2016 Flyers free-agent fit: Blues RW Troy Brouwer

Share

Each day from now until July 1, the day NHL free agency begins, CSNPhilly.com producers Tom Dougherty, Jordan Hall and Greg Paone will profile some of the league’s top impending free agents and project their likelihood of signing with the Flyers.

Troy Brouwer, right wing

Age: Will turn 31 in August
Height: 6-3
Weight: 210
Last team: St. Louis Blues
2015-16 cap hit: $3.67 million

Scouting report
Veteran Troy Brouwer is proof that late-round draft gems do exist. A seventh-round selection of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2004, Brouwer has carved out an effective career in the NHL. In his eight years in the league with Chicago, Washington and St. Louis, the soon-to-be 31-year old has scored 150 goals and added 144 assists for 294 points.

Brouwer, who won a Stanley Cup with the 2010 Blackhawks, is a very reliable two-way player with the ability to play against the opposition’s best players every night. Case in point, he played the third-most minutes among forwards on a Blues penalty kill that finished the regular season third in the league with an 85.1 percent success rate. He also brings a physical element to the ice as he was second on the Blues last season with 206 hits. He isn’t the fastest guy in the world, though.

As far as offense is concerned, Brouwer’s skill set isn’t going to wow anyone. He scores his fair share of dirty goals and can be a menace in front of the net. That type of player can be a valuable asset to a team, but he’s not a player who should be counted on to pick up the offensive load. Think of him more as complementary piece who can play a top-six role.

He’s about to strike in free agency while the iron is hot as he’s coming off a productive playoff run during which he scored eight goals (fifth-most in the league during the postseason) and added five assists as the Blues made the Western Conference Final for the first time in 15 years before ultimately falling to the San Jose Sharks in six games.

Projection
Brouwer has the gritty, two-way game that the Flyers typically find attractive. But, as mentioned above, Brouwer is more of a complementary piece than anything else.

And, let’s face it, the Flyers already have too many complementary types as it is right now. The Flyers need more scoring from the wing than Brouwer has been known to provide, and they’ll want it from someone younger. He’s not a fit in Philadelphia.

Where is he a fit? Good question. Contenders will have interest in a versatile guy such as Brouwer and he’ll probably get somewhere around the same money he made last year. Maybe slightly higher.

He’s a great fit, if he stays, for a contender like St. Louis, but the Blues have to make a decision on team captain David Backes before they can adhere to any other business. How about a team like the Dallas Stars, who are a legitimate threat but also had their issues last season? Just a suggestion that could make sense.

But Brouwer in Philadelphia at this point in time just doesn’t make much sense.

Contact Us