Flyers’ Daniel Briere Has Savviness & Assets to Improve Roster – The Hockey Writers – Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers and general manager Daniel Briere have remained pretty cautious since taking over. This is objectively holding back the potential of the roster, whether that’s a good or bad thing. However, it’s not due to a lack of ability. The ironic twist is that he has actually shown some savviness trade-wise.

When I refer to “savvy” trades, I’m not talking about sending Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Sean Walker to the Colorado Avalanche for futures. While net positives, those were easy—anybody can do that. Instead, I’m talking about the first and only time he has put something on the line: Cutter Gauthier. Let’s talk about the mastery behind that move, an argument for why Briere should be more aggressive because of it, and what to expect from him moving forward.

Drysdale Trade Was Forced Yet Brilliant

Gauthier, the fifth-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, demanded a trade from the Flyers, forcing Briere to step up. A shot-heavy forward who was one of the top scorers in college, you’d think Philadelphia crushed their offensive upside by trading him for Jamie Drysdale, a defenseman. But that’s actually not the case.

Related: Philadelphia Flyers’ Jamie Drysdale & Cam York Are Unlocking Matvei Michkov’s Offense

The “Briere’s hands were tied,” line regarding the Drysdale trade makes me chuckle (even though I’ve said it, too). That’s because it looks absolutely brilliant right now. The right-shot defender has had a ridiculous turnaround since December 2024:

Percentile boosts across the board for Jamie Drysdale since becoming a Flyer. A thread (🧵):

Generated goals at a bottom-10 percentile rate in his first 4 qualified months without fail. He shot up (a lot) and has stayed there.#LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/Vv2EOMx0Sj

— Justin Giampietro (@justingiam) January 18, 2025

Drysdale has recently been one of the best drivers of offense in the NHL on a per-60 basis. Among defensemen with at least 200 minutes of 5-on-5 usage since Dec. 8—his return from an upper-body injury—he is in the 97^th percentile in goals per 60 (3.77) and the 99^th percentile in expected goals per 60 (3.40). Only two skaters are ahead of him in both metrics: Leon Draisaitl and Mathew Barzal.

My best explanation for Drysdale’s incredible metrics is that he has become a master at getting plays started. A key role of a defenseman that a lot of people overlook is being able to transition…