The off-season of rumors has continued for the Flyers. This latest one has the chance to change the franchise in a big way, though. With protection lists coming out in a week and the expansion draft to follow, things will become much clearer. There will still be a few decision to be made before that time comes. It appears that Philadelphia may have made on thing certain, however.
An end of an era could be coming. According to Elliotte Friedman, Jakub Voracek appears to have been told that he will be exposed and available for Seattle to grab in the expansion draft. If not taken there, a trade is also on the table. While neither may necessarily happen, the seal has been ripped off and discussions have taken place.
"“I’m going to stress that this situation has been described as “not acrimonious” to me, but Philadelphia and Jakub Voracek have discussed that it might be time for a change, as well. Voracek is expected to be left unprotected for the expansion draft (and was told so), where former Flyers coach Dave Hakstol would weigh in. Should that fail, Philly will look elsewhere. There are three years left on his contract, with cash slightly lower than his cap hit of $8.25 million. Both sides are also prepared for the possibility a trade won’t occur, so he stays put. But there will be a legit attempt to move him.”"
While other rumors circulating the Flyers this off-season, this could be the first domino that sets everything in motion. It may not end up being Seth Jones as Friedman also mentioned discussion have stopped momentarily. It appears Philadelphia has not gotten a commitment from Jones about a contract, something they want to make a deal possible. So for now, the team could end up looking elsewhere.
But for now, the conversation is about Voracek. He came to Philadelphia in the blockbuster trade that sent Jeff Carter to the Blue Jackets. The trade also ended up yielding draft picks that turned into Sean Couturier and Nick Cousins. Since then, Voracek has spent 10 season with the Flyers organization.
Voracek ranks fifth all-time in assists with 427. He recently moved into 10th place with 604 points. He’ll have a chance to climb up that list and could move close to the top-five with a solid season. He needs 57 points to climb above Eric Lindros. It’s not out of the realm of possibilities as he has posted that many points five times in his Flyers’ career. He will also climb the ranks of games played as his 727 ranked 10th. A full 82-game season moves him into fourth place on that list.
Voracek has three years left on a contract with a cap hit of 8.25M. While a steep price to pay, he is still a valuable asset to this team. He has posted 50+ points in seven of his 10 seasons in Philadelphia. While his goal scoring has dropped off a bit the last two seasons, he is still posting close to 40 assists. So the playmaking part of his game is still prevalent. At 31 years of age, Voracek appears to still have a few good years left in him.
There is a chance he could still be back in a Flyers uniform next season. But as Friedman mentioned, the team is going to do their due diligence on a potential change of scenery. Exposing him in the expansion draft is the simple move, if Seattle grabs him, it’s an easy move and the Flyers can go about their business. If that doesn’t happen, though, it could get a bit more complicated.
There will certainly be teams interested in trading for Voracek. His stats speak for themselves as he is still capable of playing as a top-six forward in the NHL. That won’t be the problem. What the Flyers may run into is getting a team to take on his contract. Another year of a flat cap may stop some teams from taking on bigger contracts. It won’t be impossible as there are some who have the available cap space at this moment to take on Voracek’s contract. There are actually 12 teams who are currently below the cap floor. Teams have their own free agents to deal with as well.
The Flyers also have a few players they need to re-sign as well. Most notably they have Carter Hart, Travis Sanheim and Nolan Patrick up for new deals as restricted free agents. The team currently havs over 13M in cap space. So eliminating Voracek’s 8.25M would open up a lot more room to sign players.
Things are not all bad if the Flyers and Voracek do end up parting ways. But it would signal the end of an era in Philadelphia. One that could see more major changes coming.