Most of the core group of Flyers veterans -- defined here as upper lineup fixtures who are age 26 or older -- has been together in Philadelphia since the 2011-12 season: Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, and Jakub Voracek. The latecomers are Kevin Hayes, who joined the team in 2019-20 and left winger James van Riemsdyk, who began a second stint with the organization in 2018-19.
Offseason Inventory: Veteran Core
Most of the core group of Flyers veterans -- defined here as upper lineup fixtures who are age 26 or older -- has been together in Philadelphia since the 2011-12 season: Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, and Jakub Voracek.
Due to the constraints of the still-flat NHL salary cap ceiling and the need to address various roster needs (including an upgrade to the blueline mix, which can be an expensive fix, and more teamwide two-way commitment), it is possible that the player within the veteran core could change this offseason and/or within the next calendar year. That remains to be seen.
One point deserves mention before we go player-by-player: From 2014-15 to 2017-18, the primary focus of the Flyers hockey operations was geared toward restocking the farm system and creating cap space to eventually sign young players to multi-year extensions. Enough holdover pieces were kept in place -- Giroux, Voracek, Couturier and, for the duration of this time period, Wayne Simmonds -- for the team to at least contend for a playoff spot.
These players, along with veterans like Mark Streit and a young Shayne Gostisbehere in his first and third NHL seasons, were important reasons why the team made the playoffs in 2015-16 and 2017-18. They fell short of the postseason in an overly streaky 2016-17 season and a poor first half in 2018-19 that made the uphill climb too step to overcome. Overall, in the big picture, there simply was not enough depth on the roster in those year to realistically make a deep playoff run. Whatever success the team did have during this time period largely was owed to the core group. For example, without Giroux's career-best 102 point season and torrid stretch drive in 2017-18, it is unlikely the Flyers would have earned even a wildcard playoff spot, much less finished the regular season with 98 points. That same year, Voracek posted 85 points in 82 games and Couturier had the first of back-to-back 30-goal seasons.
The resumption of an added emphasis on addressing immediate NHL roster needs started to shift before the 2018-19 season with the signing of van Riemsdyk as an unrestricted free agent. After a disappointing season, the pace accelerated before the breakout 2019-20 campaign with the additions of Hayes, Matt Niskanen (who retired after the season) and role playing veterans such as Justin Braun and Tyler Pitlick. The team took a backward step in 2019-20, which is why it is now at a crossroads in a vital offseason. The team still has most of its prospects and Draft picks as trading capital but it's possible that higher-price veterans may also be moved.
Here's a look at where the veteran core stands entering the NHL offseason:
Claude Giroux
Age: 33Contract Status:Signed through 2021-22 ($8.25 million AAV)
The Flyers captain had a bit of a strange season in 2020-21, even apart from a bout with COVID-19 in February. He quietly had a pretty strong campaign at 5-on-5, producing 32 points. By way of comparison to other prominent NHL veterans, Giroux's 5-on-5 output this past season exceeded the likes of Nicklas Bäckström (31), William Nylander (31), Patrice Bergeron (31), Joe Pavelski (30), Blake Wheeler (29), David Krejci (28), Anze Kopitar (27), Jamie Benn (26), T.J. Oshie (26) and Alex Ovechkin (25).
On the flip side, Giroux had a disappointing season from a productivity standpoint in 2020-21. He scored only one power play goal and added a modest eight power play assists. The left-circle one-timers that typically account for many of Giroux's power play goals rarely found the mark this season; either missing the net and rimming out around the boards, not being timed exactly right or hitting the goalie in the pads, the logo or snared in the glove. Not many resulted in rebound put-backs this year, unfortunately.
Giroux, who has a no-movement clause in his contract, can become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2022. Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher recently said that he'd like to retain Giroux for as long as the player wants to be in Philadelphia. Giroux himself has said that he hopes to spend his entire NHL career as a Flyer. Exactly what will happen remains to be seen and is speculatory at this point. Assuming things work out, it is possible that some AAV (cap hit) could be traded off for a term designed to take the player through a new extension.
Sean Couturier
Age: 28Contract Status: Signed through 2021-22 ($4.33 million AAV)
Couturier has been one of the NHL's biggest bargains over the life of his current contract, which he signed on July 28, 2015 and kicked in for the 2016-17 campaign. Over the life of the deal, he's been a Selke Trophy finalist twice and the Selke winner in 2019-20, a two-time 30-goal scorer, and averaged 0.91 points per game (252 points in 276 games). Additionally, he's added seven goals and 18 points in 20 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs in that span.
Couturier is likely to get a significant raise in his next contract. As an unrestricted free agent next summer, he has significant leverage. With the recent passing of Couturier's highly respected longtime agent, Gilles Lupien, the player will have new representation in his next contract negotiation. Whether Couturier re-signs with the Flyers or tests the market depends on various factors that will play out over the next year: how the team fares, how he plays and
"I mean, I obviously love it here in Philly, it's a great city, the organization's been awesome to me since I've gotten here, so obviously I'd love to stay. But it's part of the game, part of the business and we'll see what happens. I still have another year to play, so we'll see," Couturier said during his Exit Day press conference in May.
Despite dealing with an early-season injury and nagging issues that bothered him throughout the 2020-21 season, Couturier had a rather consistent and solid season in terms of offensive production (18g, 23a). However, his overall game wasn't up to its usual standards, by his own admission.
