2 reasons to like the Travis Konecny contract and 1 reason to hate it
Travis Konecny is going to be with the Philadelphia Flyers for a long time.
The Philadelphia Flyers made a huge contract extension this summer. They locked in Travis Konecny on an eight-year extension with a cap hit of 8.75 million.
This extension kicks in at the start of the 2025-26 season so he is going to be with the Flyers for a long time. That is a lucrative contract that he earned by being a great player up to this point in his career.
There were trade speculations surrounding Konecny because of his situation with his looming free agency. Instead of letting him go, the Flyers decided to lock him in.
There are going to be folks who like the contract and folks who dislike it. Like anything else, both sides make great points. These are two reasons to enjoy it and one reason to hate it:
Travis Konecny is a great player who will bring a little of everything
The Philadelphia Flyers rely on Travis Konecny for a lot. He is a great player who brings a lot to the table all over the ice.
In 2024-25, he scored 33 goals and had 35 assists for 68 points in 76 games played. It is above-average production for a two-way winger who doesn't have any super-elite players to play with.
In addition to that offense, he is not a liability on the ice. When he is there, his team will possess the puck and create chances more than the opposition.
If the Flyers are going to push for the playoffs in 2024-25, Konecny needs to build on these totals and be one of the catalysts on the team. He should be proud of the high-end player that he became in the NHL.
Travis Konecny can be a great leader for the young kids coming in
The National Hockey League goes so much farther than the actual on-ice play. To be good, you need good people around to create a winning culture.
It seems that Konecny is one of those players for this team. He can be a leader both on and off the ice which is not something that everyone is capable of.
Sometimes, you add a little bit extra value to a player for being older, stronger, and having the ability to lead young men in a very difficult sport to play.
With youngsters on the team like Matvei Michkov, Jamie Drysdale, and Bobby Brink in the mix, they need leaders and Konecny is one of the top ones. He will be around to lead for a long time.
This contract might not age well for Travis Konecny and the Flyers
A cap hit of 8.75 million that takes Konecny into his mid-late 30s might not look so great by the end. He would have to be an above-average player throughout all of those years for that not to be the case.
It is unrealistic for him to be the same power forward at 35 as he is right now in his late 20s. The Flyers are trying to set a culture early in this contract.
If they don't win over the first few years of the deal, it is going to be known as nothing but an albatross deal on their books.
They also better hope that they at least get four good years out of him at this number. They better hope that his great 2023-24 season wasn't the only great year he has to offer. That is especially true with some of the young talent coming in.
When you have good players you should try to keep them for as long as you can. Hopefully, the pros outweigh the cons in this one.
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