At some point, the Philadelphia Flyers need their power play to be better than one of the worst, if not the very worst, in the entire NHL, and they can only change systems and coaches so many times before coming to a different conclusion.
Through the offseason thus far, the Flyers have missed out on several players who would have otherwise helped bolster their unit.
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The offer sheet attempt on Leo Carlsson was an excellent idea, but Anaheim, obviously, matched the sheet and shut down the move.
Defenseman John Carlson preferred to go to a contender and got his wish with a deal in Tampa Bay.
Flyers legend Claude Giroux considered an offer tabled by his good friend and former teammate Danny Briere, but ultimately opted to remain with the Ottawa Senators for one more year.
Ultimately, the Flyers were forced to walk away from NHL free agency, thus far, with veteran fourth liner Noel Acciari and a host of AHL/NHL tweeners, like Nolan Foote, Jack Studnicka, and Zach Aston-Reese.
Flyers Make Jamie Drysdale Their Highest-Paid Defenseman
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In lieu of acquiring a No. 1 center just not being a reliable or realistic option at this time, the Flyers still can, however, find a reasonably effective power play quarterback on the quickly thinning market.
More than two weeks on from the start of free agency, former star defenseman John Klingberg remains an unrestricted free agent, who leads the remaining crop of available defensemen with his 27 points in 55 games last season.
Klingberg, 33, isn’t the same player he was in 2017-18, when he scored a career-high 67 points in 82 games for the Dallas Stars, but he can still contribute to a power play on a good team.
Injuries have been a factor for the Swede, too, as a hip injury decimated his 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, limiting him to a total of just 25 regular season games between stints with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers.
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Klingberg did return mostly healthy in the 2025-26 season for the San Jose Sharks, but was not always included in the lineup by head coach Ryan Warsofsky.
Still, the former Stars ace averaged 20:28 in the games he did play, scoring five goals and nine total points on the power play, accounting for a third of his total point production.
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At his best, Klingberg was a player capable of producing double-digit power play points regularly, and nearly did so again this past season despite his advanced age and having missed nearly two full seasons worth of time.
As illustrated in the JFresh player card above, Klingberg has always been average to bad defensively, but a positive influence offensively.
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Fortunately, the Flyers would not be signing the Swede for his defensive prowess, or lack thereof, and Klingberg would serve more as a mentor and rotational piece who could be used to protect someone like David Jiricek or Oliver Bonk from suboptimal matchups as they get their feet wet at the NHL level.
If all goes well, Jiricek would be the Flyers’ power play quarterback of the future, but the team cannot guarantee that off rip.
By signing Klingberg, the Flyers can get themselves some veteran insurance while ensuring they do not rush Jiricek along before he is ready, or before they feel comfortable giving him an every-night role.
Of note, too: Klingberg and newcomer Simon Benoit played as a defensive pairing in Anaheim in 2022-23, so there is an element of familiarity there. The advanced analytics were as bad as you’d expect, but we can also argue that the Flyers employ a better structure with better personnel to insulate them.
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Klingberg played the last season for the Sharks on a one-year, $4 million deal; the Flyers currently have just under $14 million in cap space available after re-signing Jamie Drysdale and Trevor Zegras.
Financially, there is little risk for the Flyers to chase after the best remaining power play specialist, and Klingberg could build himself enough appeal for a trade to a contender later in the season if he straps up his boots and does a tidy job for the Flyers early on.
