Flyers defense: What’s next after the Ivan Provorov trade?

While the rebuilding Flyers have questions all over the ice, the biggest ones may reside on the blue line.

The Flyers have already begun to address their defense, trading veteran Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets earlier this month as part of a three-team deal. In the trade, the Flyers also brought back two pieces from Los Angeles that will figure into the team’s defensive plans with veteran Sean Walker and defensive prospect Helge Grans. Adding a second first-round pick this year — No. 22 from Columbus — also likely increases the odds of the Flyers’ adding a defenseman Wednesday night at the draft in Nashville.

New general manager Danny Brière may not be done at the dealing table either as there has been plenty of chatter around some of the team’s veteran defensemen, namely Travis Sanheim and Tony DeAngelo. Brière has acknowledged he will listen on anybody, which is the proper approach given the team’s situation.

As we did this past week with the forwards, here’s a closer look at what the Flyers have at the NHL level and in the system on defense as the team prepares for the 2023 NHL draft.

» READ MORE: Projecting the Flyers’ potential forward lines for next season ahead of the NHL draft

With Provorov gone, the obvious and biggest question is: Who slides into that No. 1 spot? For now at least, the answer would be Cam York or Sanheim.

York, who turned 22 in January, is still held in high regard by the organization and made significant strides last season. After surprisingly not making the team out of training camp, York impressed at Lehigh Valley before being called up in early December.

He did more than just stick with the NHL club from there. The 2019 first-rounder excelled, earning almost 20 minutes of ice time a night and a spot on the top pair alongside Provorov. Despite the odd growing pain, York never looked out of place, gaining confidence with the puck as both a passer and carrier as the season went on. He broke pucks out, was above average defensively, and largely held up against the rigors of the NHL at 5-foot-11, 175 pounds.

The next step for York is to start producing more offensively, as he managed just two goals (20 points) last year in 54 games. His skill set points to more production, and that part of his game should improve as his confidence and familiarity with the league grow.

John Tortorella has said he wants York to take some more chances (yes, you read that right), and not to always make the easy play or think too much. Tortorella told York in training camp he envisions him as a rover and gave him a “green light” to jump into the play more and try to make an impact offensively. With Provorov gone, York will be asked to lead a pair this season and it will be fun to see how he develops with the puck on his stick more and with increased power-play time, and a shift back to his natural left side.

York seems right on track from a development standpoint and still projects as a top pair/really good No. 3 defenseman. The question now is: Who will play with him?

The truth is the Flyers don’t have the right partner for York, and barring a surprising splash in free agency or a trade, they likely will enter the season in that same boat. For now, let’s slide Rasmus Ristolainen there. Why? While not the most popular player, for one he has size at 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds. Second, he would defend and protect York, which theoretically would allow the youngster to spread his wings more offensively. Plus, DeAngelo would pose a potential disaster situation for York’s development, while the other right-sided option, Walker, is also undersized at 5-foot-11.

York and Ristolainen were the team’s 13th-most used defensive combination (75 minutes) last season, according to Money Puck. The results weren’t anything to write home about, but I’d rather pair York with a defense-first type than have him left exposed at every turn playing with a riverboat gambler in DeAngelo (if DeAngelo is on the team next season).

Ristolainen to his credit was also much improved last year, particularly defensively. After a rocky start, Ristolainen found his footing and eventually graded out quite well, finishing in the 94th percentile defensively, according to Evolving Hockey’s defensive goals above replacement model (up from the 21st percentile in 2021-22). While he is overpaid and has four more years left at a $5.1 million cap hit, things don’t look quite as bleak as they once did.

That brings us to the second pair headlined by Sanheim, who nosedived after signing an eight-year, $50 million ($6.25 million) deal on opening night.

A bright spot on a bad team in 2021-22, Sanheim was the team’s biggest disappointment last season, one in which he was a healthy scratch on Feb. 20 and repeatedly drew the ire of fans. Sanheim was the team’s worst defenseman when it came to even-strength offense (-3.8 goals above replacement), and was the second-worst defensively (-1.9), where he was spared only by DeAngelo, who ranked dead last of the 326 qualified NHL defensemen in that metric (-10.9).

Was last year a bad year? Or was the year before fool’s gold? Probably a bit of both, as Sanheim likely isn’t anywhere near as good as he was in 2021-22 — his career has been marked by inconsistency, including odd patterns where he alternates good offensive and defensive years. But I find it hard to believe that he will play as poorly as he did last season, when he generated little offensively (23 points) and was a defensive nightmare.

