To Brière’s credit, he has reason to be optimistic. The Flyers’ turnaround in their final nine games under interim head coach Brad Shaw gave fans a taste of what could be possible with more firepower.
Despite considerable flaws in the team’s construction due to being an active seller at the trade deadline, and coming off 14 consecutive games without a regulation or overtime victory, Shaw had a 5–3–1 record behind the bench. Most importantly, rookie Matvei Michkov looked and produced like a superstar under more lenient guidance—six goals and as many assists in that time frame.
With a guaranteed top-six draft choice at their disposal and about one-fifth odds to sneak inside the top two, the Flyers are likely to land another core piece. But with Michkov’s late-season excellence, it’s hard to imagine the team finishing in the basement again.
So, with this context in mind, Philadelphia being pegged as the offer sheet team for the 2025 offseason isn’t such a surprise. At this point, acquiring high-end draft picks is probably out of the question—a good problem to have if someone like Michkov is leading the charge.
With seven picks in the opening two rounds of the 2025 NHL Draft, even the Flyers’ own 2026 first-round choice is expendable for the right price. The right restricted free agent, to be more specific. Which offer sheet-eligible skaters this summer should the Orange and Black be after?
Evan Bouchard, Edmonton Oilers
This one’s a long shot, admittedly, and may require several years of first-round picks. But if there was anyone to throw caution to the wind for, it’d be Edmonton Oilers right-shot defenseman Evan Bouchard. He had 67 points in 82 games this season with a plus-14 rating.
The vast amount of media criticism Bouchard receives in Edmonton is unjust, and a reason why this move could be manageable. I made a piece a couple of months ago in his defense, but the quick rundown is that his superstar offensive contributions are ignored. Instead, his defensive shortcomings are attacked. That is, even though the Oilers allow about as many goals per minute when he’s off the ice versus on it (and score a lot more).
Bouchard excels at getting the puck up the ice and into dangerous situations for Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. As a result, the forwards are both significantly less impactful when not stapled to the 25-year-old defender. Combined, they have a 64.53% goal share at 5-on-5 when on the ice with Bouchard over the last two seasons, including the playoffs. Without him, though, that goal share falls to 51.37%—a cratering in their effectiveness.
But many don’t recognize that. Turnover-happiness, which should be expected from a play-driving defenseman, is what gets the attention. So, Bouchard is a rather unpopular figure among Edmontonians, at least from the looks of it.
What a fan base or media thinks doesn’t necessarily matter, but that could be the chance for the Flyers to land their first franchise defenseman in decades. He’d dramatically increase Michkov’s puck touches, possibly turning a young star into a young face of the NHL. Bouchard makes superstars’ lives easier.
As for the cost, it’d be pricey—guaranteed. The best-case scenario is that the Flyers offer $11,452,293 in annual salary and thus sacrifice two first-round picks, a second-round pick, and a third-round pick for compensation. This avoids the highest tier of compensation (four first-round picks) while also presenting a difficult decision for Edmonton.
Mackie Samoskevich, Florida Panthers
Though he’s only 22 years old and was selected 24th overall in 2021, right-wing Mackie Samoskevich‘s numbers are nothing to really lose your mind over. While solid, 31 points in 72 games on the Cup-contending Florida Panthers are seemingly not enough to enter offer sheet territory, especially with a first-round pick as bait.
However, those who have been paying close attention to Samoskevich know the damage he can wreak. From Jan. 16 onward, he was in the 65th percentile in points scored per 60 minutes among forwards with 250 minutes of ice time, with a rate of 2.23. That’s not otherworldly, but encouraging progression for a rookie.
Samoskevich is impressive with the puck on his stick—a strong shooter, passer, and overall creator. Blending skating and physicality in there, a complete top-six forward is not an unlikely future. In fact, there’s star potential here.
