Flyers Sign James van Riemsdyk to 5 Year Deal

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall made an unexpected splash on opening day of free agency by bringing back winger James van Riemsdyk.

It seems he feels this team is ready to win, and soon.

The terms of the contract include 5 years at $35 million, or a $7 million AAV. This includes $1 million in bonuses each year, and no clauses are in the deal. This contract is most similar to Evander Kane’s new seven-year, $49 million deal with the San Jose Sharks, per CapFriendly.

van Riemsdyk is coming off a 36 goal season for Toronto, who replaced him with John Tavares just a few hours later. He recorded almost 300 points in his six years away from Philadelphia, where he was drafted after Patrick Kane in 2007.

JVR should slide into the second-line left wing role alongside Nolan Patrick and Jakub Voracek, leaving the team’s biggest remaining need at 3C.

Projected top-9:

Giroux-Couturier-Konecny

JVR-Patrick-Voracek

Lindblom-?-Simmonds

van Riemsdyk’s 6’3” frame makes that second-line difficult to play against. He gives Voracek a shoot-first target to pass to.

After playing limited minutes in Toronto, it’s time to see what Claude Giroux’s “favorite pigeon” can do.