Grading Danny Briere’s First Season as Flyers’ GM

Now with a calendar year of experience as the GM for the Orange and Black, let’s take a look at the moves he has made and what grade he deserves for them. From the draft to some extensions he has handed out, there is a lot to unpack.

2023 NHL Draft

Rounds 1-2: A

Starting with the 2023 NHL draft, Briere came out with a bang. Matvei Michkov, who was arguably the second-best player next to Connor Bedard in the class, fell to the Flyers at seventh overall. So far, he has matched if not exceeded those expectations. He had 41 points in 48 Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) games, finishing just one point shy of the age-19 record for points set by Kirill Kaprizov. As for his on-ice play, he is a dynamic offensive player with no real weaknesses in that aspect. He could be a superstar or very close to one in the NHL. It cannot be understated how important getting a franchise-caliber player was.

With the 22nd overall pick, the Flyers took defenseman Oliver Bonk. While the offense has shown up for him, scoring 67 points in 60 games in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) to finish fifth in scoring among defenders, that should come with an asterisk. He played the bumper spot on the power play, a place that he excelled in but also one that probably skewed his numbers. A lot of his goals were a bit unconventional for a defender. With that out of the way, though, he could be a really interesting player if he reaches his ceiling. He has a top-four upside and can play a solid two-way game.

In the second round, the Flyers traded up to take goaltender Carson Bjarnason. Among the 65 netminders in the Western Hockey League (WHL), his .907 save percentage (SV%) ranked 11th. He only got better as the season went along, showing that he could be a possible starter in the NHL.

There were a few players that the Flyers undoubtedly missed out on, however. Winger Gabe Perreault seems to have a first-line upside after being projected to go early in the first round but falling to 23rd. Falling to 26th overall, Quentin Musty was the best age-17 scorer in terms of points per game in the OHL and has only gotten better since he was drafted. Finally, center Riley Heidt, put on a clinic in the WHL during his draft year but fell to the 64th pick; he finished third in WHL points in 2023-24. Both in foresight and in hindsight, none of these players should have fallen.

Even though the Flyers didn’t take the best player at every spot, getting Michkov more than makes up for everything. It would be exciting to see what a Perreault, Heidt, and Michkov trio could do on a first-line in Philadelphia, but ultimately the route they chose was fine.

Rounds 3-5: A-Plus

Once the middle rounds of drafts begin, that is when scouts and GMs can have more freedom. With essentially zero first-round talents on the board, harping over picks is unwarranted more often than not. That didn’t matter here, though, as Briere and the Flyers were sensational once the draft got moving.

With their first pick in the third round, the Flyers took goaltender Egor Zavragin. He spent most of his time in the All-Russian Hockey League (VHL), Russia’s second-toughest hockey league, and he dominated with a 13-1-0 record in the regular season along with a .943 SV%. In the postseason, he went 4-4-0 but finished with a .933 SV%. At the end of the day, he could legitimately be the best goaltender the Flyers have in their organization, even with Alexei Kolosov and Sam Ersson being there.

Later in the third round, the Flyers got what seems to be another steal in forward Denver Barkey. While he’s not first-line caliber or anything, he could be a second-liner if everything works out. On a stacked London Knights team in the OHL, he had 102 points and finished seventh overall in points per game. He’s a smaller player with a lot of skill.

In the fourth round, Philadelphia chose forward Cole Knuble, son of former Flyer Mike Knuble. It might seem like a nepotism pick, which it kind of was in a sense, but he had a good campaign in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) with 20 points in 36 games. It’s worth noting that he’s an over-ager who turns 20 on July 1, but making the NHL isn’t entirely a stretch.

Next up, the Flyers landed a clear-cut steal late in the fourth. An undersized Alex Ciernik was there for the taking, a player who scored 12 points in 25 contests in Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan in 2022-23. At worst, he was a second-round talent. This time around, he had 14 points in 26 contests which is still a really good output for a 19-year-old. He could be a bottom-six player for the Orange and Black.

In the fifth round, the Flyers took perhaps one of their most underrated picks in defenseman Carter Sotheran. As a two-way defenseman, he had 40 points and a ludicrous plus-46 rating in 66 WHL games in the regular season, and that’s despite being firmly behind defenseman Luca Cagnoni in the depth chart. In the playoffs, the scoring has been more apparent with 11 points and a plus-20 rating in 14 games. He rarely makes mistakes and is very solid in all three zones. He could be a second-pairing defender in the NHL.

Rounds 6-7: C-Minus

The sixth and seventh rounds of a draft don’t generally produce anything significant, so it’s not really fair to grade the players so harshly. With those picks, the Flyers took forward Ryan MacPherson and defenseman Matteo Mann. The former finished 50th in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) in points, while the latter wasn’t a massive standout in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) as a big, physical defenseman. Neither seem to be future NHL players, but they were also shots in the dark. Their development will take some time.

