The Philadelphia Flyers picked a bad time to need a goalie from the NHL free agent market.

Of the 12 unrestricted free agent goalies, two had a save percentage of .900 or higher, and none of the 12 recorded more than 16 wins this season.

The top option in free agency, Jake Allen, is still playing at a high level and will draw attention from Stanley Cup contenders, including his own team, the New Jersey Devils. The former Stanley Cup champion will receive offers more suitable from elsewhere around the NHL.

So what does that leave the Flyers with? An old friend and a bunch of redemption stories.

Leading the pack, and perhaps the most likely of the bunch if for no reason other than a feel-good story to carry us through what could very well be another long year, is Alex Lyon, who spent five years with the Flyers organization after going undrafted out of the USHL.

Lyon, 32, fell apart after a strong start to his pro career, but re-emerged with the Florida Panthers two seasons ago.

The former Flyers goalie has spent the last two seasons - his first and only two as a full-time NHLer - with the Detroit Red Wings, going 35-27-6 in 74 games to the tune of a 2.96 GAA, a .901 save percentage, and three shutouts.

Spectacular numbers? Certainly not, but the Flyers can do (and have done) worse at the position. Lyon is a veteran and has been through the grind of the AHL, which should help set a positive example for the younger goalies in the organization, like Aleksei Kolosov and Carson Bjarnason.

Among 45 goalies who played 30 or more games this season, Lyon's 2.4 goals saved above expected ranked 26th in the NHL, per MoneyPuck.

Flyers starter Sam Ersson ranked 45th out of 45 with -19.9.

Another name to watch - and there aren't many - is Ottawa Senators netminder Anton Forsberg.

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The 32-year-old Swede has been with Ottawa since 2020-21 and has generally never played for great teams at the NHL level, aside from a three-game stint with Carolina in 2019-20.

Despite that, Forsberg owns a respectable .904 career save percentage. In Ottawa, Forsberg was 62-56-10 in 142 games, posting a 2.99 GAA, a .905 save percentage, and eight shutouts.

Again, like Lyon, not spectacular, but achieves the goal the Flyers are setting out for this summer.

It should be noted that Forsberg is coming off a three-year contract worth $2.75 million a year and could easily bargain for the same on this market.

That could prove to be a little rich for the Flyers' tastes, especially knowing that Lyon was pulling in a more modest $900k for his services.

In terms of goals saved above expected this season, Forsberg finished right behind Lyon, placing 27th with 2.2 goals saved above expected.

One last free agent goalie the Flyers should be considering is none other than former Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Ilya Samsonov, who has seen his fair share of ups and downs after once being considered one of the most exciting goalie prospects in the world.

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The 28-year-old has posted .890 and .891 save percentages in consecutive seasons, but also has two seasons under his belt with save percentages of .913 or higher.

If and when he leaves the Vegas Golden Knights, Samsonov will be on his third team in three years, so a one-year prove-it deal is in the cards if the Flyers make an offer.

By most metrics recorded by MoneyPuck, Samsonov performed about how he was expected to this season, even despite his underwhelming raw stats.

For instance, MoneyPuck has him at 0.6 goals saved above expected for the year, a save percentage 0.0004% above expected, and a GAA 0.02 above expected.

Basically, Samsonov was not actively crushing his team's chances of winning games, but also not providing any surplus value beyond that.

Interestingly, Samsonov's 0.825 high-danger save percentage was 0.135 above expected, which is considerable.

The talent has always been there for the Russian, but consistency has not. If the Flyers feel they can get any value out of a short-term stay, Samsonov is worth a dart throw in free agency this year.

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Steven Lorentz is staying at home.

The 29-year-old forward was trekking the back nine of a golf course on Monday afternoon when he agreed to a three-year, $4.05 million contract with an annual average value of $1.35 million. Lorentz was creeping towards the open market, with less than 24 hours until free agency, though he knew he'd always remain in Toronto.

"There was no doubt in my mind that I'd be back in Toronto again. It definitely has been a process, and maybe it went a little bit longer than I'd hoped, but that's part of being unrestricted," Lorentz said Monday evening.

"In my heart, I knew I wanted to come back. I knew that I wanted to stay, I didn't want to go anywhere else, and I'm just so proud and happy to be able to get it done, and I'm already looking forward to next year."

Lorentz's story isn't different from many who grew up as Maple Leafs fans in the Greater Toronto Area, except for one aspect: he now plays for them. As a child, Lorentz watched Toronto push toward a Stanley Cup, hoping that they'd get across the finish line every year.

They won two rounds, in 1999 and 2002, but that's the closest they ever got.

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After basking in being a Maple Leaf this past season, Lorentz will now have three more years to go into battle with Toronto in hopes of bringing the historic trophy back home.

"Honestly, that's what I wanted more than anything, was just the longevity. I would love to play my whole career here in Toronto. Last year was even better; it exceeded expectations," he said.

"Just being able to wear the Leaf with pride and being able to play at home, with friends and family, and trying to bring a cup to a city that's been longing for it for so long, and it deserves it...

"We still have that goal that we want to be the hardest-working team. We want to be the best team. We want to be the team that comes out on top in June. It was kind of a no-brainer, working out the contract details and stuff like that."

Report: Maple Leafs Lose Out On Brad Marchand Who Signing Six-Year Extension With PanthersBrad Marchand reportedly won't be hitting NHL free agency after all.

Bursting onto the scene with his puppy-like personality at training camp last September, Lorentz and the Maple Leafs agreed on a one-year, $775,000 contract after the preseason. He had just won a Stanley Cup a couple of months earlier with the Florida Panthers and wanted to return home so that he could do the same here.

