The 2020–21 Philadelphia Flyers season was the 54th season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on June 5, 1967. This was also the second season with head coach Alain Vigneault. On December 20, 2020, the league temporarily realigned into four divisions with no conferences due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing closure of the Canada–United States border. As a result of this realignment, the Flyers played this season in the East Division and played against only the other teams in their new division during the regular season.
On April 29, 2021, the Flyers were eliminated from playoff contention following a 5–3 loss to the New Jersey Devils.
Standings
Divisional standings
Schedule and results
Regular season The regular season schedule was published on December 23, 2020.
| 1 || January 13 || Pittsburgh || 3–6 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 0 || 1–0–0 || 2 ||
| 2 || January 15 || Pittsburgh || 2–5 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 0 || 2–0–0 || 4 ||
| 3 || January 18 || Buffalo || 6–1 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 0 || 2–1–0 || 4 ||
| 4 || January 19 || Buffalo || 0–3 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 0 || 3–1–0 || 6 ||
| 5 || January 21 || Philadelphia || 4–5 || Boston || SO || Hart || 0 || 3–1–1 || 7 ||
| 6 || January 23 || Philadelphia || 1–6 || Boston || || Hart || 0 || 3–2–1 || 7 ||
| 7 || January 26 || Philadelphia || 5–3 || New Jersey || || Elliott || 0 || 4–2–1 || 9 ||
| 8 || January 28 || Philadelphia || 3–1 || New Jersey || || Hart || 0 || 5–2–1 || 11 ||
| 9 || January 30 || NY Islanders || 2–3 || Philadelphia || OT || Hart || 0 || 6–2–1 || 13 ||
| 10 || January 31 || NY Islanders || 3–4 || Philadelphia || OT || Elliott || 0 || 7–2–1 || 15 ||
| 11 || February 3 || Boston || 4–3 || Philadelphia || OT || Hart || 0 || 7–2–2 || 16 ||
| 12 || February 5 || Boston || 2–1 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 0 || 7–3–2 || 16 ||
| 13 || February 7 || Philadelphia || 7–4 || Washington || || Hart || 0 || 8–3–2 || 18 || |- style="background:#ccc;" | — || February 9 || Philadelphia || – || Washington || colspan="6"|Postponed due to COVID-19. Rescheduled for April 13. |- style="background:#ccc;" | — || February 11 || New Jersey || – || Philadelphia || colspan="6"|Postponed due to COVID-19. Rescheduled for April 25. |- style="background:#ccc;" | — || February 13 || New Jersey || – || Philadelphia || colspan="6"|Postponed due to COVID-19. Rescheduled for May 10. |- style="background:#ccc;" | — || February 14 || Philadelphia || – || NY Rangers || colspan="6"|Postponed due to COVID-19. Rescheduled for April 22.
| 14 || February 18 || NY Rangers || 3–2 || Philadelphia || SO || Hart || 0 || 8–3–3 || 19 ||
| 15 || February 21 || Philadelphia || 3–7 || Boston || || Hart || 0(outdoors) || 8–4–3 || 19 ||
| 16 || February 24 || NY Rangers || 3–4 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 0 || 9–4–3 || 21 ||
| 17 || February 27 || Philadelphia || 3–0 || Buffalo || || Elliott || 0 || 10–4–3 || 23 ||
| 18 || February 28 || Philadelphia || 3–0 || Buffalo || || Hart || 0 || 11–4–3 || 25 ||
| 19 || March 2 || Philadelphia || 2–5 || Pittsburgh || || Hart || 2,800 || 11–5–3 || 25 ||
| 20 || March 4 || Philadelphia || 4–3 || Pittsburgh || || Elliott || 2,800 || 12–5–3 || 27 ||
| 21 || March 6 || Philadelphia || 3–4 || Pittsburgh || || Elliott || 2,800 || 12–6–3 || 27 ||
| 22 || March 7 || Washington || 3–1 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 3,023 || 12–7–3 || 27 ||
| 23 || March 9 || Buffalo || 4–5 || Philadelphia || SO || Elliott || 2,838 || 13–7–3 || 29 ||
| 24 || March 11 || Washington || 5–3 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 2,807 || 13–8–3 || 29 ||
| 25 || March 13 || Washington || 5–4 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 3,083 || 13–9–3 || 29 ||
| 26 || March 15 || Philadelphia || 5–4 || NY Rangers || OT || Hart || 1,639 || 14–9–3 || 31 ||