2023 Free Agency

Poehling: B-Minus

Briere wasn’t all that involved in free agency other than a few depth signings, but they turned out pretty well. First, he signed 25-year-old center Ryan Poehling to a one-year contract worth an average annual value (AAV) of $1.4 million. He slotted in well on the third line for the Orange and Black but could be found anywhere from the first to the fourth line throughout the season. He earned an extension for his great play.

Hathaway: B-Minus

Very similar to Poehling but just a bit older at 32, Garnet Hathaway was a great addition to the bottom six on a two-year deal worth $2.375 million annually. He can hit, fight, and he is a solid two-way forward. He is similar to Nicolas Deslauriers in how he plays the game, except he does it all significantly better. He is one of the few players in the league who can both be called an enforcer and actually provides things other than just hitting and fighting.

Staal: D

Marc Staal was brought in for his veteran experience for the youngsters, now 37 years of age, and he provided that. He’s not exactly the best defenseman, but he wasn’t entirely a liability, either. He was only signed for a season, so this wasn’t the best or worst move. It’s impossible to measure his impact on young players, but it’s safe to say he didn’t hurt their development. At the same time, he was serviceable as an individual. There were better options available.

The Rest: C

Other than those three, the Flyers had a couple of filler moves. They signed Rhett Gardner (two years) and Victor Mete (one year) to acquire some depth in the American Hockey League (AHL). Both of them played one game for the Flyers, so there’s just not much worth noting.

Their last move was a much later free-agent signing, as the Flyers went after 25-year-old forward Oscar Eklind on April 8, 2024, with a one-year deal worth $0.95 million. He has professional experience in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), so he might be a depth forward in 2024-25 if he impresses enough.

Briere’s Trading

2023 Offseason: A

Briere started off his Flyers’ tenure with a shocker of a deal on June 6, 2023. By staying true to the rebuild he wanted to set in place, he dealt top-pairing defenseman Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets in a three-way trade involving the Los Angeles Kings. He made a massive first impression for the Orange and Black, and he got a pretty great return in the process.

Cumulatively, the Flyers traded Provorov, Kevin Connauton, and Hayden Hodgson away. In return, they got a 2023 first-round pick that became Bonk, a 2024 second-round pick that they used to trade up for Bjarnason, either a 2024 or 2025 second-round pick via the Blue Jackets, Helge Grans, Cal Petersen, and Sean Walker. That’s a lot to unpack, so let’s dissect.

Grans was sort of a throw-in player at the time, and he remains that now. It’s unlikely for him to be an NHL regular, but he’s freshly 22 years of age. As for the draft pick that hasn’t been used yet, Columbus gets to decide when the Flyers receive it. Since they were one of the worst teams in the league in 2023-24, the Flyers will probably get their 2025 pick instead. The real meat of the deal comes with Walker, who was sensational for the Flyers. He was, quite possibly, the most impressive player on the team in 2023-24. At 29 years of age, he had a breakout campaign and slotted nicely on Philadelphia’s defense, nearly guiding them to the postseason. As for Petersen, he remains the cap dump that he was meant to be. The goaltender carries a $5 million cap hit through the 2024-25 season.

Overall, this is one of the best trades pulled off by a Flyers GM in quite some time. It would have been nice if Briere could have gotten a true star in this deal, but he was dealing with damaged goods in Provorov. He was coming off of three subpar seasons in a row, and he managed to get a haul. That’s a massive win.

2023-24 In-Season Trading: C-Minus

Briere only made one trade in the middle of the season, and it was definitely a shocker. It was revealed that prospect Cutter Gauthier, one of the best in the entirety of hockey, never planned on playing for the Orange and Black. The reasoning on why he didn’t want to play has still not been revealed even four months after the fact, so there is somewhat of a pass to be had. Still, it’s a very bad look for a GM when someone who projects to be a solid to elite first-line scorer like Gauthier demands a trade, especially when they were a fifth overall pick.

In return, the Flyers got 22-year-old defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round pick from the Anaheim Ducks. While it is nice, the draft pick holds essentially no value considering the magnitude of the trade. The real value is Drysdale, and he unsurprisingly had his struggles in 24 games with Philadelphia. He’s a project defender who hasn’t graded out particularly well in a single one of his four NHL seasons.

With that being said, Drysdale still needs time to work out his issues. For example, a defender like Rasmus Dahlin had subpar on-ice defensive stats until his age-22 season, then he broke out and became the player we know today. It would be surprising if Drysdale came out and emerged as this kind of player so quickly, but it would definitely make this trade a win for Briere given what he was working with.

It’s difficult to gauge this trade fairly given how recent it was, but Drysdale’s lack of offensive production and defensive woes makes things just a little bit concerning. He needs time to learn, but he didn’t have the greatest start with the Orange and Black. He could be a top-pairing defenseman one day, but only time will tell.

2024 Trade Deadline: C-Plus

Briere only made three deals at the trade deadline, but he did make some noise. His most notable deal was trading Walker and a 2026 fifth-round pick to the Colorado Avalanche for a 2025 first-round pick and Ryan Johansen. This was a pretty decent return, but it was also a big reason why the Flyers went spiraling and missed the playoffs considering how good he was for them.

