Offseason Inventory: The New Arrivals

Since the end of the 2020-21 season, the Philadelphia Flyers have changed out half of their projected opening-night blueline. They made a major trade within the top six of the forward rotation and brought back a familiar face to the bottom end of the forward rotation. The club has also altered its projected NHL goaltending tandem.

The Flyers' number one objective next season is to cut the team goals against average significantly and to execute much better on the penalty kill. These are non-negotiables for the team to improve.
In 2019-20, the Flyers ranked in the NHL top seven in both goals against average and goals per game and 11th on the penalty kill. This past season, the team ranked 31st (dead last) in goals against average and 30th on the penalty kill. Although the club entered March ranked 4th in goals per game, the defensive and goaltending issues eventually dragged down the offense, too, and the Flyers finished 15th in goals per game.
An overarching theme of all the changes that have been made is that most of the new position players who have been brought in were alternate captains with their previous club. Meanwhile, veteran goaltender Martin Jones previously backstopped the San Jose Sharks to the Stanley Cup Final in 2016 and to Game 6 of the Western Conference Final in 2019.
With roughly one month to go before the start of training camp, here's a brief review of the team's new arrivals, their contract status and their likely roles.
Cam Atkinson (RW)
Age: 32
Contract Status: Signed through 2024-25 ($5.875 million AAV)
An undersized (5-foot-8) hockey player with a giant heart and competitive will, Atkinson brings an energetic, positive-minded attitude to the rink every day. He also brings a shooter's mentality, having scored 35-plus goals twice in the NHL and 21-plus goals six times. He brings a two-way work ethic and a willingness to make second-effort and third effort plays to come up with the puck. Despite his competitiveness, Atkinson rarely takes penalties. He has established himself as one of the NHL's best penalty killing forwards and can also contribute on the power play.
He is also a proven scorer at 5-on-5. Over the last six seasons, Atkinson ranks 28th leaguewide in even strength goals (one more than new Flyers teammate James van Riemsdyk). Meanwhile, over the same six-year time span, Atkinson is tied with Brad Marchand and Sebastian Aho for the most shorthanded goals (12) in the NHL and led the league with four shorthanded tallies last season..
Atkinson had a partial no-trade clause in his contract in Columbus, which has carried over to Philadelphia. He did not have to be asked to accept a trade to the Flyers because Philadelphia was already on his pre-approved list of destinations. He has numerous friends on the team.
"I love Columbus, but I couldn't be more excited to be joining the Flyers organization. I personally think I'm going to fit in very well," Atkinson said. "With special teams, I'll be able to help out, especially on the PK. I think I fit the mold pretty well. I'm super excited. You can see with Chuck Fletcher what they are trying to do with bringing in certain guys," Atkinson said.
Atkinson's arrival in Philadelphia brought Jakub Voracek's decade-long stay with the Flyers to the end. Both are well-liked players in the locker room but they bring different dynamics as hockey players. Perhaps most notable, Voracek is a first and foremost a playmaker and passer while Atkinson is more of a goal-scorer.
Ryan Ellis (D)
Age: 30
Contract Status: Signed through 2026-27 ($6.25 million AAV)
The Flyers will rely heavily upon Ellis to solidify the right side of the team's top defensive pairing along with likely partner Ivan Provorov. The right-handed shooting veteran will be asked to log heavy ice time across all game situations: getting tough minutes at five-on-five, playing atop the penalty killing rotation and seeing time on the power play as well.
Ellis has always been an offensively capable performer as well as a strong all-around defenseman. After returning last season from a broken knuckle that cost him a month of action, Ellis posted 9 points over his final 14 regular season games and then added five points in six playoff games. In 2019-20, he chipped in eight goals and 38 points in 49 regular season games played. Ellis is also a two-time double-digit goal scorer.
A highly competitive hockey player despite giving up size (5-foot-10, 180 pounds) to many opponents, Ellis relies more on brains than brawn to get the job done. He's absorbed some wear-and-tear on his body over 562 regular season games and 74 playoff contests in the NHL, and keeping the player healthy and in the lineup will be an important facet of the Flyers' hopes.
"I'm looking forward to competing with the guys. At this point in my career, all I want to do is win and this organization has got a winning standard and expectations to do so. For me, I'm going to try to play my game and help the team out any way I can going forward. If that's scoring goals or stopping goals, doing both, whatever it takes to help this team win," Ellis said on July 20.
