cup. However, judging the Cutter Gauthier trade just shy of one year later, it’s not reasonable to say the Flyers should be happy with Jamie Drysdale’s contributions.
Noah Cates
Noah Cates broke into the NHL after an accomplished NCAA career at Minnesota-Duluth. He appeared ready to play a bottom-six NHL role with a strong ability to win battles and the type of habits that make NHL coaches gush.
Injuries and an overall lack of rhythm kept him from breaking out offensively in 2023-24. He’s returned healthy this season, but the production hasn’t been there.
His ability to win puck battles hasn’t shown up in the advanced metrics. His cringy 34.16% of the expected goal share ranks 518th of 520 qualified skaters with at least 170 minutes of ice time.
Bobby Brink
An undersized winger generously listed at 5-foot-8 needs to bring offensive creativity and vision. Bobby Brink shows his skill when he gets opportunities to control the puck, but he hasn’t gained enough favor with John Tortorella to become one of the top options as a go-to scorer.
Brink struggles defensively and in physical board battles. He must create more offense than three goals and seven assists in 18 games to carve out his future with the Flyers.
Cam York
An upper-body injury has limited Cam York to eight games in 2024-25. The hope to develop a foundational piece in the future of the blue line is on hold approaching his 24th birthday.
The former University of Michigan star blossomed down the stretch in 2023-24. He played arguably the best of any defenseman on the roster in the second half while the unit struggled with injuries and the departure of Sean Walker.
York has returned to the lineup with an opportunity to make everyone forget about his early-season absence. The Philadelphia blue line could use his contributions with the multitude of injuries they’ve faced.
The organization has also stressed a longer development process for defensemen because of the need for greater awareness on the ice built through experience.
Sam Ersson
John Tortorella by his own admission overworked Sam Ersson late in the 2023-24 season.
The young Swedish netminder struggled to carry the load after Carter Hart left the team in January 2024. Ersson’s previous success in tandem with Hart indicated a more sensible expectation for a developing goaltender.
Ersson still entered the 2024-25 season as the top netminder, but a nagging lower-body injury has taken him out of the lineup twice. He’s flashed high potential in 11 games, but his availability has to factor into any conversation about whether the Flyers have found their long-term solution between the pipes.
The front office (unsurprisingly) has a long list of goaltending questions to answer as part of their rebuild.
Morgan Frost
The organization finished the season with high confidence in Owen Tippett, Tyson Foerster, and Cam York, among others. They have never shown the same level of confidence in Morgan Frost’s performance at the NHL level.
The pending restricted free agent has reached age 25 without becoming a lineup regular. Swirling trade rumors suggest he won’t finish the season in Philadelphia.
Joel Farabee
Joel Farabee stormed out of the gates with eight goals and nine assists in the first 18 games of Covid-shortened 2020-21 season.
All traces of optimism in Ron Hextall’s collection of developing draft picks as the core of a Stanley Cup contender quickly disappeared. The Flyers plummeted in a disastrous month of March 2021.
Farabee slowed his torrid point pace, and he’s struggled to reach a secure status as a top-six NHL winger ever since.
A strong first half in 2023-24 pushed Farabee’s stock back up, but a scoring drought in the second half made it difficult for anyone to remain optimistic in his offensive production three years after the promising hot streak that raised expectations for his NHL ceiling.
Farabee brings value to the Flyers as a tough winger and a leader for the younger players who hope to develop into a Stanley Cup core. However, underwhelming offensive numbers leave something to be desired considering his draft status and offensive success earlier in his career.
Matvei Michkov
Most Flyers fans don’t need a sales pitch to believe in Matvei Michkov. The 19-year-old has shown flashes of superstar potential and justified the comparisons to Nikita Kucherov with 16 points in his first 19 games.
He is the future of the Flyers and the most impactful player in the fate of the rebuild. His rookie performance has (at least) met (if not raised) expectations, although there’s still room for improvement in his all-around game.
Aleksei Kolosov
The Flyers ultimately convinced Aleksei Kolosov to emigrate to North America, although reports suggest he could still return to Russia before the end of the 2024-25 season.
While he’s been in the crease, Kolosov has made a good impression. Tortorella has consistently praised his competitive demeanor, which the head coach factors in heavily to evaluate a position he doesn’t often address tactically.
Kolosov’s raw ability needs refinement. He might not stay on the roster as a full-time option instead of Ivan Fedotov, but he’s shown encouraging potential.
Emil Andrae
Emil Andrae couldn’t seize an early-season opportunity in 2023-24. However, he justified some optimism within the organization during his time with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms last season.
He’s stepped in this season and done what the organization hoped he would do last season. The 5-foot-8 Swede outperformed Jamie Drysdale early in the season and took over the role as quarterback of the top power-play unit before an untimely injury pushed him out of the lineup.
While Michkov and Kolosov entered their rookie campaigns higher in any prospect rankings, Andrae has improved his stock as much as any developing young player in his first extended NHL action.
