There hasn’t been much in the way of change on Philadelphia’s back end from the group that finished last season. Emil Andrae was moved to Toronto (and has since been dealt to Columbus) while Simon Benoit was added in that same June swap. And, well, that’s it for changes. That is, at least for now.
I hope you like season previews, because yesterday's blockbuster trade just gave the Blue Jackets three more players who we need to talk about. We'll start with Emil Andrae, who is definitely the most valuable player in the trade outside of Kirill Marchenko and Matthew Knies.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets have swung a major blockbuster trade on the eve of the 2026-27 regular season. Now complete, the deal
How many of the 22 players in NHL history with at least 600 career goals can you name in five minutes?
The Leafs signed and/or traded for a lot of players in a very short time. Some of them are set to play more minor roles, so this is a wrap up of those.
People love a good mid-round draft pick that pans out, and in the NHL you used to see those fairly often, but that’s obviously partially luck. If the Red Wings thought Nicklas Lidstrom was going to become a top-five defenseman in history, they wouldn’t have waited until the 53rd pick to take him.
The Toronto Maple Leafs acquired defenceman Emil Andrae from the Philadelphia Flyers this offseason in what was general manager John Chayka’s first bold trade, moving off a fan favourite.
The Toronto Maple Leafs didn't make any big blockbuster move during the offseason, but new general manager John Chayka made dozens of little transactions to improve the team.
Emil Andrae is excited to seize an opportunity with the Toronto Maple Leafs that he likely wasn’t going to get with his old team. The Maple Leafs acquired Andrae, a 24-year-old 5-foot-9 puck-moving defenceman, from the Philadelphia Flyers in June as part of a deal that sent goaltender Joseph Woll back the other way.
A theme has developed around the Toronto Maple Leafs this past week: small defencemen. That isn’t the first phrase that comes to mind when looking at the kind of blue line general manager John Chayka appears to be building in Toronto.
When the Toronto Maple Leafs traded Joseph Woll and Simon Benoit on June 17, they got three things back. Emil Andrae, goaltender Samuel Ersson, and a 2026 third-round pick.
There was a time this summer when I thought the Toronto Maple Leafs might have made a pretty strange trade. They gave up Joseph Woll, a goalie they had drafted, developed and stuck with through some pretty good moments and some pretty difficult ones.
People will talk about the “Mount Rushmore” for a franchise, which is to say the four people, usually four players, that most define the franchise. Not always the four-best players, but the four that evoke the essence of the franchise.
When people talk about speed in hockey, the conversation usually goes to one thing: skating. Who is the fastest player on the ice? Who wins the race to the puck?
It wasn’t one of those headline-grabbing days where the Toronto Maple Leafs landed a superstar or pulled off a blockbuster trade. Instead, John Chayka continued what has become his offseason theme: building organizational depth and giving the coaching staff more internal competition.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed defenseman Emil Andrae to a two-year, $1.55 million-per-season contract. Andrae came over from Philadelphia in the trade that sent Joseph Woll and Simon Benoit to the Flyers, and projects as a puck-moving depth piece who could compete for a spot on Toronto’s third pairing.
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced Saturday they signed defenseman Emil Andrae to a two-year contract. The financial terms were not disclosed by the team, but PuckPedia is reporting the two-year deal is worth $3.1 million with an annual cap hit of $1.55 million.
The summer of John Chayka continues, as Emil Andrae signed a two-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Terms of the deal were not immediately closed, but Andrae reportedly signed a contract worth $1.55 million annually, via The Athletic’s Chris Johnston.
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced on Saturday that they had signed defenceman Emil Andrae to a two-year contract. Financial terms of the deal were not immediately disclosed by the Leafs, but it carries an AAV of $1.55 million according to TSN’s Chris Johnston.
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced that RFA defenseman Emil Andrae has been signed to a two-year contract extension. The team did not disclose the financial terms of the deal, but Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston reported the deal carries a $1.55MM AAV.
The Philadelphia Flyers have recalled defenseman Emil Andrae. He should step back into a role on the team’s third pair, after scoring three points in his last four AHL games.
With final rosters due to be submitted by Monday afternoon, the Philadelphia Flyers are left with one cut to make. As I mentioned earlier this week, forward Nikita Grebenkin had all but locked in a job to start the season – that has since been further solidified.
Flyers defenseman Emil Andrae has been loaned back to the Flyers AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, per the team this morning. The move definitely comes as a shock; Andrae has made the most of his 20 games in the NHL this season and seemed to be playing like a top-four defenseman on a Flyers team with a struggling group of blueliners.
For the first 20 minutes of Monday night’s game against the visiting Vegas Golden Knights, it looked like the Philadelphia Flyers were going to run away with one against a bigger, stronger, more talented, and more experienced team.
The injury bug continues to bite the Philadelphia Flyers at disadvantageous times. The status of standout rookie defenseman Emil Andrae, who was injured in Saturday’s 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres, is currently unclear.
The defenseman's expected return gives the 1-3-1 Flyers a much-needed boost.
The Philadelphia Flyers are expected to be without one of their mainstay blueliners to begin the new season. On Thursday, head coach John Tortorella told the media that defenseman Nick Seeler is considered day-to-day due to injury.
Emil Andrae was one of the talented prospects who saw time on the Philadelphia Flyers big league roster last season. A native of Västervik, Sweden, the left-shot defenseman made his North American professional debut during the 2022-23 campaign, suiting up for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in 10 regular season and three playoff games.
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