Whenever a player signs a new contract extension a year before his current deal has run out, it’s a sure indication of one thing.
He likes where he’s at.
And so it is with Flyers right wing Garnet Hathaway, who inked a new two-year contract extension with an annual average value of $2.4 million on July 1. The contract begins during the 2025-26 season.
In a media Zoom conference call on Monday, Hathaway reiterated he wants to continue to be a veteran leader for the long haul (end of the 2026-27 season) during the Flyers’ ongoing rebuild.
The 32-year-old Hathaway, who originally signed a two-year deal with the Flyers in the summer of 2023, showed he still has a lot left in the tank last season. He led the team in hits with 326 (a crowd-pleasing number). That placed him second in the NHL and first among league forwards.
“For me, it was a great opportunity to come in and a challenge to prove myself – not only will they see me as part of their two-year plan but more than that,” he said. “I want to be here when their plan continues to really take off and we’re even more successful than we have been.”
If Hathaway can serve as an inspiration to young players on the Flyers with his physical play, so much the better.
“I want to be in Philly,” Hathaway said. “That was a big thing for me. What it came down to it, this is where I want to be. I had a great year to get introduced to the organization. It makes sense to me.”
The Maine native (actually born in Florida but moved before he was age 1) has also played for Calgary, Washington and Boston during a distinguished NHL career.
At the end of the day, the 6-foot-2, 212-pound Hathaway looks and sounds like the protypical Flyers, a comparison which extends all the way back to the “Broad Street Bullies” of the ‘70s.
In fact, general manager Daniel Briere was the one who first brought up the connection.
“That’s a huge compliment,” said Hathaway, one of just four Flyers to play in all 82 games last season. “For the history of this organization, it’s a really nice compliment. It’s been a great fit and I think when you ask Danny, when we talked last summer, a two-year deal made a lot of sense for both of us.”
Hathaway spent three-plus seasons in Washington playing alongside Russian superstar Alex Ovechkin. So Hathaway is somewhat familiar with that country’s culture.
With 2023 first-round draft pick Matvei Michkov, who also hails from Russia, joining the Flyers this fall, Hathaway believes he can help somewhat with the transition to life in North America, both on and off the ice.
“It’s tough to compare him and ‘Ovi’,” Hathaway said. “Hopefully I will be able to help out, at least with the introduction and just figuring out how to be a pro in this league.”
Michkov was thought to be unavailable to the Flyers for at least two more seasons due to a contract with the Kontinental Hockey League but that situation was resolved in the past couple months.
“Our team has kind of created that coming together and lifting guys up,” Hathaway said. “It’s going to be different for everyone. The language barrier, the rink size (which is smaller in North America). . .a lot of the things that go on. That’s what we’re going to work on and try to help him as much as we can.”
Hathaway said he hasn’t spoken to Michkov yet but he’s heard rumblings that it won’t be long until the two meet face-to-face.
The Flyers know they have a player with a high hockey IQ in Hathaway. He spent four seasons playing for the Ivy League’s Brown University, then played five seasons in the American Hockey League before finally making the NHL.
The next few seasons in Philadelphia should be exciting ones and Hathaway wants to be an integral part of the franchise’s resurrection.
“You can see that striving for more,” he said. “Just that attitude that no one is satisfied with overachieving like people think we did last year. Planning that step to be more successful the next day. That’s something I want to be a part of.”
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