With Lukas Sedlak leaving, look for Flyers to sign Artem Anisimov
Artem Anisimov joined the Flyers on PTO for training camp and proceeded to play in one pre-season game where he blocked a shot that resulted in an injury to his foot which kept him out of action for weeks and ruined his chances at earning an NHL contract with the Flyers for the 2022/23 season. By the time he was healthy, the Flyers had already claimed Lukas Sedlak and Kieffer Bellows off waivers from Colorado and New York Islanders respectively and were at the NHL's 50 contract limit and could not sign the forward to a contract. In the wake of not being able to sign an NHL contract, Anisimov went for the next best option. Upon his return to action last month he signed an ATO(Amateur Try Out) with the Phantoms before signing an official AHL contract to remain with the Flyers organization for the remainder of the 2022/23 season.
With Sedlak requesting to terminate his contract to return home to the Czech Republic, and the Flyers granting the request, as soon as Sedlak is placed on waiver and clears effectively terminating his contract, the Flyers can then sign Anisimov to the NHL contract they've reportedly wanted to sign him to since training camp.
Since returning to the Phantoms after the training camp/pre-season foot injury Anisimov has played in 8 games recording 7G, 3A for 10 points and a +4 rating.
Anisimov has certainly done enough with the Phantoms in the short amount of time he's been with them to earn an NHL contract, but chances are fans won't be thrilled with the signing because the forward has been away from the NHL for over a year(playing in Europe) and is 34-years-old. Anisimov signing an NHL contract, even if it "helps" the Flyers in the short-term, puts the Flyers back at the 50 contract limit which could potentially block a promising prospect from getting a chance to shine in the NHL and better the Flyers for the future.
For instance, while the Flyers don't have many promising prospects currently playing with the Phantoms, a potential problem could arise after college seasons begin to end. If the Flyers sign Anisimov and then are unable to unload a contract before or at the trade deadline in March and 2022 first round pick Cutter Gauthier finishes his college season and decides he's ready to turn pro, the Flyers will be unable to sign the forward to an ELC until July when contract space becomes available, leaving them with the only option of signing Gauthier to an ATO with the Phantoms to get him any professional playing time before the season ends. That could very well anger fans even more than they are already angered by the poor play and lack of reaction from management or ownership.
| POLL | ||
17 DECEMBRE | 57 ANSWERS With Lukas Sedlak leaving, look for Flyers to sign Artem Anisimov Would an Anisimov signing annoy you? | ||
| Yes | 17 | 29.8 % |
| No | 17 | 29.8 % |
| If it blocks a kid, yes | 17 | 29.8 % |
| Undecided | 6 | 10.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
Latest 10 stories
