Confirmed Signing with Link: [PHI] Travis Sanheim signs (2 years $3.25M AAV)

[Bart22]

Good deal for Sanheim, will be cashing in on that in a couple of years!

 

[ItMe]

good bandaid for the next two season

 

[izzy]

hes gonna need a huge pay in two years. hopefully they have decent cap space when that time comes.

 

[Michoulicious]

Subban take 2? At least won't be UFA at the end.

 

[wej20]

Solid deal but I was dreading the Flyers locking him long term for a relatively cheap deal.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

hes gonna need a huge pay in two years. hopefully they have decent cap space when that time comes.

If they need to, they can just give him all of Niskanen's expiring $5.75M to bring him up to $9M. They should be fine.

 

[Rich Nixon]

Solid deal but I was dreading the Flyers locking him long term for a relatively cheap deal.

Hextall's dead so that won't happen again.

 

[Flukeshot]

I like it. He had a great second half last year, but let's make sure he can keeping improving. Unless he was willing to take $5M for 5+ years, this was the right way to go.

 

[Hivemind]

Dumb. They should have locked him up long term now. The next contract is gonna be huge.

They still have to comply with the salary cap in 2019-20. After the Hartman/Pitlick trade and this contract, Philadelphia has a projected $17.1M in cap space with a 18 man roster. Among those unsigned are Provorov, Konecny, and a 1B-level goaltender. It's certainly doable to fit all that under the cap (and still have a little left over to bank towards the salary cap), but if they had given Sanheim a larger contract now, it would have really restricted the deals they could give elsewhere. They basically had to pick 2 of their 3 big RFAs to extend long-term, and bridge the other. It seems like Sanheim was the one they opted to bridge. This deal also lines up with Niskanen's money coming off the books, paving way for Sanheim's raise.

Now, if they hadn't invested so much of their cap space elsewhere (Hayes, Niskanen + retention, Braun), then they would have likely been able to ink all 3 to long-term deals.

 

[hmc1987]

Dumb. They should have locked him up long term now. The next contract is gonna be huge.

Can almost guarantee you Sanhein refused Long term specifically for that reason

 

[hmc1987]

They still have to comply with the salary cap in 2019-20. After the Hartman/Pitlick trade and this contract, Philadelphia has a projected $17.1M in cap space with a 18 man roster. Among those unsigned are Provorov, Konecny, and a 1B-level goaltender. It's certainly doable to fit all that under the cap (and still have a little left over to bank towards the salary cap), but if they had given Sanheim a larger contract now, it would have really restricted the deals they could give elsewhere. They basically had to pick 2 of their 3 big RFAs to extend long-term, and bridge the other. It seems like Sanheim was the one they opted to bridge. This deal also lines up with Niskanen's money coming off the books, paving way for Sanheim's raise.

Now, if they hadn't invested so much of their cap space elsewhere (Hayes, Niskanen + retention, Braun), then they would have likely been able to ink all 3 to long-term deals.

Sanheim would not have gotten a long term deal with $$ he deserves as his production and sample size haven't earned it. Yet.

Sanhein would not have signed a LT deal. He wants the bridge to get that fat payday

 

[Tank To Win]

None of us were at the negotiating table, so it's tough to tell how many deals were discussed. I value Sanheim very high. I would have loved if Fletch could have signed him to a deal similar to what Ghost got. While he didn't make the same headlines as Ghost did in his first couple of years, I have a feeling he's going to break out as early as next season. Agents know their clients. They also know that the NHL is getting younger every year. That may change with the next, inevitable lockout, but for now, it is what it is.

It's certainly a possibility that Fletcher was willing to sign Sanheim to a long term deal, but he and his agent were willing to sacrifice term now for a bigger payday on the next deal. It's a gamble and a risk for the player, but, like I said, Agents know their clients. Blaming one side or the other for a deal you aren't happy with, without knowing the details of what was discussed, is ridiculous.

 

[Paulinvancouver]

Even for a bridge deal, that's a steal.

 

[Leaf Fans]

Good deal!

