Foerster, Cates Deals Leave Flyers in Good Cap Situation

For the first time in a long time, the Flyers entered the offseason with something that they have longed for: cap space. As a plethora of expiring contracts, buyouts and retention came off the books, the Flyers entered the offseason in a position to at least leave the door open for activity.

Most offseason to-do lists start internally. In the Flyers case, that was finding a new head coach first and foremost, but from a roster standpoint, it’s re-signing players, usually restricted free agents.

Getting ahead of the curve is important. You want to know your cap situation before the beginning of free agency. The Flyers list of restricted free agents this offseason was a hefty one. Tyson Foerster, who finished the season strong with 25 goals. Noah Cates, who played a top-line role for a notable part of the 2024-25 season and held his own against top competition. Cam York, a former first-round pick that has played top-pair minutes in the past. And Jakob Pelletier, acquired from Calgary this January. 

GM Danny Briere has wasted no time locking up two of those free agents. Foerster signed a two-year deal with a $3.75 million AAV on Thursday. Cates re-signed for four years with a $4 million AAV on Tuesday.

Just like that, two of the Flyers’ four RFAs were signed at a combined cap hit of $7.75 million, leaving the Flyers with approximately $18.9 million in cap space. 

There are still deals to be done with York and Pelletier. Pelletier’s next deal figures to be a similar short-term bridge deal at a lower cap hit than Foerster and Cates due to his NHL sample size. York, on the other hand, could see much more similar term and value.

Unless the deals to York and Pelletier add up to nearly $9 million in combined cap space, the Flyers will go into the heart of the offseason with more than $10 million in cap space, certainly enough to be players in the free-agent market for more low-key signings. Having cap space also opens up possibilities for acquiring players via trade.

But what the Foerster and Cates contracts ensure is that the Flyers will have plenty of cap space in the 2026 offseason.

With both Foerster and Cates now on the books beyond next season, the Flyers still have just $54.1 million committed toward the cap in the 2026-27 season. The salary cap is expected to rise to $104 million, an $8.5 million increase from this offseason. The Flyers also have $5.071 million of cap space in retention slots this season for Kevin Hayes and Scott Laughton, as well as $1.758 million in cap space in the buyout of Cam Atkinson. 

All three of those players come off the books ahead of next offseason. That would leave the Flyers with a whopping $49.9 million in cap space for the 2026 offseason, pending deals this offseason to York and Pelletier, as well as any other signings and trades that may happen.

The Flyers can certainly start spending toward this amount in the current offseason, but will have limitations. It’s why so much of the focus, from a free-agency standpoint, has been on 2026. 

It remains to be seen if some of the big names that are pending free agents in 2026 even make it to market. But if they do, you can expect the Flyers to be involved, having full ammunition to make their move. 

The Flyers will have to address Foerster and Cates again down the road. Foerster’s contract is up in the 2027 offseason, and if he performs well, could be due a massive payday. But as the cap increases – both the player taking a chance on his upcoming performance and the Flyers positioning themselves for more in the short-term – the Flyers could be reaping the rewards of the massive cap space they have accrued.

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.