"I just try to do whatever the team needs at the time to win, whether it be blocking shots or making defensive plays. If we're down, it might be cheating on offense, trying to make plays happen offensively. Honestly, I just pride myself on being a team-first guy. Whatever it takes to win at that time, hopefully that's what you're going to see out of me."
Ellis has a quick defensive stick and is a willing shot blocker, especially on the penalty kill. In terms of puck possession metrics, he's a career 52.2 percent Corsi player at five-on-five. He moves the puck efficiently and is especially adept at making accurate breakout passes to send the play other way.
Rasmus Ristolainen (D)
Age: 26
Contract status: signed through 2021-22 ($5.4 million AAV)
The big Finnish defenseman could be the poster child for how many NHL pro scouts and the majority of coaches sometimes see the game quite differently from the analytics community. NHL teams nowadays have analytics departments working side-by-side with Hockey Operations. Most of today's GMs want as many frames of reference as possible before arriving at decisions, and value the combined work of both staffs.
Ristolainen's publicly tracked career analytics, compiled on struggling Buffalo Sabres teams in which he was assigned top-pairing minutes and heavy defensive zone start shares against top opposition, have been poor. This is true in terms of puck possession differentials, scoring opportunity disparities, defensive zone exits, comparative stats relative to teammates and other metrics. How much of this has been due to the environment in Buffalo and a parade of five different coaches remains to be seen.
On the flip side, there are plenty of things about Ristolainen that scouts and coaches like. He's not only big (6-foot-4, 221 pounds) and right-handed, he's also quite mobile and plays with a mean streak. His level of physical conditioning rivals that even of Provorov. Both last season and over the past five campaigns, Ristolainen ranks third in hits among NHL defensemen. Not only does he enjoy throwing his weight around, he gets in opponents' faces.
"I try to be a piece of [bleep]," was how the player self-described his aggressive playing style to host Jason Myrtetus on a recent episode of Flyers' Daily.
"I would say I'm a player that other teams hate to play against, and I try to be a pain in the ass. I can do everything, penalty kill, power play. I can pass the puck. I can shoot the puck. I can play any type of role. Hard worker. I like to hit. Just do anything it takes to win."
Beyond his physical game, Ristolainen brings offensive skill. He posted four straight seasons in Buffalo of 40-plus points until the arrival of Rasmus Dahlin resulted in a reduction of Ristolainen's power play time. Additionally, he's one of the NHL's most accurate shooting defenseman in terms of getting pucks on net. For his career, 54.3 percent of Ristolainen's all-situations shot attempts have gotten on the net.
Lastly, Ristolainen is a fine shot-blocker in his own right, He's topped 110 blocks in five seasons. In defensive zone board battles, Ristolainen is adept at pinning opposing players to the wall and keeping them right there. This cancels out one opposing attacker from the play but also puts responsibility on teammates to come get the puck.
In Philadelphia, Ristolainen currently figures to play a second-pairing role behind Provorov and Ellis. The Finn may be paired with Travis Sanheim. It remains to be seen where Ristolainen will fit, if at all, in the power play depth chart. He will get his share of penalty killing time and should remain a 20-minute defenseman even if his minutes won't be as heavy as they were in Buffalo.
Ristolainen is a prospective unrestricted free agent next summer. Thus, both for the Flyers' return on investment from the trade (the 13th overall pick of the 2021 Draft, defenseman Robert Hägg, and a 2023 second-round pick) and for the player's long-term earning potential, the 2021-22 season will be vital.
Keith Yandle (D)
Age: 34 (turns 35 on Sept. 9)
Contract Status: SIgned through 2021-22 ($900,000)
A veteran of 14-plus NHL seasons and a three-time NHL All-Star Game participant, Yandle was recently bought out by the Florida Panthers with two seasons remaining on the six-year deal he signed back in 2016. He reportedly received higher contract offers from a couple of other NHL teams but handpicked the Flyers in part because long-time friend and fellow Bostonian Kevin Hayes recruited him to come to Philadelphia. Yandle also has previous experience playing under Alain Vigneault, as the two spent a season-plus together with the New York Rangers.