"I only played 45 and it was a grind. Especially when I missed that game there in the Island and I came back, took me probably seven to 10 days to kind of get my legs going again and I wasn't feeling as good as before that injury. But yeah, it was tough to recover from any sort of little injuries, so it was a grind. But every team went through that schedule. It might have been a little tougher because COVID hit us, but we needed to be better and we weren't good enough," he said on Exit Day.
Jakub Voracek
Age: 31Contract Status: Signed through 2023-24 ($8.25 million AAV)
Voracek is still a productive NHL point-producer and one of the better playmaking wingers in the league over the last decade. He's always been more geared toward setting up teammates than scoring goals, but has had six 20-goal seasons in the NHL. This past season, Voracek posted 34 assists and 43 points but saw his goal total dip to nine in 53 games played. He dealt with an asymptomatic case of COVID-19 in February.
The Czech veteran enjoyed arguably his best NHL two-way season in 2019-20. However, he was one of several Flyers players who took a step backwards in that area in 2020-21, including Hayes and even Couturier.
Veteran hockey journalist Elliotte Friedman recently reported that Voracek may be on the move this summer, either via the Expansion Draft or a trade. This is not a certainty, and Friedman stressed that there is no acrimony on either side. Both the player and the organization are comfortable with the prospect of Voracek staying put for his 11th season as a Flyer, depending on how things develop over the summer in terms of other Philadelphia moves. This is a reflection of the business side of hockey, and the reality of high-AAV contracts with multiple years of term remaining in a player's 30s.
Kevin Hayes
Age: 29Contract Status: Signed through 2025-26 ($7.14 million AAV)
Hayes underwent sports hernia repair surgery in late May. He will be nearly five months post-op by the time the 2021-22 season begins. Hayes played through the issue for much of the season but, as is quite often the case, saw his effectiveness on the ice take a noticeable drop. Hayes' basic offensive season splits
Pre-March: 18 GP, 7 G, 9 A, 16 PTS, 14.6% SH%
March-May: 37 GP, 5 G, 10 A, 15 PTS, 6.3% SH%
Hayes' underlying metrics were similar or in cases better than in 2019-20 -- including an expected goals statistical jump -- but this was deceptive. He saw a significantly larger share of offensive-zone starts at five-on-five (55.4 percent as opposed to 46.0 percent) at five-on-five than he did a year ago. Eye-test wise, his skating looked labored at times. He didn't protect the puck as well as the previous season. He was also less individually impactful on the penalty kill than he was in 2019-20.
"It's easy to say that the injury was the reason, but no, I just think it was kind of a mix of everything, type of season the team had, the type of season the league had and a bunch of different factors. I felt like my first year in Philly was amazing. It was a great start to my career here. And this year was kind of a little hiccup, not the way I wanted to go, obviously. And I kinda want to be a guy that's relied on every single night and a guy that plays the right way; a 200 foot game. This year, I can't honestly say that that was the case," Hayes said on Exit Day.
One of the biggest areas of impact that Hayes had in 2019-20 was in terms of stealing pucks from opposing players. He was on the positive side of the takeaway/giveaway ratio (43/34) a year ago, leading all Flyers in total credited takeaways. This year, his takeaways took a huge tumble -- 21 fewer takeaways, albeit in 14 fewer games played -- and he was charged with more turnovers (27 charged giveaways; tied for the most among Flyers forwards) than he was credited with takeaways. He also blocked fewer opposing shot attempts than a year ago.
Apart from trending in a negative direction in terms of protecting the puck when it was on his stick and his stick-on-puck work on the forecheck and backcheck, Hayes did not use his size and strength as well as the previous year in terms of taking the body. He averaged 1.28 hits per game in 2019-20 and 1.09 this season.
Hayes was an important part of why the Flyers had the NHL's best record in Nov. 2019, although he played better than his individual scoring numbers that month. The numbers picked up as the Flyers surged again over the final 26 games prior to the pause (including a team-leading 11 goals from Hayes during that stretch, three of which were scored shorthanded). Hayes' play in the playoffs was a bit uneven at times, but it was hard to quibble much with his overall 13 points in 16 games.
That is the player the Flyers need to see next season. The one who'd intercept passes and turn them into transitional chances. The one who, even when he wasn't scoring shorthanded goals, ragged time off the clock with the puck on his stick (although not necessarily when he'd bob and weave in the neutral zone, despite the fact that it usually seemed to work). The one who had three goals and six points against the Islanders in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
James van Riemsdyk
Age: 32Contract Status: SIgned through 2022-23 ($7.0 million cap hit)
As with Voracek, JVR's cap hit, remaining term and the lack of a no-movement or no-trade clause in his contract are primary factors in why van Riemsdyk reportedly might be on the move this summer via Expansion Draft or trade.The veteran is coming off a pretty solid all-around 2020-21 season even after his torrid early goal-scoring pace gave way to a lengthy goal drought. van Riemsdyk finished the campaign with 17 goals and tied for the team overall scoring lead with 43 points.
JVR is coming off had one his better NHL seasons in terms of the consistency of the underlying details of his game: play-making, puck handling, two-way play, and even in terms of playing a more physical brand of hockey than his reputation suggests. His stock in trade will always be scoring deflection, rebound and slam-dunk goals near the net, especially on the power play, but it is inaccurate to call JVR "one-dimensional" based on his play this past season. Even when he wasn't scoring, his was not a problem spot in the lineup.
van Riemsdyk has one less year of term left on his contract than Voracek. He remains a productive power play performer and is a good fit in any locker room dynamic.