 

[wej20]

What were Flyers expecting to offer him in terms of a long term deal? Bold on his to turn one down and go for a bridge (though 2 years @ 3.25m isn't exactly chump change).

 

[Larry44]

If they need to, they can just give him all of Niskanen's expiring $5.75M to bring him up to $9M. They should be fine.

Nothing would make me happier than Sanheim busting out and earning a great big raise 2 years from now.

 

[Curufinwe]

What were Flyers expecting to offer him in terms of a long term deal? Bold on his to turn one down and go for a bridge (though 2 years @ 3.25m isn't exactly chump change).

We had discussed numbers like 7 x $5m, but obviously we have no idea what the Flyers and Sanheim talked about in regards to a long term deal.

 

[BKarchitect]

Am I crazy that Sanheim looked better than Provorov by the end of last year? I’m not saying he IS better and I know Provorov gets stuck with a workload that perhaps he shouldn’t have to be (hence the veteran D additions this summer). But I won’t be totally blown away if Sanheim ends up being the more impactful defenseman.

Or am out to lunch here?

 

[Curufinwe]

I'm one of a few (many?) who want to bridge Provorov because two or three years from now we think he could be the second pairing LHD behind Sanheim.

 

[Dooble08]

Am I crazy that Sanheim looked better than Provorov by the end of last year? I’m not saying he IS better and I know Provorov gets stuck with a workload that perhaps he shouldn’t have to be (hence the veteran D additions this summer). But I won’t be totally blown away if Sanheim ends up being the more impactful defenseman.

Or am out to lunch here?

Nah you would be correct. Once Hakstol got fired, the Flyers put Sanheim on the top pair with Provorov. He was easily our best defensemen from December through April.

Yeah I agree that bringing in the veteran guys will lighten the workload of Sanheim and, more specifically, Provorov.

Flyers fans are at a 50/50 split of who the better/more impactful defensemen will be. It's a good problem to have!

 

[Sasso09]

Am I crazy that Sanheim looked better than Provorov by the end of last year? I’m not saying he IS better and I know Provorov gets stuck with a workload that perhaps he shouldn’t have to be (hence the veteran D additions this summer). But I won’t be totally blown away if Sanheim ends up being the more impactful defenseman.

Or am out to lunch here?

Both have legit 1D potential

 

[StoneHands]

Am I crazy that Sanheim looked better than Provorov by the end of last year? I’m not saying he IS better and I know Provorov gets stuck with a workload that perhaps he shouldn’t have to be (hence the veteran D additions this summer). But I won’t be totally blown away if Sanheim ends up being the more impactful defenseman.

Or am out to lunch here?

You're not crazy. Sanheim looked better than Provy last year but he definitely didn't look better than Provy did two years ago. We have to remember that both of these guys had similar pedigree when they were drafted, they just had totally different paths to where they are today and as odd as it sounds, Provorov is actually a year younger than Sanheim. Provy played his draft +1 season in the WHL and then was thrown to the wolves on a bad Flyers team where he was instantly their #1 defenseman and has averaged nearly 24 minutes a games from age 19 to 22. Sanheim played 2 seasons after being drafted in the WHL, a full season in the AHL, and then split time between the NHL and AHL the following year. Even last year he started out played 3rd pairing minutes before getting more ice time in December. It's actually crazy to think how different their development has been.

 

[Tripod]

Am I crazy that Sanheim looked better than Provorov by the end of last year? I’m not saying he IS better and I know Provorov gets stuck with a workload that perhaps he shouldn’t have to be (hence the veteran D additions this summer). But I won’t be totally blown away if Sanheim ends up being the more impactful defenseman.

Or am out to lunch here?

Not crazy at all. From the day Hakstol was fired(Dec17th) until the end of the year...Sanheim was 9th in ES scoring for Dmen. He was fantastic.

But the previous year, Provy was tied for 8th in ES points for the year and Ghost was 17th in ES, 1st in PP points.

It honestly is a case where in any given year, any of these 3 could have the best year between them. This coming year, who knows. But Sanheim certainly has that upside.