| 27 || March 17 || Philadelphia || 0–9 || NY Rangers || || Elliott || 1,723 || 14–10–3 || 31 ||
| 28 || March 18 || Philadelphia || 4–3 || NY Islanders || || Hart || 1,400 || 15–10–3 || 33 ||
| 29 || March 20 || Philadelphia || 1–6 || NY Islanders || || Hart || 1,400 || 15–11–3 || 33 ||
| 30 || March 22 || NY Islanders || 2–1 || Philadelphia || OT || Elliott || 2,820 || 15–11–4 || 34 ||
| 31 || March 23 || New Jersey || 4–3 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 2,882 || 15–12–4 || 34 ||
| 32 || March 25 || NY Rangers || 8–3 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 2,854 || 15–13–4 || 34 ||
| 33 || March 27 || NY Rangers || 1–2 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 3,069 || 16–13–4 || 36 ||
| 34 || March 29 || Philadelphia || 4–3 || Buffalo || OT || Elliott || 0 || 17–13–4 || 38 ||
| 35 || March 31 || Philadelphia || 1–6 || Buffalo || || Elliott || 0 || 17–14–4 || 38 ||
| 36 || April 3 || Philadelphia || 2–3 || NY Islanders || SO || Hart || 1,400 || 17–14–5 || 39 ||
| 37 || April 5 || Philadelphia || 3–2 || Boston || OT || Elliott || 2,191 || 18–14–5 || 41 ||
| 38 || April 6 || Boston || 4–2 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 2,638 || 18–15–5 || 41 ||
| 39 || April 8 || Philadelphia || 2–3 || NY Islanders || SO || Hart || 1,400 || 18–15–6 || 42 ||
| 40 || April 10 || Boston || 2–3 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 3,025 || 19–15–6 || 44 ||
| 41 || April 11 || Buffalo || 5–3 || Philadelphia || || Hart || 3,250 || 19–16–6 || 44 ||
| 42 || April 13 || Philadelphia || 1–6 || Washington || || Elliott || 0 || 19–17–6 || 44 ||
| 43 || April 15 || Philadelphia || 2–1 || Pittsburgh || SO || Hart || 4,672 || 20–17–6 || 46 ||
| 44 || April 17 || Washington || 6–3 || Philadelphia || || Lyon || 3,430 || 20–18–6 || 46 ||
| 45 || April 18 || NY Islanders || 1–0 || Philadelphia || OT || Elliott || 3,603 || 20–18–7 || 47 ||
| 46 || April 22 || Philadelphia || 3–2 || NY Rangers || || Elliott || 1,800 || 21–18–7 || 49 ||
| 47 || April 23 || Philadelphia || 1–4 || NY Rangers || || Lyon || 1,800 || 21–19–7 || 49 ||
| 48 || April 25 || New Jersey || 3–4 || Philadelphia || SO || Elliott || 3,651 || 22–19–7 || 51 ||
| 49 || April 27 || Philadelphia || 4–6 || New Jersey || || Elliott || 3,600 || 22–20–7 || 51 ||
| 50 || April 29 || Philadelphia || 3–5 || New Jersey || || Lyon || 3,600 || 22–21–7 || 51 ||
| 51 || May 1 || New Jersey || 4–1 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 2,683 || 22–22–7 || 51 ||
| 52 || May 3 || Pittsburgh || 2–7 || Philadelphia || || Lyon || 2,542 || 23–22–7 || 53 ||
| 53 || May 4 || Pittsburgh || 7–3 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 2,961 || 23–23–7 || 53 ||
| 54 || May 7 || Philadelphia || 4–2 || Washington || || Elliott || 2,133 || 24–23–7 || 55 ||
| 55 || May 8 || Philadelphia || 1–2 || Washington || OT || Lyon || 2,133 || 24–23–8 || 56 ||
| 56 || May 10 || New Jersey || 2–4 || Philadelphia || || Elliott || 3,882 || 25–23–8 || 58 ||
Legend:
Player statistics
Skaters Regular season Player 56 17 26 43 2 14 54 16 27 43 −4 12 53 9 34 43 −12 18 45 18 23 41 −4 8 55 20 18 38 0 28 50 11 23 34 −5 26 55 12 19 31 −2 22 56 7 19 26 4 28 53 9 11 20 13 39 41 9 11 20 −2 6 55 3 12 15 −22 23 50 8 6 14 −9 9 50 3 9 12 −3 44 44 1 10 11 −10 22 ‡ 24 1 9 10 −2 0 52 4 5 9 −30 20 ‡ 34 3 5 8 −5 26 14 4 3 7 1 4 53 1 5 6 0 18 34 2 3 5 −3 18 6 1 1 2 −7 0 20 1 0 1 −7 37 18 0 1 1 −6 2 4 0 1 1 −3 0 6 0 0 0 −6 9 ‡ 4 0 0 0 −2 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 −3 2 5 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 −1 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 −1 0
Goaltenders Regular season Player 30 26 1,607:43 15 9 2 82 3.06 738 .889 2 0 1 0 27 25 1,456:19 9 11 5 89 3.67 721 .877 1 0 0 2 6 5 324:09 1 3 1 18 3.33 169 .893 0 0 0 0 †Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Flyers. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only. ‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only. Bold/italics denotes franchise record.
