One topic of conversation that will start to percolate over the next few weeks, perhaps even months, is whether or not the Philadelphia Flyers will want to extend pending unrestricted free agent forward, Christian Dvorak.
For most fans, Dvorak is seen strictly as an expiring contract that they hope the Flyers will flip for assets at the trade deadline. However, the Flyers don’t tend to do what the mass majority of the public want, and it’s somewhat likely they lean towards an extension, especially with how he’s played to date.
Dvorak signed with the Flyers on a one-year deal this summer for a whopping $5.4 million AAV. Many trolled the Flyers for the obscenely high cap hit, but they had money to burn, weren’t in a position to add more or come close to the cap limit, and it was still a contract that could be moved at the trade deadline with salary retention that wouldn’t push opposing teams away.
However, as we reach the middle of December, the Flyers have surprisingly jumped to a 16-9-5 start, and while many are still rightfully skeptical about their success, it doesn’t seem to be a flash in the pan. President of Hockey Operations Keith Jones also mentioned before the season began that the club was no longer looking to subtract, rather they wanted to slowly come out of their rebuild and would be looking to add instead – as they believe in the core they’ve built.
That brings us back to Dvorak, because he has done a lot better than most gave him credit for and he’s succeeded under Rick Tocchet, as had been the case in the past when they were together in Arizona. The former first round pick reportedly rejected multiple offers on July 1st that included several years of term for the Flyers who offered more money.
He seemingly wanted to take the risk of a one-year prove-it deal and so far he’s done very well with 7 goals and 21 points in 30 games thus far. Dvorak is just 5 goals and 12 points away from his season-total from last year – in a full 82-game season – and is only 11 goals and 17 points away from matching his career-high that he set in 2019-20.
Additionally, he’s given the Flyers a reliable top-9 centre who has averaged 16:56 ATOI, has played well with their more skilled wingers in Matvei Michkov, Owen Tippett, and Trevor Zegras, and his 55.3% success rate in the faceoff dot can’t go unnoticed either.
Is he someone the Flyers should consider extending this summer? In a perfect world they move him for a high draft pick at the trade deadline, but it seems like the Flyers are operating on the basis of keeping him beyond the deadline, and as DFO’s Anthony Di Marco has already intimated, the Flyers could have an “appetite to potentially extend Dvorak should the former Montréal Canadiens forward continue to gel with the group – specifically Zegras.”
He adds that the Flyers could use St. Louis Blues forward Pius Suter as a close comparable as he signed with the club on a 2-year deal worth $8.25 million this summer. Di Marco mentions that a source close to the team believes a two-year route with that same AAV would make sense.
“According to the source, a two-year contract around a similar AAV as to what Dvorak already has is something that could make sense for the team.”
The Flyers are expected to have around $47 million in cap space this summer with key RFAs to sign in Zegras, Emil Andrae, Bobby Brink, Jamie Drysdale, and Samuel Ersson. It’s conceivable that all of them can be extended and still leave the Flyers with half of their cap leftover, which then brings Dvorak back into the equation.
They don’t have any centres knocking on the door, and outside of Dvorak, they only have Sean Couturier and Noah Cates, who should both be on the roster beyond the 2025-26 season. Just on that basis alone, you can believe the Flyers will consider it, and should he surpass the 50-point threshold, it might be a foregone conclusion.
They’ve operated as such for years, which will surely bring the ire of the fanbase, but it’s hard to argue that he hasn’t been one of their best players this season. They have plenty of wingers coming through the pipeline, but because their centre depth is so weak, it’s something they’ll surely consider.
Dvorak’s relationship with Tocchet can’t go unnoticed either and he seems fairly happy in his first season with the Flyers. If he continues to gel with the likes of Tippett and Zegras, potentially even Michkov and Travis Konecny, you can bet your bottom dollar that Daniel Brière will be working on an extension.
It may not be overly popular if the Flyers extend Dvorak, but if it’s a short-term deal to provide depth while they work the phones for a legitimate centre, it’s something to consider, especially with the salary cap rising exponentially for the next several seasons.
