Dan Vladar enters Philadelphia’s new season as the No. 1 after a career year, with Joseph Woll arriving to ease the workload and give the Flyers a steadier tandem behind a club that allowed few shots all winter. The larger question is whether Philadelphia can carry its post-Olympic form from last season into a full 82-game schedule.
The Flyers finished 43-27-12, took third in the Metropolitan Division and returned to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2020. Their run ended in the Eastern Conference Second Round, but Rick Tocchet’s group had already shown its ceiling: after the 2026 Winter Olympics break, Philadelphia went 18-7-1 over 26 games and climbed from eight points outside the postseason picture into a division playoff spot.
That surge has to become the standard in Tocchet’s second season behind the bench. Philadelphia also endured a 5-10-3 stretch from Dec. 28 through Jan. 31, losing 13 of 18 games during a slide that put its playoff hopes in danger.
The power play is the assignment
Philadelphia made the postseason despite finishing last in the NHL on the power play at 15.7 percent. General manager Daniel Briere has identified the man advantage as a priority, though the expected fix will come from players already in the organization rather than an outside addition.
Tyson Foerster’s return for a complete season should matter. He was tied for the team lead with three power-play goals before a right-arm injury on Dec. 1 kept him out for 49 games. The Flyers were clicking at 17.1 percent before he was sidelined; without him, that figure fell to 14.5 percent. His quick release gives Philadelphia a shooting option it badly missed.
Porter Martone is another piece of that solution. The 6-foot-3, 214-pound forward made his NHL debut March 31 and scored two of his four goals on the power play. His frame and strength could make him a fixture around the crease.
Jamie Drysdale also needs to provide more from the blue line. Philadelphia views him as its most dynamic offensive defenseman, and he has put an emphasis on turning his point shot into a more regular weapon. A power play that reaches the NHL’s upper half would change the Flyers’ margin for error considerably.
Woll joins Vladar in goal
Woll arrived from the Toronto Maple Leafs in a June 16 trade that sent Samuel Ersson the other way. He posted an .899 save percentage in 39 appearances last season, the lowest mark of his five NHL seasons, but he also faced 32.8 shots on goal per 60 minutes, the highest rate among goaltenders who played at least 10 games.
His 2024-25 numbers offer a more encouraging comparison: Woll recorded a .909 save percentage while seeing 29.9 shots per 60 minutes, close to his .906 NHL career rate. He now moves behind a Flyers defense that surrendered only 25.5 shots per game last season, fourth fewest in the League.
The setup could help keep Vladar from being overextended. The 29-year-old appeared in 52 games and started 51, both career highs, during his first season as a full-time NHL starter. Ersson, last year’s backup, finished with an .870 save percentage in 33 games.
Vladar supplied 29 wins, tied for ninth in the NHL, plus a 2.42 goals-against average that ranked third among goalies with at least 15 games played. He also established personal bests with 1,162 saves and 1,283 shots faced. His .927 save percentage at 5-on-5 tied Scott Wedgewood for the League lead.
He added 35 quality starts, tied for second behind Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman’s 38, and ranked seventh in long-range save percentage at .983. With Woll taking a greater share of the crease, the Flyers hope Vladar can stay fresher for the late-season push.
Third-pair opening brings Jiricek and Bonk into view
David Jiricek will get a training-camp opportunity to show he can help the power play and seize an open job on the third defense pair. The 22-year-old came over from the Minnesota Wild on March 6 and produced 13 points, including two goals and 11 assists, in 15 games with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League. Two of those goals came on the power play.
Jiricek brings a 6-foot-4, 204-pound build and a hard point shot. His skating has kept him from becoming a regular NHL defenseman with Minnesota and the Columbus Blue Jackets, who drafted him fourth overall in 2022. Philadelphia believes its player-development staff has helped address skating concerns for Martone and Foerster, and the club is confident it can make similar progress with Jiricek.
Waiver status may be a factor. Jiricek would need to clear waivers to return to Lehigh Valley, potentially giving him an edge over Oliver Bonk and Hunter McDonald in the competition.
Bonk, 21, is coming off a productive first professional campaign, posting six goals and 13 assists in 46 games for Lehigh Valley. He made his NHL debut in the regular-season finale against the Montreal Canadiens, recording a goal and an assist in 16:28. He also dressed for Game 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round, finishing minus-1 in 12:36.
Bonk can win an NHL place outright, but a return to the AHL would allow him to continue playing in every situation and position himself for the next call-up.
Projected lines and crease
| Unit | Projected players |
|---|---|
| First line | Travis Konecny — Christian Dvorak — Porter Martone |
| Second line | Tyson Foerster — Trevor Zegras — Owen Tippett |
| Third line | Denver Barkey — Noah Cates — Matvei Michkov |
| Fourth line | Alex Bump — Sean Couturier — Noel Acciari |
| First defense pair | Travis Sanheim — Rasmus Ristolainen |
| Second defense pair | Cam York — Jamie Drysdale |
| Third defense pair | Nick Seeler — Oliver Bonk |
| Goaltenders | Dan Vladar; Joseph Woll |
After the horn
The Flyers have most of last season’s roster back, which leaves little mystery about where their improvement must come from. More reliable early-season hockey, a functional power play and a less punishing goaltending workload would give Philadelphia a better path back to the postseason than another desperate spring climb.
