Desperate for a true top-line, franchise center, the Philadelphia Flyers have signed Leo Carlsson to a five-year, $18 million AAV offer sheet, the team announced Friday.
Carlsson, 21, has reached the end of his three-year entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks. The deal would make him the highest-paid player in the NHL.
The Ducks will now have seven days to mull whether or not they want to match the Flyers’ offer. If they decide not to, the Ducks would receive four first-round picks.
The move is Flyers general manager Daniel Briere’s biggest swing since he took over three years ago. While Briere has built a solid young core, and the Flyers surprisingly advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs this past season, finding an elite-level center has so far been elusive. The Flyers finished the season with Trevor Zegras, Christian Dvorak, Noah Cates and Sean Couturier down the middle, although Zegras only moved to center full-time in early March.
Briere and Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek have consummated other deals in recent years. The Flyers dealt winger Cutter Gauthier to Anaheim for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a second-round pick on Jan. 8, 2024, and last June, Zegras was acquired by the Flyers in exchange for Ryan Poehling and a second- and fourth-round draft pick.
The Flyers have approximately $25 million in salary cap space, with restricted free agents Zegras and Drysdale still unsigned. They have had a quiet offseason to this point, adding goalie Joseph Woll in a trade with the Maple Leafs, and signing fourth-line winger Noel Acciari on Wednesday. According to Friday afternoon’s statement, the Flyers will not be commenting further until the Ducks decide whether to match.
The Ducks have plenty of salary cap space if they choose to do so — nearly $38 million, according to CapWages. Fellow restricted free agents Gauthier and defenseman Pavel Mintyukov still have yet to sign.
Carlsson has proven his value since Anaheim made him the No. 2 pick of the 2023 draft, and this season he had 29 goals to go along with 38 assists — both of which ranked second on the team — in 70 games. The Ducks ended a lengthy playoff drought this season, and Carlsson also totaled four goals and seven assists in 12 postseason games.
Carlsson has improved every season, from 12 goals and 29 points as a rookie, to 20 goals and 45 points in 2024-25, to 29 goals and 67 points this past season. In November 2024, he also became the youngest player in Ducks history (at 18) to record a hat trick.
The Ducks, who reached the second round of the playoffs this season, have built a young core — with Carlsson as their top center — that also includes Gauthier and Beckett Sennecke on the wings, and Jackson LaCombe on defense. Now they must decide if they are willing to pay top dollar to make sure Carlsson is part of it.
This story will be updated.
