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Flyers Sign Sean Couturier to Eight-Year Extension

By Ariel Melendez

Nov 7, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) during the second period against the Montreal Canadiens at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) during the second period against the Montreal Canadiens at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /
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A day after signing Derick Brassard and likely finalizing the roster, Chuck Fletcher decided he wanted to get started on next year’s Flyers team.. With one year left on his current contract, Sean Couturier agreed to an eight-year contract that will kick in during the 2022-23 season. It will pay him an AAV of 7.75M.

It is a well deserved extension for the former Selke Trophy winner. His previous contract, signed back in 2015, had paid him 4.33M per year. It had long become a bargain of a contract for what the Flyers were getting from Couturier. So he was due for a significant pay raise. Keeping the AAV under 8M is a big win for the team as well.

A season after signing that contract, Couturier posted back to back 76 point campaigns, a career high. His 33 goals back in 2018-19 stand as a career high for him as well. Couturier has long been considered a part of the Flyers future and this all but signifies he will finish his career in Philadelphia. At 28 years of right now, he will be 36 by the time the contract runs out after the 2029-30 season.

Spending his entire 10-year career in Philadelphia, Couturier has amassed 174 and collected a total of 443 points in 692 regular season games. He consistently finds himself among the team’s top scorers, finishing third on the Flyers this past season. His 41 points were technically fourth on the team as the three above him tied for first with 43 points.

He posted those numbers despite missing 11 games due to a shoulder injury. He took home the Bobby Clarke Trophy as the team’s MVP for the third season in a row. He was just the third Flyers’ player to accomplish that, joining Ron Hextall and Eric Lindros.

After a slow offensive start to his career, Couturier has taken that leap forward that allowed the Flyers to draft him eighth overall in 2011. The team is counting their lucky stars he fell to him in that draft. He was expected to be a top pick that year but a bout of mononucleosis caused his draft stock to fall just a bit. Philadelphia sure won’t complain about that one bit.

Getting Couturier locked in before next summer is huge for the Flyers. It is something Fletcher mentioned the sides put an emphasis on. This has been a big summer for the team and getting an early addition off the list for next season makes things even better.

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