October 06, 2020
UPDATE [10 p.m.] — The Flyers nabbed big winger Tyson Foerster with the 23rd pick Tuesday night. For more on the newest Flyer, check out our story, scouting and analysis here.
From earlier..
.Last year at this time, the 2019-20 NHL season was underway and the Flyers were heading home from Prague, preparing for their home opener against the Devils.
That seems like lifetimes ago.
In 2020, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic wrecking havoc on pretty much everything, the NHL took a four month hiatus before the Lightning won the Stanley Cup in a bubble in Edmonton. The Flyers lost in the second round after seizing the first seed in the East in a new play-in round robin.
As a result, they hold the 23rd overall pick in this year's NHL Draft, which will kick off tonight at 7 p.m. on NBCS. You can catch our full draft preview right here.
There is no start date for the 2021 season yet, but the offseason appears to be well underway as the Flyers made a series of moves at defenseman yesterday, first waiving goodbye to Matt Niskanen, who retired, and later re-signed Justin Braun.
Will the team look to bolster its defense with their first round pick? Or will they take the best available?
Also, will they look to the trade market to add a veteran piece or move around in the draft (especially with an extra $5 million burning their pockets from Niskanen)?
"I could still see trades happening into the fall here and even into the beginning of the season as teams try to become cap compliant and fill that last hole," Flyers' GM Chuck Fletcher told media members yesterday. "Don’t forget, you are allowed to go ten percent over the cap until end of training camp, until the season starts. You will see teams that are over the cap and having to work backwards. That may present opportunities even after the draft and the start of free agency. I expect some. There’s been an unbelievable amount of chatter. There’s not a lot of money in the system. It’s a little bit harder to find the right dance partner."
It could be a wild night for the NHL. Or maybe not. It's 2020, you can't really tell anymore.
Follow along right here, all night to see how the first round pans our and who the Flyers take with pick 23:
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