Bryzgalov arrives in Philly to meet with Flyers brass

The Flyers' courtship of star free-agent goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov officially got under way in style yesterday, as they fueled up Ed Snider's private jet and sent it to New York's John F. Kennedy Airport to ferry Bryzgalov to Philadelphia after his 9-hour flight from Moscow.

The Flyers acquired Bryzgalov's exclusive negotiating rights in a June 7 trade with Phoenix that cost them a third-round pick in 2012, the rights to Phantoms forward Matt Clackson, and a conditional pick if Bryzgalov inks a deal.

Bryzgalov's agent, Rich Winter, has spoken to Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren in preliminary negotiations prior to his arrival in town this week, but little progress has been made.

That should come as no surprise, since the Flyers would not be in a position to sign Bryzgalov to any contract without first making a trade to clear up salary-cap space and until the NHL's salary-cap numbers for next season are released in the days following the conclusion of last night's Stanley Cup final.

Sources say Bryzgalov, who turns 31 on June 22, is seeking a contract worth approximately $6 million per season for a term of 4 or 5 years.

Bryzgalov is scheduled to meet with Snider, Holmgren and team president Peter Luukko today and tomorrow, as well as receive a tour of the team's facilities and a brief look at the city.

It isn't often, though, that a high-profile free agent would travel all the way from Russia to visit a city if the negotiating team did not have serious intentions of striking a deal.

The Flyers have until July 1 to negotiate with Bryzgalov exclusively before other teams will have the chance to make an offer.

Without first making a trade, the Flyers would need to shed substantial salary off their roster in order to stay salary-cap compliant. Teams are allowed to exceed the salary cap by no more than 10 percent at any given time in the offseason. Last summer, the Flyers went over the cap by more than $3 million and were forced to deal Simon Gagne's $5.25 million contract on July 19.

An ideal situation would have Bryzgalov under contract with the Flyers before next Friday's draft kicks off in St. Paul, Minn., where they would then be in a position to wheel and deal.