"I know the roster and know how big the guys are. I think the biggest thing with [Hayes] is that the group is not happy with not making the playoffs last year and how it ended. How guys want to come in this year, have a huge year and get back to where you should be. I think for me, that's the biggest thing is to see the hunger in the group and talking to guys and their team and how excited they are for the season to start. It's definitely a big thing for me as well," Yandle said after his signing was announced.
Yandle has always been, first and foremost, an offensive-minded defenseman. At this stage of his career, he is likely more a third-pairing player at five-on-five and a power play specialist than the 20-plus minute player he was into his early 30s.
Currently, Yandle has an active 922-game iron man streak of consecutive games played. He is 42 short of Doug Jarvis's all-time NHL record. Vigneault, however, cannot be concerned with making sure that Yandle breaks the record. The coach has to be concerned, first and foremost, with winning hockey games. Yandle said that he understands and will takes things as they come.
"For me, it's about the fit and the chance to win," Yandle said. "Last year, I was running the top power play up top. That's what I see myself as a power play guy, a guy that can help out getting pucks to the forwards. Obviously, seeing how good the forwards are in Philly, it's an exciting thing to see that and hopefully be able to pass those guys. I think, for me, it's just being good on the power play. Obviously, you can't score every power play, but it's getting momentum for your team and staying positive. I definitely take pride in that."
Martin Jones (G)
Age: 31
Contract Status: SIgned through 2021-22 ($2 million AAV)
Jones will be tabbed as the backup to Carter Hart but intends to push the 23-year-old for playing time. The one-year term and moderate cap hit as compared to some of the other goalie signings around the NHL on the first day of free agency is a reflection of the fact that Jones struggled in his final few seasons with the San Jose Sharks. He was recently bought out by San Jose, making him an unrestricted free agent.
"It was a couple of trying seasons," Jones said on July 28. "Sometimes, a fresh start can give you a little bit of life, a little bit of energy and to kind of refocus. I love a lot of the moves the Flyers have made.in the offseason so far. I think we have a good opportunity to have a good team and win some hockey games.".
How much of the problem the last few years was due to the downturn in San Jose's formerly stout team defense? How much of it was due to Jones, former goalie partner Aaron Dell and, more recently, Devan Dubnyk and youngster Josef Korenar all playing below expectations? How much was a combination of both factors? In any event, Jones will have the opportunity in Philadelphia to get back on track.
Coming to Philadelphia will reunite Jones with Kim Dillabaugh, who was his developmental goalie coach early in his career as a prospect in the LA Kings system. The two had a strong working relationship, and Jones said that it factored into his desire to come to the Flyers.
"Definitely was on my mind. We had a great relationship when I was in Manchester. He knows my game very well and we know how to work together. That was a factor for sure. Hopefully we can sort of pick up where we left off and get my game back trending where it was a few years ago," Jones said.
During his first three seasons with San Jose, Jones was a workhorse starter, playing between 60 and 65 games per season. He finished seventh in the Vezina Trophy voting in 2015-16 and sixth the next year. Jones backstopped the Sharks to the Western Conference championship in 2015-16 before losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games in the Stanley Cup Final. In 2018-19, Jones and Sharks made it to game six of the Western Conference Final before bowing out to the eventual Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues.
Nate Thompson (C)
Age: 36 (turns 37 on Oct. 5)
Contract Status: Signed through 2021-22 ($800,000 AAV)
Thompson is already familiar with the Flyers, having joined the team at the 2020 trade deadline after coming over from Montreal. Last season, Thompson signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Winnipeg Jets, appearing in 44 regular season games and eight playoff matches.
Wherever he's gone, the veteran of 811 NHL regular season games and 86 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs has played the same role: fourth-line center, faceoff specialist and penalty-kill regular with grit and physical competitiveness. It remains to be seen if Thompson will still play a regular top-12 role come the 2021-22 regular season or if he will slot into a roster depth role depending on the night's matchup.
"I think the fans here know my game. I've always played pretty much the same game. I try to do the little details and play a straightforward game. I'm happy to be back. There's a good group here," Thompson said.
Added general manager and president of hockey operations Chuck Fletcher, "He did a good job for us when we got him from Montreal(at the 2020 trade deadline). Every year at the trade deadline, this is the sort of player you look to add for the playoffs. He brings experience, adds to our penalty kill and our depth. So rather than trading an asset, we were able to have him available to us for the whole season."