While we have come to expect that the Philadelphia Flyers are going to be signing goaltender Dan Vladar to a contract extension on July 1, we now know more specific details about what that new and shiny contract could look like for the Czech goalie.
We have vaguely known what Vladar’s contract is going to be, with it encroaching in the vicinity of a long-term deal and him getting a sizeable increase in salary, but that was just the information we got from some more local reporting. It’s one thing to get told what a contract extension is probably going to be from the local beat reporters who are constantly thinking about this sort of thing (or is being asked about it incessantly on Twitter), but for the national media to get a hold of it and put out some new information out there, it feels much more concrete.
Just hours before the puck dropped for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reported that the Flyers and Vladar are working towards a five-year contract extension that is “likely to land” in the mid-$5 million range for its AAV.
Pierre LeBrun then backe dup that report, saying that there is still some work to be done, but given some more secure numbers.
According to LeBrun, the new deal is going to be either five or six years, and will be a cap hit starting with a five. So, not a whole lot new but there is at least one thing.
While earlier we heard that it was either going to be a short-term deal with a very high cap hit, or something longer and possibly up to six years, all we’ve heard as of late is the concept of a five-year deal. And now, it might just be LeBrun covering his rear end but the addition that it could be potentially a six-year contract extension is at least interesting.
Does it change all that much how we view the deal? Most likely not. Since the Flyers seem to be going long-term with Vladar anyways and adding one more year to the new contract to then keep him in Philadelphia potentially until he’s 36 years old, shouldn’t really change anyone from liking the deal to disliking it. That one extra year won’t set someone over the edge — thinking about how Vladar could potentially be with the Flyers for a total of eight years, all after just one very, very good season that sort of came out of nowhere.
It certainly seems like no matter what, Vladar is going to be signing a sizeable contract extension with the Flyers and it could possibly be within the first hours of free agency on July 1 that this gets revealed.
Now, should the Flyers really be doing this? Is now the time to hammer this out?
Why are the Flyers in a rush to sign Vladar now?
It’s the million-dollar question. A section of the Flyers fan base is wondering why general manager Danny Briere appears to be in such a rush to lock in Vladar to a new contract extension just one year into his time with the Flyers, especially considering that there is one more year to prove whether or not he is the real deal.
But, that’s the thing. If Vladar even starts off next season not playing so well — something like an .890 save percentage through his first 20 or so starts — does that result theoretically change the Flyers’ opinion on wanting to lock him up after he just put in a team MVP season? Most likely not. It might cause some hockey operations staff to raise some questions, but the end result is most likely the same and most likely the length and the dollar amount would be the same too.
So, if they’re going to do this anyway, why not do it as soon as possible to show Vladar that you are committed to him and to not head into the offseason with any uncertainty in the crease? Because, what if Vladar goes into training camp without a contract? What if he starts to think about all the millions of dollars he could earn in unrestricted free agency next summer after he has a .945 save percentage through the first 10 games and then just continues from there and is yet again the team’s most important player.
Suddenly the Flyers would (theoretically) be left without a very good netminder because he played too well. That wouldn’t be ideal.
Overall, the Flyers staff know more about Vladar and if he is capable of being a consistent starter in the NHL, than us. They know every little tweak he had during the season, how he recovered, what that can tell about his long-term projectability, and all the little data points to show whether or not he can keep on doing this, as well.
We now at least know one transaction the Flyers are going to do this summer. Will they do more? Will they do anything beyond retaining some players as they sign restricted free agents like Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale to new contracts as well? No one knows.
