Philadelphia Flyers
· 2026-07-14
The Philadelphia Flyers have lost depth forward Rodrigo Abols to Switzerland’s SC Bern, where he signed a three-year deal Monday. At 30, Abols—who suited up for just 42 games this season—may have played his final NHL shift after a fractured right ankle derailed his campaign. With the Flyers sitting 8th in the Eastern Conference (43-27) on a three-game win streak, the departure leaves GM Danny Brière with critical roster decisions ahead.
Abols spent the 2025-26 season on a one-year, $800,000 contract with the Flyers, netting three goals and 10 points before landing on injured reserve. His last NHL game came January 17 against the New York Rangers. Before Philly, he split time between the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the Flyers’ lineup, having previously played five seasons in Sweden with Örebro HK, where he captained the club from 2021–23.
Abols missed the entire playoffs after fracturing his ankle, watching from the press box as the Flyers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Battle of Pennsylvania before bowing out to the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 2. Over 64 career games with Philly, he recorded five goals and 15 points, though his production dipped in his final season. His international resume includes a bronze medal with Team Latvia at the 2023 IIHF World Championships, where he contributed as a left-shot forward.
With Abols gone, the Flyers now have two unrestricted free agents (Garrett Wilson, 35; Luke Glendening, 37) and two restricted free agents (Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale) on the books. Zegras and Drysdale will be top priorities for Brière, who must balance retention with rebuilding a lineup that’s already navigating the final stretch of the regular season. Abols’ move to Switzerland could signal the end of his NHL career, leaving a gap in Philly’s depth chart as the playoff push intensifies.