The Flyers' addition of Kieffer Bellows was a compelling one, but it ultimately didn't amount to much.
Kieffer Bellows reached the end of the road with the New York Islanders last October. Selected by the Islanders in the first round (No. 19 overall) of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, many fans on Long Island were optimistic Bellows could become a high-end scoring threat one day. After all, he scored 50 goals as a member of the U.S. National U-18 Team in 2016. The potential was most certainly there. But after several unspectacular stretches of getting his feet wet in the NHL with the Islanders, Bellows' time ultimately ran out.
Then came the Philadelphia Flyers.
With hopes they'd be able to unlock Bellows' scoring magic, the Flyers claimed the 24-year-old off waivers to potentially add a spark to their rudderless offense. But much like his tenure with the Islanders, Bellows proved unfit to play a full-time role in the NHL — even on a woeful Flyers club.
Season In Review
Calling Bellows' 2022-23 season unmemorable would be an understatement. No one was expecting him to suddenly become the player some thought he could become when he was a teenager, but there was certainly a belief he'd possibly show something of a spark.
Unfortunately, that spark never came.
The Flyers claimed Bellows four days before Halloween. By December 1, he found himself right back on the waiver wire. The Flyers waived him once more in February, but for the second time in just a couple months, he went unclaimed.
Bellows finished the season with three points (all goals) in 27 games, and his advanced stats weren't pretty. Out of all Flyers players with at least 200 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time during the regular season, Bellows finished dead last in Corsi For percentage and second-to-last in Goals For percentage. He averaged only 9:46 of ice time per game, and it was clear he just didn't do enough to earn a regular spot in the Flyers' lineup.
Bellows ended up spending most of the season watching games from the press box, and in the rare occasions when he did play, he was largely unnoticeable.
Standout Moment
After being held without a point in his first 13 games as a Flyer, Bellows finally netted his first goal with the Orange & Black against the Winnipeg Jets in late January. Soon after the game's midway point, Bellows found a soft spot in the low slot and one-timed a Rasmus Ristolainen feed past Connor Hellebuyck to give the Flyers a 2-0 lead. The Flyers ultimately shut out the Jets that night by a score of 4-0.
Bottom Line
Though it didn't amount to much, the Flyers' addition of Bellows was a compelling one. Despite his struggles with the Islanders, Bellows still possessed legitimate potential as a scorer, as evidenced by his play with the U.S. National Team and even as an AHLer — he logged 10 points in 12 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season, and, once upon a time, posted a 22-goal campaign with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
Bellows was a low-risk, potentially high-reward swing for former Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher. He didn't pan out, and he is not likely to return next season, but Bellows was worth the experimentation.
Verdict:
Statistics courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and NHL.com.