To get that fifth-round pick back, Briere was the third wheel in the trade that sent defenseman Noah Hanifin to the Vegas Golden Knights, retaining some salary. The selection is 148th overall in the 2024 draft.

In what was Briere’s worst move, he traded a fourth-round pick to the Buffalo Sabres for veteran defender Erik Johnson. He wasn’t quite as bad as he was with the Sabres, struggling mightily during that short chapter of his career, but that doesn’t mean he was good with the Flyers. He, arguably, hurt Philadelphia more than he helped.

The Flyers’ last trade could have been a solid one if the player they received was given the time of day. Philadelphia traded AHL forward Wade Allison to the Nashville Predators for Denis Gurianov in a one-for-one deal. He only played in four games for the Flyers, but he was actually pretty good despite limited ice time. It was a good find from Briere, but Gurianov was consistently second-fiddle to some of the other depth players on the team.

Briere’s Contract Extensions

2023 Offseason: B-Plus

The Flyers had a few key restricted free agents (RFAs) to sign for the 2023-24 season, and they took an interesting angle. Instead of giving out any long-term extensions, they opted for short-term deals.

First up was defenseman Ronnie Attard, who signed a two-year contract worth $0.85 million per season. It’s not all that notable, but he was a valuable depth defender during March and April in 2023-24. He doesn’t have a lot of upside, but he could be an NHL regular if he is allowed to build upon this campaign.

Noah Cates joined the fun next, signing a two-year deal with an AAV of $2.625 million. After playing a top-six center role for most of his 2022-23 campaign, he had a reduction in his ice time but performed very well. Once he made the switch to the left wing after struggling a bit at center early in 2023-24, he was sensational. He could be a valuable two-way forward for a long time in the NHL.

In who was possibly the only real contender for a long-term deal, Cam York only got a two-year, $1.6 million AAV contract for Philadelphia. The 23-year-old has emerged as a legitimate first-pairing player, easily being one of the best defenders in a 2019 draft class that featured Thomas Harley, Moritz Seider, Bowen Byram, and Alex Vlasic. It wasn’t seen as a great pick at the time with Cole Caufield on the board, but it’s pretty clear that the Flyers made the right choice in that regard. York should get a long-term extension by the 2025 offseason at the latest. At the end of the day, he could be the best defenseman they have ever drafted.

The Flyers continued their two-year extension party by giving Olle Lycksell a $0.788 million AAV with that term. He was a solid depth forward for the Orange and Black in 2023-24, and he could be a candidate to make the opening roster in 2024-25. He doesn’t have a top-six upside, but the 24-year-old could be a part of the Flyers’ future all the same.

Finally, Briere and the Flyers ended off by giving Morgan Frost a two-year contract worth $2.1 million per season. He didn’t take the strides to exactly be deserving of a long-term extension in the future, but he was a solid second-line center. Now 24 years old, he’s going to have to take that next step to have a future in Philadelphia.

2023-24 In-Season Extensions: B-Plus

The Flyers had a few extensions within their 2023-24 campaign. It all started with Poehling, who inked a two-year deal worth $1.9 million each season. Since the Flyers don’t really have many good centermen, this value is pretty fair. He’s still pretty young, so it wasn’t worth letting him test the open market.

Next was Owen Tippett, who signed a massive eight-year deal with a $6.2 million AAV. For the 25-year-old, that seems to be fair value. He was noticeably better once his extension got underway, which is a good sign. He could be a top-six fixture once the Flyers emerge as a true playoff contender somewhere along their rebuild.

Finally, the Flyers signed 30-year-old defenseman Nick Seeler to a four-year deal with a $2.7 million AAV. It is a bit uncharacteristic for a rebuilder to give out that kind of contract to a veteran, but for him, it works. The Flyers have some young players on their defense, so having him back there as a mentor and reliable partner actually makes a bit of sense.

2024 Offseason (So Far): D-Minus

The only extension Briere has given out in the offseason is a $3.275 million AAV deal for two years to 27-year-old netminder Ivan Fedotov. Even though he was technically the property of the Flyers, this deal served as the fee to get him to play in the NHL. He has 133 KHL games played in his career, so it’s not like he was itching to come over to North America. At face value, this is a massive overpayment from Briere.

While Fedotov has upside, he has never quite put up truly dominant numbers. Since becoming a starter in 2019-20, the best he had was a .931 SV%, ranking 11th out of 40 goaltenders with at least 20 games played. In both the KHL and NHL in 2023-24, he was underwhelming, to say the least. Unless he can exceed his peak seasons, this deal is likely a dud.

Briere’s Tenure Overall

Overall, Briere’s tenure has been mixed. He started off really well with the Provorov trade and the Michkov draft pick, but nothing too noteworthy aside from the Gauthier deal has transpired since. The Flyers haven’t truly committed to a rebuild yet, finishing as an average team in the standings as a result of hanging onto players like Travis Konecny and Travis Sanheim who were in trade conversations in the 2023 offseason. The Flyers desperately need more high-end talent, and it’s Briere’s job to acquire that. Through year one, it’s fair to give him a B-plus grade.