With Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, and now Nikita Grebenkin all locked into new deals, general manager Danny Briere has nearly $14 million in cap space left to work with, and the rumors swirling around Patrik Laine and a physical, left shot defenseman suggest he intends to use it.
The Flyers Are Nearly Done With Their RFAs, and the Rumor Mill Is Just Getting Started
The Philadelphia Flyers have quietly checked off most of their offseason to-do list, and what remains is shaping up to be the more interesting part. General manager Danny Briere has now signed his three biggest restricted free agents, Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale, and Nikita Grebenkin, leaving only depth defenseman Hunter McDonald unsigned among the team’s remaining RFAs. With that business largely settled, the offseason conversation in Philadelphia has shifted almost entirely toward what Briere does with the cap space he has left.
Grebenkin Gets His Deal, McDonald Is the Last One Standing
Grebenkin’s two year extension, carrying a 1.1 million dollar average annual value, settles the situation for a player who had actually been sidelined for the stretch run of last season with an upper body injury. He had emerged as arguably the team’s best fourth line contributor before that injury, and with veterans Garnet Hathaway and Luke Glendening both gone from the roster, a real opening exists for him to carve out a larger role once he is fully cleared for camp. That leaves Hunter McDonald as the only restricted free agent still unsigned, a 24 year old defenseman expected to land a modest, likely two way deal that would not meaningfully affect the team’s cap situation either way.
Berglund Heads Back to Sweden, and It Was His Call
Philadelphia’s other notable roster move this month involved one of its top center prospects rather than an NHL contract. The Flyers loaned 20 year old Jack Berglund, their second round pick in 2024, back to Farjestad BK of the Swedish Hockey League for the entirety of the 2026-27 season. What could easily read as a simple organizational development decision actually originated from Berglund’s own side. According to reporting from NBC Sports Philadelphia, Berglund had one year remaining on his existing Farjestad contract and wanted to honor it, a decision rooted in the fact that Karlstad is his hometown and Farjestad is the club that developed him in the first place, following a playoff exit there last spring he reportedly did not enjoy.
The 6 foot 4, 217 pound center signed his three year entry level contract with the Flyers back in April and made his AHL debut with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms almost immediately afterward, sandwiched around what became the best stretch of his young career, a January in which he wore the captain’s C for Sweden and led the country to its first World Junior gold since 2012. A return to Farjestad for a full SHL season, rather than a full AHL campaign in Lehigh Valley, gives Berglund another year of top competition against grown men in a top European league before he makes his eventual push for Philadelphia’s NHL roster.
A Trainer Change Behind the Scenes
Away from the roster entirely, the Flyers also made a change to their medical staff, parting ways with Tommy Alva, who had served as head athletic trainer since 2022. Assistant athletic trainer Alex Ambrose has been promoted into the head role heading into training camp, giving the organization internal continuity in a position that plays a significant behind the scenes part in managing player health across an 82 game season.
Where the Remaining Cap Space Could Go
With roughly 13.8 million dollars still available, Briere has real flexibility left to work with, and the rumor mill has offered no shortage of theories about how he might spend it.
Patrik Laine
Still unsigned as an August free agent, Laine has drawn reported interest from the Flyers alongside Minnesota, the Rangers, Tampa Bay, and Toronto, a considerably wider market than the Islanders-only interest reported earlier this summer.
Arber Xhekaj
Philadelphia has held “longstanding interest” in the physical Montreal defenseman, according to insider reporting, though no deal has materialized and Montreal still needs to re-sign him as a restricted free agent of its own.
Alexander Romanov
Recent reporting adds the Islanders defenseman as a second name Philadelphia is checking on, giving Briere multiple paths toward the left shot, physical presence the blue line is reportedly missing.
Rasmus Ristolainen
Entering the final year of a $5.1 million deal, Ristolainen remains a frequent trade chip in speculation, with any move likely freeing up additional cap room to pursue one of the names above.
The Xhekaj pursuit in particular has drawn real skepticism from Flyers watchers, given that Philadelphia already passed on pricier options like John Carlson and Zach Werenski earlier in the offseason, both of whom ultimately chose to sign or stay elsewhere. Critics of the Xhekaj idea have argued that trading assets and then handing out a significant contract purely for physicality, without adding much offensive skill or puck moving ability to a blue line that already includes Travis Sanheim, Cam York, and the newly extended Drysdale, would represent a step sideways rather than forward. Whether Briere ultimately lands Xhekaj, pivots to Romanov, circles back on Laine, or holds his remaining cap space in reserve heading into the season, the next several weeks are likely to determine how seriously Philadelphia intends to contend this year versus continuing to build patiently around its young core.
