Along with the start of development camp today, the Philadelphia Flyers have extended qualifying offers to the following nine players:
Wade Allison (F), Jackson Cates (F), Morgan Frost (F), Hayden Hodgson (F), Linus Hogberg (D), Tanner Laczysnki (F), Zack MacEwen (F), Issac Ratcliffe (F), and Owen Tippett (F).
Three players did not receive qualifying offers:
Matthew Strome (F), Maksim Sushko (F), and Kirill Ustimenko (G).
All you need to know
The nine players who received an offer will not be able to accept it until Wednesday, July 13, which is the start of free agency. The three who did not receive an offer will become unrestricted free agents and can sign with any team.
Maksim Sushko signed a deal with Dynamo Moscow of the KHL in May. Matthew Strome was a depth player who spent time between the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the Reading Royals. Kirill Ustimenko showed signs to be a future potential backup goaltender with the Flyers, but he never found the level of play that he had prior to the COVID pandemic.
With Ustimenko being released and the Ivan Fedotov situation that shocked the NHL, the Flyers may be in the market for a cheap goaltender once free agency begins. Carter Hart’s backup for 2022-2023 is still undecided unless Felix Sandstrom is the lead runner for the role.
What next for the Flyers?
With the start of free agency on Wednesday, all eyes will be on Chuck Fletcher and Flyers management.
Photo Credit: Alex McIntyre
