#9. Sanheim is the Flyers’ top defenseman after a down year
"“I’d like to be my old self again, but I’m still tryin’ to find it,” – Taylor Swift, “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” (2021)"
Travis Sanheim’s underlying offensive and defensive impacts cratered in the 2022-23 season right after signing a massive eight-year, $50 million extension in Oct. 2022 – a sports storyline we know all too well.
The good news is that the 27-year-old will be fully healthy and ready to charm hockey fans and Swifties alike with his buccaneering style of play. On his best days, Sanheim can dominate both ends of the ice, but that hasn’t occurred a lot lately.
The 2014 first-round pick is just one year removed from a 31-point season, but the Flyers will want to see that number reach closer to 40 this year in correspondence with an improved team and a larger share of minutes. Sanheim’s career-high of 35 points came back in his first full season in the NHL in 2018-19, and it’s now up to him to show he hasn’t stalled in his development since then.
The Flyers were reportedly scrambling to try and offload Sanheim and his ginormous contract to the St. Louis Blues, but there were too many moving parts and there was nothing else GM Danny Briere could do. Instead, the Blues got Kevin Hayes for free, pretty much.