Awards and records Awards TypeAward/honorRecipientRef League(annual) Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy Oskar Lindblom League(in-season) NHL East Star of the Month James van Riemsdyk (January) NHL Second Star of the Week Travis Konecny (January 18) Team Barry Ashbee Trophy Ivan Provorov Bobby Clarke Trophy Sean Couturier Gene Hart Memorial Award Sean Couturier Pelle Lindbergh Memorial Trophy Joel Farabee Toyota Cup Claude Giroux Yanick Dupre Memorial Class Guy Award James van Riemsdyk
Records
Among the team records set during the 2020–21 season was the Flyers giving up seven goals during the second period against the New York Rangers on March 17.
Milestones MilestonePlayerDateRef First game Maxim Sushko February 18, 2021 Tanner Laczynski April 3, 2021 Wade Allison April 15, 2021 Jackson Cates April 23, 2021 Egor Zamula April 27, 2021 Cam York May 7, 2021
Transactions The Flyers were involved in the following transactions during the 2020–21 season.
Trades Date Details Ref To Tampa Bay Lightning4th-round pick in 2020 (116th overall)5th-round pick in 2020 (147th overall)To Philadelphia FlyersDET 4th-round pick in 2020 (94th overall) To Nashville PredatorsMTL 7th-round pick in 2020 (202nd overall)7th-round pick in 2020 (209th overall)To Philadelphia Flyers5th-round pick in 2020 (135th overall) To Montreal CanadiensErik GustafssonTo Philadelphia FlyersSTL 7th-round pick in 2022 To Washington CapitalsMichael RafflTo Philadelphia FlyersVGK 5th-round pick in 2021
Players acquired Date Player Former team Term Via Ref Derrick Pouliot St. Louis Blues 1-year Free agency Erik Gustafsson Calgary Flames 1-year Free agency Max Willman Lehigh Valley Phantoms (AHL) 2-year Free agency Jackson Cates University of Minnesota-Duluth (NCHC) 2-year Free agency
Players lost Date Player New team Term Via Ref Derek Grant Anaheim Ducks 3-year Free agency Nathan Noel Contract expiration Tyler Pitlick Arizona Coyotes 2-year Free agency Nate Thompson Winnipeg Jets 1-year Free agency Andy Welinski Anaheim Ducks 1-year Free agency Kurtis Gabriel San Jose Sharks 1-year Free agency Reece Willcox Florida Everblades (ECHL) 1-year Free agency Mark Friedman Pittsburgh Penguins Waivers David Kase HC Sparta Praha (ELH) 2-year Free agency
Signings Date Player Term Contract type Ref Zayde Wisdom 3-year Entry-level Tyson Foerster 3-year Entry-level Nolan Patrick 1-year Re-signing Philippe Myers 3-year Extension Mason Millman 3-year Entry-level Cam York 3-year Entry-level Scott Laughton 5-year Extension Elliot Desnoyers 3-year Entry-level Olle Lycksell 2-year Entry-level Samuel Ersson 3-year Entry-level Felix Sandstrom 1-year Extension German Rubtsov 1-year Extension Linus Sandin 1-year Extension
Draft picks
Below are the Philadelphia Flyers' selections at the 2020 NHL entry draft, which was originally scheduled for June 26–27, 2020 at the Bell Center in Montreal, Quebec, but was postponed on March 25, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was held October 6–7, 2020 virtually via Video conference call from the NHL Network studio in Secaucus, New Jersey.
Round Pick Player Position Nationality Team (league) Notes123 Tyson Foerster RW Canada Barrie Colts (OHL) 254 Emil Andrae D Sweden HV71 J20 (J20 SuperElit)494 Zayde Wisdom RW Canada Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)5135 Elliot Desnoyers LW Canada Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)6178 Connor McClennon RW Canada Winnipeg Ice (WHL)
Notes
References