Report: Flyers, Dan Vladar closing in on five-year extension
The Philadelphia Flyers were one of the surprises of the 2025-26 NHL season, in large part thanks to the contributions of goalie Dan Vladar, who Daniel Briere and the front office signed to a two-year contract in unrestricted free agency last summer.
The Flyers finished in third place in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 43-27-12 as Vladar posted a .906 save percentage and 2.42 goals against average to earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Once there, Philadelphia knocked out its in-state rival Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round before getting swept by the Carolina Hurricanes in the second, while Vladar had a .922 SV% and 2.18 GAA with a pair of shutouts in the postseason.
Now, it appears Vladar and the Flyers will extend their partnership with a lengthy contract extension, which he will become eligible to sign on July 1.
According to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, Vladar is expected to sign a five-year contract extension that will carry a salary cap hit of $5.5 million, a sizable raise from the $3.35 million per year he earns on his current contract.
Still some final touches needed, and it can’t be announced officially until July 1, but Flyers and Dan Vladar closing in on five-year extension which will carry $5.5M AAV.
For Briere, the move locks in a starting goalie for a total of six more seasons at a number that will account for less and less of the salary cap hit as the upper limit increases with time, but also marks a sizable gamble on a goalie who had never played more than 30 games in a season prior to this most recent one.
The 2025-26 season was just the second campaign of Vladar’s career in which he surpassed a .900 save percentage. The Prague native, who made the Czech Olympic team earlier this year, was a member of the Calgary Flames for the four prior seasons, which comprised the entirety of his NHL career aside a five-game stint with the Boston Bruins that included his NHL debut in 2020-21.