Free Agency is upon us, and you know what that means for players and fans alike; phones ringing and dinging, breaking news, big trades, and fans refreshing their social media pages to see if they will have to retire the jersey of their favorite player. With that being said, the Wings are always looking for upgrades to the roster at every position and Free Agency is an opportunity to add depth and experience. Let’s take a look at what the next few weeks may have in store.
When it comes to the Wings, notable players from last season’s roster who will be hitting the market as Unrestricted Free Agents (UFA) include Corey Small, Kevin Crowley, Corey Vitarelli, Ian Llord, and Kiel Matisz. The Wings have yet to apply the Franchise Tag to any of them, which would prevent that player from hitting the open market. One thing to keep in mind is that under the new CBA, players 33 and older may reject the Franchise Designation. This would apply to both Kiel Matisz and Kevin Crowley. Crowley was drafted first overall by the original Philadelphia Wings team in the 2012 NLL entry draft. In 2019, when the Wings returned to Philly, the new generation of the Wings re-acquired Crowley from the New England Black Wolves and he has played in Philly ever since. He led the Wings in both points (89) and assists (64) last season, while Corey Small (30) and Crowley (25) held the second and third place spots, respectively, in goals scored. Similar to Crowley, Ian Llord has roots with the Philadelphia Wings organization, having been drafted by Philly 5th overall in the 2006 entry draft. Llord scored 2 goals and picked up 37 loose balls in 2021-2022. Cory Vitarelli is a power forward who had 25 loose balls and 4 powerplay goals last season as he battled injuries throughout the year. While we know free agency is unpredictable and isn’t in our hands, it would definitely be sad to see some of these players walk in free agency. I will be interested to see how the first few days of free agency unfold.
Looking around the league, there are several notable names who could potentially be hitting the market:
In my humble opinion, the Wings would certainly benefit from adding some scoring on both the offensive and defensive end of the bench. Only time will tell what General Manager Paul Day decides to do. Fortunately for fans of the Wings and NLL, the time of Free Agency is finally here; so sit back, relax, and wait for the fireworks!