The Flyers cap situation was no secret as free agency began on Friday. So as the money went flying in the first hour, the Flyers were bystanders.
They made just two notable moves on the day, adding forwards Dale Weise and Boyd Gordon. Weise signed on for four years, a contract worth $9.4 million.
"We feel Dale adds size and some speed and some grit," Flyers GM Ron Hextall said. "He's got good hands, he can score some goals. We didn't have the space to add what you would call a top scorer so we went with depth scoring to add to our top nine.
"Boyd is more of a role player. He's versatile, he can play center, he can play the wing. He's a good penalty killer and he's good on faceoffs. We felt like the faceoff thing, to keep Claude Giroux off the ice a little bit more on the penalty kill, it's going to help on the offensive end of the ice for Giroux."
Weise scored 14 goals and had 27 points with the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks last season, his highest goal total in his career. That said, Weise is not a goal scorer, so the Flyers are still left searching for answers to solving the goal scoring problem.
"It's depth. We added a guy that we feel upgrades one of our lines. Hopefully we get more scoring from our top nine."
That said, Weise was excited about the new opportunity, and feels it may be the right one for him to elevate his game.
"Ron Hextall reached out right away. He was one of the first guys to call me," Weise said. "He said 'you're a guy that we want.' Everyone wants to be somewhere you're wanted and for him to reach out and say we want you and think you can be a big part of the team and looking at the depth chart and seeing where I fit on that team, I think it's a great opportunity.
"I'm never a guy who sets individual stats. I had 14 goals in Montreal in about 50 games playing as a third-line guy. I think with the right opportunity and playing with the right guys, there's a possibility I can push 20 goals."
The signing of both Weise and Gordon meant that fourth-liner Ryan White would not be returning. White eventually signed on with the Arizona Coyotes for one year.
"We're moving on from Ryan," Hextall said. "We took a last run at him this morning and couldn't come to common ground. We appreciate everything he's done for us."
The Flyers also added three pieces that will likely report to the Phantoms in the AHL, forwards Andy Miele and Greg Carey and defenseman Will O'Neill.
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
