Trade Talk: Flyers Looking at Leap to Land Laine?
Taking all factors in to account, it appears the Jets would rather get the Laine situation settled this season. It would also appear that some kind of immediate cap relief might be a requirement, we know the Jets would not take on more salary. The Flyers may have the players, and a strategy to make the deal.
The center piece of the deal would be Gostisbehere. This is the piece that the Jets need the most, a left-handed defender who could energize their powerplay. The Jets may also have a player in house that would pair nicely with the occasionally defensively challenged Ghost. Gostisbehere is also attractive for the Flyers to move because it eliminates the possibility of losing him for nothing via expansion.
Gostisbehere alone would not be enough, even with including a first-round pick in 2022 and retention of some of Ghost’s salary. The best sweetener might be Scott Laughton. Laughton had his best season as a pro last year. He can play center or wing and thrived as the talent around him got better. Winnipeg is loaded with forward talent. Laughton is also in the last year of his deal and looks in line to get a nice raise.
The Flyers have Nolan Patrick, Morgan Frost and German Rubstov looking to get regular NHL playing time. None of those players play the same way as Laughton, but they all could bring something to the position. Between them something could likely be worked out to fill the space if Laughton were to be dealt.
This would be a nice haul for Winnipeg, probably quite not as much as Laine is worth, but then again, the Jets are the one who are shopping him. For the Flyers, it eases the concern of losing a plus defensemen in expansion. I have not been very impressed with the office’s results in the draft since Hextall departed, so it is worth the pick for the certain talent of Laine. Laughton would be a loss, but he may be at the height of his value. If losing Laughton proves to be a critical mistake, the team will have an opportunity in next season’s free agency rush.
Best of all, the Flyers get to test drive Laine for a season before deciding if they want to commit to a long-term deal. If they decide they don’t want him they Flyers could get as many as four 1st round picks as compensation, and Laine’s agents will be trying hard to make that happen. That is a nice insurance policy in case Laine turns out to be a bad fit for the team.
If the Flyers want to make a splash, or get that coveted scoring winger today, dealing with Winnipeg may be the best course of action. It seems the onus is on the Jets to make the deal, while the Flyers have a bit longer to figure out what to do with Gostisbehere. Who knows, a bad tweet or a heated negotiation session may be the catalyst to get a deal done.