The Philadelphia Flyers are entering the 2025-26 season with some roles to fill on the blue line, but through four games of the preseason, no defenseman who is on that bubble has really stepped up for head coach Rick Tocchet.
With Rasmus Ristolainen missing at least the first month or so of the season, there are really only four blueliners that we could say for certain will be in the lineup when the Flyers open their season October 9 against the Florida Panthers. Cam York, Travis Sanheim, Jamie Drysdale, and Nick Seeler. That’s it.
From there, there’s roughly several defensemen who are still battling to make up the bottom pair and they all have their own hurdles to come over. The two free agent acquisitions in Dennis Gilbert and Noah Juulsen need to set a base line, Egor Zamula as someone already here, Emil Andrae trying to show his lack of size isn’t a problem, Helge Grans had a leg-up as a potential Ristolainen replacement, and then Hunter McDonald and Adam Ginning are, well, here.
And according to Tocchet, none of those defensemen have even come close to really taking hold of a spot on the roster.
While speaking with the media before Saturday evening’s exhibition game against the Boston Bruins, the Flyers head coach was asked specifically about Gilbert and if he’s noticed anything for him to make the team. In response, Tocchet decided to really put it out there to a group of players on his team that he is severely disappointed.
“I would put him in the pack with about four guys, you know, vying for the — you know, nobody’s really kind of stood out to me yet,” Tocchet said. “I mean, we need one of those guys to play a good game for us and they’re all kind of in that area. He’s in that mix but I’d like to see a little bit more from him, obviously. I mean, it’s not in indictment to him, it’s just, when you’re evaluating people, you’re looking for somebody to step ahead. And whether it’s [Gilbert] or [Juulsen] or McDonald or Ginning or whoever, you know, we’re looking for those guys to kind of take over what we’re looking for on the defensive side.”
That’s about as plain as you could put it. No one has stepped up.
And it’s been evident to people not even in the building but watching these preseason matchups. One moment Grans would look like an easy and young player that might provide half of what Ristolainen can do, and then he would make a terrible gaffe to give up the game-winner. Gilbert has had his moments but he’s so replacement level, and Juulsen just wants to hit people and give the puck away. And then even when it comes to Emil Andrae, who has shown potential as a top-four defenseman last season, has not been playing well enough for the Flyers to look the other way when it comes to his size.
It’s just a big blob of unimpressive defensemen and now there are just three games remaining for someone to stick out and, as Tocchet says, just step ahead of the pack. The Flyers coaching staff might just be stuck trying to decide who might not mess up the most, compared to who could possibly help them win hockey games.