It's officially over: the Philadelphia Flyers aren't signing John Carlson, or any of the other big fish in NHL free agency this year.

That isn't necessarily a bad thing, though, at this point in time.

Carlson, 36, signed a two-year, $17 million ($8.5 million AAV) deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, taking him off the market for the Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, and other playoff hopefuls around the NHL.

Even though the Flyers needed Carlson's services to improve the dreadful power play, they would be best suited giving those minutes to younger players with the potential to develop that kind of impact.

This is especially important, seeing that the Flyers have regularly failed to recruit elite talent to their cause over the course of this rebuild to date.

The one prospect who will undoubtedly benefit the most from the Flyers' miss on Carlson is defenseman David Jiricek, who was acquired from the Minnesota Wild for Bobby Brink at the NHL trade deadline.

Jiricek, 22, has all the makings of a future NHL power play quarterback with his poise, creativity, vision, and booming shot. His defending, decision-making, and mobility all need to come along, but the Flyers went out of their way to trade for him knowing that.

The 2022 No. 6 overall pick will need to pass through waivers to be assigned to the AHL by the Flyers next season, which effectively guarantees him an NHL roster spot to start the year.

By getting regular high-leverage minutes at the NHL level, Jiricek will continue to hone his hockey brain and defending, learning his opponents' tendencies and better understanding himself, his strengths, and his weaknesses.

"He proved that he's ready for the next level. For him, it's gonna be a battle for ice time. It's going to be up to him. Big summer for him. Yeah, he needs waivers. We're aware of that, and he's going to get a good look, and we hope that he's ready for it. We feel he's ready for it, but he's going to have to show it on the ice," Flyers general manager Danny Briere said of Jiricek in a recent Q&A with The Hockey News. "We know the offense is there, the big shot is there, the size is there, and that's just for him to round out his game, where he becomes a player that the coaches trust every night."

Now that the Flyers won't be getting Carlson, they are likely to pivot and sign former captain Claude Giroux, which would undoubtedly give Jiricek's ability to produce at even strength and on the power play a big boost.

Other decisions the team has made, like re-signing Dan Vladar and Christian Dvorak, say otherwise, but it is objectively the right choice for the Flyers to continue prioritizing the development of their young players over results.

In the long run, the Flyers may be better off missing out on John Carlson.