Flyers 2025–26 Roster Projection 2.0: 2 Rookies Enter the Villa

An offense-heavy top line might not suit new head coach Rick Tocchet, but Travis Konecny and Matvei Michkov established great chemistry toward the end of last season. Benefitting mutually from each other’s presence, the Flyers can have a reliable, high-scoring line at 5-on-5 action. Trevor Zegras adds transitional promise down the middle, with his strong defensive stick, breakout passing ability, and puck-carrying excellence. Uniting this trio may be ambitious, but it can bring some oomph to this rebuilding roster.

The second line is a bit more traditional. Though he’s entering his age-33 season, Sean Couturier is still a useful center—playing both ends of the ice, winning puck battles, and setting up rush chances. That last trait is particularly significant for Owen Tippett, who excels off the rush. He’ll be eyeing a bounce-back campaign, while Tyson Foerster is chasing a breakout. The 23-year-old is more of a two-way middle-sixer at this stage, and there’s room for more.

Next up is a line with two rookies and Bobby Brink, coming off a 41-point showing, tagging along. Down the middle, there’s a familiar face: Jett Luchanko. Last season, the 2024 first-round pick wowed the coaching staff of the Flyers and Team Canada, earning a brief stint in the NHL and playing bottom-six minutes at the World Junior Championship. So, it’s possible that Tocchet has a similar respect for the youngster’s game. Meanwhile, Alex Bump won an NCAA title last season and can be an immediate weapon for the Orange and Black in all three zones.

This fourth line can be a dependable one for the Flyers. Now, it was hard to put Noah Cates in this spot—he flourished as a middle-six, shutdown center. The fourth line is too low for him on paper, but think of this as a situational trio for Philadelphia. Newcomer Christian Dvorak and returnee Garnet Hathaway can be frequently iced alongside the 26-year-old in defensive situations. If needed, Nicolas Deslauriers can slot here, too.

Projecting the Flyers’ Defensive Pairings

Defensively, there aren’t any deviations from the first roster projection I did. Still, here’s a look:

For now, the Flyers’ top pair belongs to Cam York and Travis Sanheim. In a rebuild and all, these two have been forced to punch a bit above their weight. But the team clearly believes in York’s potential to take the next step, who signed a five-year deal in the offseason. Sanheim, his partner in crime since 2023–24, is a passable No. 1 defenseman. He’s an effective top-pairing puck-carrier.

The second pair is intriguing. After the youthful Jamie Drysdale returned from a November injury, at 5-on-5, he and Nick Seeler combined for a 57.45% goal share (plus-7 rating) and a 53.98% expected goal share. After struggling badly early in his Philadelphia tenure, Drysdale had a legitimate NHL impact post-injury—an important No. 4–5 puck-mover from the back end. Seeler’s shutdown style is the perfect complement.

The Flyers could go several directions for their bottom pair, especially if Rasmus Ristolainen is still recovering from injury. Emil Andrae showed flashes of a top-four defenseman last season, so despite his 5-foot-9 stature, he should get a chance. A physical Noah Juulsen can even the playing field a bit, while Egor Zamula can sub in for either player if necessary. Dennis Gilbert is extra insurance here.

Projecting the Flyers’ Goaltenders

This has been a recent area of weakness. Two seasons in a row, the Flyers have had the NHL’s worst team save percentage. Here’s the group that hopes to turn the tide:

It’ll likely be a 1A, 1B situation for Samuel Ersson and free-agent acquisition Dan Vladař. Though the latter put up a modest .898 save percentage as a backup last season, I’m cautiously optimistic that this duo can avoid the detrimental impacts of yesteryear. With a proven, league-average backup in Vladař instead of two rookies handling the role (Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov), there may be some more consistency between the pipes. An overhauled coaching staff, too, could change the way the Flyers’ netminders approach the game.

Do you agree or disagree with these picks? Feel free to leave your thoughts below!

Stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick