The deal, which carries a cap hit of $8.75M, will start within the 2025-2026 season and hold him underneath contract in Philly by means of 2032-2033. It’s a big increase from his earlier $5.5M cap hit.
It’s probably the most profitable deal in Flyers franchise historical past, beating out the 12-year, $69M pact they gave Mike Richards in 2008. The dedication demonstrated right here to the 27-year-old, who’s coming off a robust season in 2023-2024, is huge.
Konecny scored a career-high 68 factors in 76 video games, fueled by 33 targets and 35 assists, whereas averaging 19:50 per sport. Per traditional, he was an even-strength monster, posting 52 of these 68 factors at 5-on-5, 4-on-4 or 3-on-3. His six short-handed targets final season additionally led the league, and the 5-foot-10, 192-pound winger ranked eighth on the staff with 90 hits.
It wasn’t technically his finest season offensively, although. That got here the yr earlier than when Konecny notched 31 targets and 61 factors regardless of accidents limiting him to 60 video games. That labored out to 1.02 factors per sport in comparison with final season’s 0.89.
Konecny was coming into a contract yr in 2024-2025, and there was a large perception the pending UFA might find yourself as commerce bait with the Flyers nonetheless within the throes of a rebuild.
However final season quelled most fears about his year-to-year offensive consistency whereas additionally reiterating he could be an efficient penalty-killer, a task he solely took on when John Tortorella took over behind the bench in 2022. He’s had robust relative possession impacts on the PK, too, portray an image of a greater all-around participant than most would think about him to be.
Again in Could, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz anticipated Timo Meier’s eight-year, $70.4M extension with the Devils to function a stable comparable in negotiations. Evolving-Hockey additionally projected a max-term extension for Konecny to hold a cap hit within the $8.8M neighborhood. Whereas there could also be some early sticker shock on this wealthy of a deal, this shouldn’t be considered as an overpay on his market worth.
Starting subsequent season, Konecny will carry the best cap hit on the Flyers roster. That honor presently belongs to captain Sean Couturier, who prices $7.75M towards the cap by means of 2030.
Konecny will make $7M in precise money in 2024-2025 earlier than his extension kicks in as a part of his current contract, which awards him a $4M base wage and $3M signing bonus in its ultimate yr. That is the second important long-term deal for Konecny, who inked a six-year, $33M pact in 2019.
It’s the fourth max-term extension handed out because the league calendar flipped to 2024-2025, becoming a member of Predators goalie Juuse Saros, Canadiens rising star Juraj Slafkovsky and Hurricanes stalwart defender Jaccob Slavin. Konecny’s is the richest of all of them, beating out Saros’ $61.92M whole worth.
Accordingly, it’s probably the most consequential transfer of the Flyers’ offseason, though getting 2023 seventh total decide Matvei Michkov inked to his entry-level contract and introduced over to North America prior to anticipated is a detailed second. Michkov will probably slot in behind Konecny on the Flyers’ right-wing depth chart come opening night time.
With the extension, the Flyers have already racked up a projected cap hit of $73.55M for 2025-2026 with a roster dimension of 18, per PuckPedia. The wage cap is projected to leap to round $92M after rising to $88M this season, which might nonetheless go away them with round $18.5M in house. That’ll be essential with younger constructing blocks Noah Cates, Tyson Foerster, Morgan Frost and Cameron York all due for brand new offers.
Since being drafted twenty fourth total by Philadelphia in 2015, Konecny has racked up 174 targets, 226 assists and 400 factors in 564 profession video games with a -26 score.
