The Philadelphia Flyers announced their final 23 man roster today. Randy Jones is officially headed to the Adirondack Phantoms, two days after clearing waivers. Danny Syvret and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen both made the roster, meaning that the Flyers will carry seven defensemen on their NHL roster.
Finnish forward Mika Pyorala has made the Flyers roster as well. Pyorala had an impressive training camp and his hard work and good hockey sense impressed the coaching staff. He led the Flyers in scoring this preseason. Rookie James van Riemsdyk, also coming off of an impressive camp, has also made the roster.
Blair Betts is now a free agent. The Flyers did not complete a deal with the forward, meaning that he is now free to sign anywhere he chooses. Paul Holmgren had until today’s 3 PM roster deadline to negotiate exclusively with Betts.
The Flyers have three goalies on the roster due to Brian Boucher’s injury. When he comes back and Johan Backlund is sent to the Phantoms, the Flyers will have room for one more position player. If Betts is signed, which is looking unlikely at this point, he would presumably get that spot. Otherwise, they could look elsewhere for help.
With these moves, the Flyers sit $1.61 million under the salary cap, according to numbers from capgeek.com. After Backlund comes off the books, they’ll sit $2.46 million under the cap.