"I've tried (to imagine winning the Stanley Cup in Toronto)," Lorentz said with a grin last September. "This is such a hockey city, and it's no secret it would just be mayhem if the Leafs were ever to do it."

Ultimately, after a 19-point season, which tied a career high, plus two assists in the playoffs, Toronto was ousted in the second round by the very same team that he won with the year prior. The year didn't finish how he and many others would've liked it to, but what it means to be a Maple Leaf isn't lost on Lorentz.

"I don't think I'll ever forget skating out for Game 1 of playoffs," he grinned.

"I remember looking at [Scott Laughton] on the bench, just a couple of local boys, and we're like, holy you know what, this is sick. I still remember the first 10 minutes and we came out flying. That's something I don't think I'll ever forget, so that's one that sticks out, but there was so many (memories).

"Little things on the ice, off the ice, in the community, at practice, it was a blur, but I don't think there was a bad day, minus the day we lost out. It was just so disappointing, but it was such a fun year, and like I said, it's such a great group there, and I wouldn't really want to go to war with anybody else."

Maple Leafs Trade for Matias Maccelli: Why Toronto Acquired Winger From Utah MammothThe Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired Matias Maccelli from the Utah Mammoth in exchange for a conditional third-round draft pick in 2027, which will convert to a second-round draft pick in 2029 if Maccelli record at least 51 points in the 2025-26 NHL season.

Lorentz is already feet-first into his offseason work, skating with several players from the Kitchener-Waterloo area. There's one thing, though, left to tick off his summer bucket list: getting married to his fiancée, Erin. 

And after that, it's back to Maple Leafs land—with a three-year extension in his hands—to begin the quest of bringing hockey's ultimate prize back to Toronto for the first time since 1967.

"My head's kind of still buzzing right now," he smiled.

"It's been a crazy couple of weeks in just trying to get this thing done, but more than anything, I'm just excited, and like I said, it's such a great group that, it didn't take a lot of decision-making. I knew my heart was here."

(Top photo of Lorentz: Nick Turchiaro / Imagn Images)

On the eve of free agency, it was the deadline for teams to submit qualifying offers to their pending RFAs. For the Montreal Canadiens, that meant goaltenders Jakub Dobes and Cayden Primeau, forwards Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Sean Farrell, Xavier Simoneau, and defensemen Jayden Struble, William Trudeau, Gustav Lindstrom, and Noel Hoefenmayer.

In Lindstrom’s case, it matters very little since the right-shot 26-year-old blueliner has already signed a five-year deal with Djurgårdens in the SHL. Considering his age and the length of the agreement, it would be surprising to see him return this side of the pond.

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As for Rafael Harvey-Pinard, who had made the most of his opportunity when the Injury Ninja hit the Canadiens hard during the 2022-23 season when he recorded 20 points in 34 games with the Habs and turned that into a 2-year deal with a $1.1 M AAV, he did not receive a qualifying offer. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s done in Montreal; they could still sign him as a free agent, but it does mean the Canadiens weren’t ready to offer him $1,000,000, which was his qualifying offer.

Simoneau and Hoefenmayer didn’t receive an offer either. Simoneau is a 5-foot-7, 24-year-old left-shot center who had a rough season with the Laval Rocket this year. In 58 games, he could only muster 21 points, down from 38 in 2022-23 and 37 in 2023-24. He was a sixth-round pick by Montreal at the 2021 draft, and in nine playoff games this postseason, he notched three points.  

As for Hoefenmayer, he was obtained in a trade with the Oilers in December in which the Canadiens sent Jacob Perreault their way. The 26-year-old left-shot defenseman was a fourth-round pick by the Arizona Coyotes at the 2017 draft. In 32 games with the Rocket this season, he recorded 14 points in 32 games but was only dressed in six of the Laval outfit’s playoff games.

Photo credit: Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

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The Chicago Blackhawks have officially reached July. The draft is in the rear-view mirror, and NHL teams only have free agency and trades left to improve their franchises. 

On Monday, the last day of June, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times reported the news that the Blackhawks have extended qualifying offers to Wyatt Kaiser, Louis Crevier, and Arvid Soderblom. All of them remain restricted free agents.

Philipp Kurashev did not receive one and will become an unrestricted free agent. This will likely end his five-year tenure in Chicago, the team that drafted him. 

Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) on XBlackhawks have given qualifying offers to Wyatt Kaiser, Louis Crevier and Arvid Soderblom, per source. They all remain RFAs. Crevier and Soderblom have arbitration rights. Kaiser does not. Philipp Kurashev was not qualified and becomes a UFA.

Kaiser and Crevier are defensemen who will likely rotate in and out of Chicago’s lineup during the 2025-26 season. They are both solid and deserve playing time. Each of them may even get some games in the AHL to stay fresh. Chicago has a lot of serviceable defenders, which is a good problem to have. 

As for Soderblom, unless the Blackhawks make a move on an established veteran goalie, an extension would likely mean an opportunity to be Spencer Knight’s backup in 2025-26. 

Soderblom had an outstanding year in different roles for Chicago. Whether he was the number one, the backup, or splitting time at any point in the year, the Hawks knew that they had a reliable player between the pipes. 

As for Kurashev, he fell out of favor with the current folks in charge. After a strong 2023-24 season that saw him have 18 goals and 36 assists for 54 points in 75 games, he took a major step back with just 7 goals and 7 assists for 14 points in 51 games in 2024-25. He was mostly a healthy scratch down the stretch. 

Kurashev will find work elsewhere. Another team will give him a chance based on his good moments in the past. Kyle Davidson and his staff are much more focused on players that they brought into the organization. 

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