VOORHEES, N.J. – Daniel Briere made it known he would only sign a free agent if he didn’t have to take on a long-term contract.
So when news broke shortly after the start of NHL free agency on Saturday that the Flyers general manager had signed 24-year-old center Ryan Poehling to a one-year, $1.4-million contract, most viewed it as a savvy transaction.
With the Flyers in a committed rebuild devoted to youth, this is the kind of player it made sense to add to the Philadelphia roster.
He’s a checking line
Poehling, a 6-2, 196-pound two-way player was a first round (25th overall) pick by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.
He played college hockey at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota.
The Lakeville, Minnesota native signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Canadiens, joining the team for the remainder of the season.
He showed some offensive skill with his very first game as a Canadien.
During his NHL debut in Montreal’s season-closing game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 6, 2019, Poehling scored a hat trick, the first Canadiens player to achieve this feat since Alex Smart on January 14, 1943. This was then followed by a goal in the shootout, winning the game for the Canadiens.
A wrist injury, which required surgery, cut short his season in May, 2021.
As a restricted free agent with the Canadiens, Poehling was signed to a two-year contract extension, with the final year of his deal on a one-way basis on August 27, 2021.
On the heels of a successful season in the AHL, there were expectations that Poehling would make the Canadiens lineup in one of the center positions vacated following the off-season departures of Phillip Danault and Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
After a poor training camp, he was sent down to the AHL again on Oct. 13, shortly after the Canadiens claimed centerman Adam Brooks from the Maple Leafs off waivers.
On July 16, 2022, Poehling was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins, along with defenseman Jeff Petry, in exchange for defenseman Mike Matheson and a fourth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.
