Almost two weeks ago, Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall announced the signing of defenseman Yevgeni Medvedev, a 32-year-old Russian-native that has spent his entire playing career in the KHL. Playing there since the league’s inception in 2008 and three years prior in the Russian Elite League, Medvedev comes over to North America to play for the first time in 11 years.
Signing a $3 million deal, Medvedev is expected to be given a chance to play top-4 minutes, but it’s left some uncertainty regarding the defense position. Medvedev becomes the eighth defenseman currently under contract with the Flyers, while Michael Del Zotto is a restricted free agent and awaiting a new contract. Del Zotto signed a one-year deal with the club last off-season, after the Nashville Predators did not tender him a qualifying offer.
Re-signing Del Zotto is not even a question of do or don’t. The Stouffville, Ontario native averaged just under 22 minutes last season and provided the Flyers with stellar, consistent play. Bringing him back is key, but it will also bring the Flyers up to nine defenseman under contract.
The remaining seven defensemen are: Mark Streit, Andrew MacDonald, Luke Schenn, Nicklas Grossman, Nick Schultz, Radko Gudas, and Brandon Manning. Just MacDonald and Schultz have multiple years remaining on their contracts, while the remainder of the pack see their deals end after the 2015-16 season.
The question Ron Hextall needs to ask himself now is, what does he do?
Figuring out the Flyers Logjam on Defense
The Trade Route
One option for Hextall is to stick one or two of his defensemen on the market. MacDonald and his $5 million price tag for the next five seasons could prove to be a difficult contract to move at this time, however both Schenn and Grossman are on the final year of their deals. They both could become trade bait by trade deadline day to a team making a push for the playoffs, however Hextall should prefer to want to move them before then.Trading all three is next to impossible and if Hextall could pull that off, he’d be in the running for GM of the year next season.
Another candidate could be Mark Streit. He’s a proven leader on the team and one of the Flyers’ best defensemen overall, but he is also currently 37 years old. In terms of return, there could be quite a few teams interested in a puck-moving defenseman with the ability to put the puck in the net and instantly improve the powerplay. If Hextall is thinking of moving Streit, it’s not about the player himself or the money he earns, but the return that he would net.
Of course, there’s also Vincent Lecavalier. While trading him wouldn’t clear a spot on the blue-line, it would clear up some ample cap space, giving Hextall a little more time to breathe and perhaps more time to carefully set up his next move.
Needless to say, if the right deal comes along, Hextall should work the phones. It may be important to clear up a spot or two for some defensemen, but unloading cap is just as important.
Sending Brandon Manning down
A rather unpopular move would be the bury Manning down to Lehigh Valley for the duration of the season and run with eight defensemen, until a spot opens up. Manning signed a one-year extension with the Flyers, however the deal is one-way which could provide some complications. Furthermore, in the 11 games that Manning appeared in last season, the 24-year-old impressed management and the Flyers fanbase and earned his spot on the roster quickly. He deserves a chance to prove he can do it over the course of a season, but the problem is the logjam could take away that opportunity.
If Hextall can’t clear up the logjam before the season starts, Manning may find himself watching the game from the press box or playing very limited minutes and sitting on the bench. Either case is not sophisticated for a player like Manning.
The Kids Are Alright
Interesting enough, the logjam could become even more of a dilemma if some of the young prospects continue to push their way to the surface. Big boy Samuel Morin had a good showing at this year’s Memorial Cup despite Rimouski Oceanic’s poor showing, while Shayne Gotisbehere and Robert Hagg made excellent strides with the Phantoms in the AHL. Travis Sanheim continues to impress in the WHL with the Calgary Hitmen, improving his play and putting up 65 points in 67 games last season. Head coach Dave Hakstol has a lot to work with when his youth moves up, as his coaching style prefers defenseman who can join the rush and be an active presence in the offensive zone.
Ron Hextall also has the chance to bring in some high-end prospects at this year’s entry draft, as he holds the 7th and 28th overall picks in the first round alone, and five picks in the top-90 in what is expected to be a very deep draft. Selecting in the top-10, there are some great defensemen in the mix like Ivan Provorov and Zachary Werenski. Noah Hanifin, who is expected to go anywhere from 3rd to 5th, could unexpectedly drop to 7th like Seth Jones dropped to 4th in 2013 after expecting to be selected #2 overall.
At the tail-end of the first round, there could still be some attractive names on the board, such as Oliver Kylington, Jacob Larsson and Noah Juulsen, or one of Jakub Zboril or Thomas Chabot could drop down to 28th. It’s not to say that the Flyers will absolutely select two defensemen with their two first round picks, but the possibility of having a surplus of blue-liners who can make your team a highly-competitive franchise for years to come is definitely there.
Perhaps we could see another Flyers logjam on defense in 2020, with all the talent that is coming up.
Main Photo
