3 Bold Predictions for Philadelphia Flyers’ 2026-27 Season

If you were writing bold predictions for the 2025-26 Philadelphia Flyers, you could have written something like a career year for Trevor Zegras, Dan Vladař becoming the starter, and Jamie Drysdale taking a big step. Of course, you also could’ve had a point-per-game Matvei Michkov sophomore season, Sam Ersson bouncing back with more support, and the power play finally figuring it out. It goes both ways.

The Flyers are more or less a coin flip to return to the playoffs, something they haven’t done in consecutive seasons for over a decade. But the micro details add more intrigue as they see whether their foundation strengthens as they try to stay on the right track they jumped on last spring. Here are three to follow as the season starts on Wednesday.

Power Play Finally Figures It Out

If it doesn’t happen this season, it won’t happen without at least one marquee addition. The Flyers have the talent in place to be respectable on the man advantage for the first time since 2020-21. Porter Martone offered a nice boost at the net front down the stretch last season. All systems appear to be a go for Matvei Michkov. Tyson Foerster was scoring at a 40-goal pace before injury last December (it’s worth noting the Flyers’ power play was 20th at that point at 17.1%).

Combine that with year two of Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale spending the offseason working on his shot, and all the pieces are in place to succeed. Even the second unit boasts strong personnel, led by Travis Konecny and his four straight 60-plus point seasons.

The Flyers have depended on a 1-3-1 setup since the Claude Giroux days, but with Michkov and Zegras both traditional fits for the right flank playmaking role long occupied by Jakub Voracek, creativity is required. Michkov dropping down toward the goal mouth could work like the double-net front setup the Flyers succeeded with right before the COVID-19 shutdown in early 2020.

Joseph Woll Pushes for Extended Playing Time

Joseph Woll‘s 2025-26 season was merely ok. His .896 save percentage was slightly above league average, and while the Toronto Maple Leafs’ defense was a struggle, his -6.6 goals saved above expected (per Moneypuck.com) was right in line with tandem mate Anthony Stolarz (albeit in 13 more games for Woll). That version of Woll would make a solid backup for Vladař, nothing more, nothing less.

But Woll has shown he can be more than that before. The version of Woll from the previous two seasons could be something more. Across the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, his .908 save percentage was tied for 13th in the NHL with five other goalies, including two (Darcy Kuemper and Ilya Sorokin) who have earned Vezina Trophy nominations (two in Sorokin’s case). He was 11th in GSAA two seasons ago and 21st three seasons prior.

Vladař will still be a big part of the Flyers’ season. But Woll could have a big chance to make a good first impression if Vladař’s preseason injury delays his start to the regular season (although Aleksei Kolosov’s demotion makes it look like that won’t be the case). Regardless, the Flyers will realize a real luxury in goaltending depth that should allow them to manage their netminders effectively to keep both in strong condition throughout the longest NHL season in over 30 years.

Flyers Take a Step Back… in a Good Way

When general manager Daniel Brière said the Flyers may take a step back during the offseason, it was met with shock and disappointment. The Flyers just won their first playoff series in non-pandemic conditions; the last thing anyone wants to think about is being farther away from the next triumph.

But there’s a way in which both sides can technically be right. The Flyers were fortunate they didn’t have to play the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round in 2025-26; Carolina had the best record in the Eastern Conference and the Flyers were the conference’s weakest playoff team, but the division-based format pitted them against the Pittsburgh Penguins, who had the same point total as Philadelphia (98) during the regular season.

The Metro could have two legitimate Cup contenders if the Washington Capitals approach their 111-point form from 2024-25 after a busy offseason. Or perhaps the Flyers are a wild card team and draw the Hurricanes or the Atlantic Division champions in the first round. Losing to one of those teams would objectively be a step back; it’s better to win one playoff series than none.

But while how you play doesn’t matter within the context of a playoff run, it does shape the bigger picture surrounding a team. If the Flyers get the internal growth up front they expect, they may add a defender at the trade deadline, then prove they can legitimately compete with a team like Carolina, that would represent significant progress in their quest to become a Stanley Cup contender.

You could argue the Flyers could’ve won any of the last three games of last season’s second-round series, but in reality, Game 2 was the only one they played legitimately well. Making it to six games or more and playing high-level hockey in the majority of them would keep the Flyers moving in the right direction and maintain their status as an up-and-coming team that could potentially attract a high-end player to join them.

Also Considered

I decided just to prioritize three picks for this article, but there were a few other things I considered adding on. Tyson Foerster could easily become the franchise’s first 40-goal scorer since Jeff Carter in 2008-09. Only the Ottawa Senators have gone longer since their last player reached that milestone; even the franchises that have joined the NHL since then (the Vegas Golden Knights, Seattle Kraken, and Utah Mammoth) have had someone reach that mark.

Zegras reaching point-per-game status (as long as he can stay out of the box) for the first time was also left on the cutting room floor. He finished 14 points shy in his first season as a Flyer. He was exactly at that threshold halfway through the season before cooling a bit in the second half. A functional power play would help both of these come true, too. Same for Martone making a run at the franchise’s first Calder Trophy. Just saying.