While there are trade rumors surrounding the 27-year-old, I’d find it hard to believe a team would trade for a player who has been so inconsistent, isn’t elite offensively or defensively, and is tied to such a long and lucrative contract.

» READ MORE: Flyers defenseman Travis Sanheim is striving to end season on a high note by being more aggressive

New acquisition Walker slots in next to him. Walker, 28, was a cap dump for the Kings but is worth taking on for the rebuilding Flyers who also received goalie Cal Petersen, a prospect and draft pick from L.A. He has one year left on his deal, and should play a valuable role as both a veteran and depth defenseman. A good skater who has shown signs of offensive upside, Walker is one year removed from a serious knee injury and isn’t a lost cause by any stretch. He should be a useful stop-gap both on and off the ice and could even play himself into being a trade asset at the deadline.

Nick Seeler returns on the third pair after a breakout season defensively. Seeler, who previously had been a fringe NHLer, blossomed as an analytics darling in 2022-23.

He was the only Flyers defenseman to finish with a plus rating (plus-one) and ranked fifth in the NHL in even-strength defense (8.1 goals above replacement), and 29th in wins above replacement (2.0). The 30-year-old is a perfect third-pair guy, as he also blocks shots, provides toughness, and is more than capable as a fighter.

Sure, Seeler didn’t play the most minutes or in the highest-leverage situations but he was good when he was out there and was a pleasant surprise. While it might be fair to expect a little regression, he is inexpensive ($775K) and is the type of depth defenseman that a contending team covets around the trade deadline.

That leaves DeAngelo. He put up points last year (11 goals, 42 points in 70 games on a bad team), but at the same time, he also showed a complete aversion to playing defense and was a turnover machine. In addition to arguably being the worst defensive blue liner in the NHL last season, DeAngelo is overpaid at $5 million and was scratched for five games to finish the season for an unspecified issue.

The sad part was that DeAngelo’s season largely went as expected, which brings us back to the main point: Why in the world did the Flyers trade three picks (a second, third, and fourth) for him last July in the first place? The Flyers would love to move DeAngelo and recoup something in return, but it is hard to gauge his value given his defensive deficiencies, past behavioral incidents, and price.

If the Flyers can move DeAngelo it would open up a spot for one of their younger defenseman led by Egor Zanula and Ronnie Attard. Zamula, 23, has been on the brink of breaking through for a few years now and should get his biggest opportunity yet. With great length, a good stick, and the potential to move the puck, it is time to see what Zamula, who needs to add strength, has got.

The 24-year-old Attard is another big defenseman at 6-3 and 208 pounds, and should also push for playing time. He impressed Tortorella last season in camp and has a lot of tools offensively with his skating, big shot, and ability to pass the puck. Attard improved last season defensively and was an AHL All-Star, and if he continues to make strides there could be a nice middle-pair guy in time.

» READ MORE: Flyers prospect Ronnie Attard playing his ‘best hockey’ as the Phantoms push for the playoffs

Newcomer Grans, a former second-round pick, is an interesting name to add to the mix. The 6-3, 205-pounder has ideal size and popped as a two-way guy in 2021-22 at the AHL level in the Kings organization (sevens goals, 24 points in 56 games). The 21-year-old’s coming off an off-year, but he’s another guy with tools and the Flyers will hope he can rediscover his offensive upside from two seasons ago.

Fellow Swedes Adam Ginning and Emil Andrae also should figure in and get NHL games at some point. Andrae is undersized at 5-9, but he plays with an edge, makes smart decisions with the puck, and can be a weapon on the power play with a hard and accurate shot. He has been in North America for only a few months, so he might not play a huge role this season, but the second-rounder is considered one of the organization’s top prospects.

In terms of the draft, it is a forward-heavy class with Austrian David Reinbacher likely the only defenseman projected to go in the top 10. Taking the 6-2, 194-pound Reinbacher, who has risen late in the process, at No. 7 would bet a bet on adding a top-pair defenseman to pair with York. Reinbacher, on paper would actually seem an ideal complement to York, as he has size, mobility, and defends at a high level. While he’s not a dynamic offensive player, he chips in there (three goals, 19 assists in 46 games in the Swiss League.

The Flyers currently hold the 22nd pick as well, which will likely be too late for the likes of Tom Willander, Axel Sandin Pellikka, and Dmitri Simashev, unless they made a trade to move up. Mikhail Gulyayev, Oliver Bonk, Lukas Dragicevic, Tanner Molendyk are other names to keep an eye on late in round 1 or if the Flyers manage to add a second-rounder.

The Flyers certainly have some decisions to make on the back end. Your move, Danny.