Flyers Bring Back Erik Johnson, Sign Hathaway to Extension

As expected, the first day of free agency was a quiet one for the Flyers. While most of the NHL was partaking in the frenzy and players were changing teams in all sorts of directions, the Flyers handled a lot of in-house business.

That was headlined by the news of Matvei Michkov’s entry-level deal. But the Flyers also did keep two veterans around in the process.

First, the team re-signed defenseman Erik Johnson to a one-year, $1 million deal. They also signed forward Garnet Hathaway to a two-year contract extension with a $2.4 million AAV, keeping Hathaway with the Flyers through the 2026-27 season.

Johnson, 35, joined the Flyers at the trade deadline last season in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres. In 17 games, Johnson scored two goals and had three points and was a minus-9. Johnson is expected to fill the depth defenseman role that Marc Staal held for most of last season.

Hathaway, 32, just completed his first season with the Flyers, playing in all 82 games with seven goals and 17 points.