When Christian Dvorak was initially signed in the offseason to a one year, $5.4 million dollar deal, some eyebrows were raised. Over five million dollars for a player who has never hit 20 goals, and whose highest point total was 38, seemed a bit steep at the time.
But Daniel Briere and the front office were proved right in their evaluation when Dvorak came out of the gates on fire, serving as the Flyers de-facto 1C, and establishing a great connection with another new arrival in Trevor Zegras. His defensive presence alongside Zegras allowed for the former Duck to flourish early in the season, and a lot of credit was heaped on Dvorak for being the “steady hand” that complimented the high-skill playstyle of his linemate.
By the turn of the new year, Dvorak was on pace for a career season, with nine goals and 25 points in 39 games to go along with him playing on both the power play and penalty kill. Dvorak was averaging just over 17 minutes a night, had supplanted both Sean Couturier and Noah Cates as the most important centerman, and was playing the best hockey of his NHL career.
Flyers might regret re-signing Christian Dvorak with current trade prices
Originally, the Dvorak contract was designed to be a slight overpay in order to secure the player for a season, before maybe shipping him off at the deadline to a contender in need of a solid bottom-six center.
But Dvorak’s strong start caused the Flyers’ brass to change course, and on January 5th, the Flyers would sign the 30-year old centerman to a five year contract extension worth 25.75 million dollars, or 5.15 million per season until he is 35. It was a complete 180° from the initial plan that was set out in the offseason, but for a team with a dearth of potential top six centers, the front office deemed the risk worthy, and held onto their found money.
Immediately after signing the extension, Dvorak went on a four game point streak, and things seemed to look good, but since then, both the Flyers and Dvorak have slowed down a little. Dvorak has 3 goals and 8 points in his last 16 games, and the line featuring him and Zegras seems to have become more of a focal point for opposition trying to shut down a Flyers team that can’t score otherwise.
While this is happening, bottom-six centers are being dealt all over the league in what has become a deadline driven by that particular archetype of player. Nic Roy was just traded from the Leafs to the Avalanche for a top-10 protected first rounder in 2027, as well as a future fifth. Nic Dowd was dealt to the Golden Knights for a future second, a future third, and an AHL goaltender. And finally, the combination of Jason Dickinson, Colton Dach, and taking on the remainder of Andrew Mangiapane’s contract fetched a 2027 first from the Oilers. Christian Dvorak has easily outplayed all of these players this season, even in his down months, and it seems as if he would have been one of the most coveted trade targets at this year’s deadline… if he was available.
Once the extension was signed, the chance of Dvorak being traded plummeted. It’s not an impossibility, but trading a player who just signed a long-term extension is:
- Much harder than just trading a rental
- Would definitely cause discontent in the locker room
So Dvorak is off the board, at a deadline where players that don’t have his pedigree, nor are playing to his level currently, are going for astronomical prices. And while Briere and the brass are likely content with their decision, it is a certainty that Dvorak would have brought the biggest haul of all the players they had on the block
