The Ducks have reportedly made their decision on Leo Carlsson's offer sheet
Photo credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The Philadelphia Flyers didn't just aim $18 million at the Anaheim Ducks. They aimed a deadline at the one general manager who lives on patience.
Anaheim has until July 10 to match Philadelphia's five-year, $90 million offer sheet for Leo Carlsson, a deal that would make the 21-year-old center the NHL's highest-paid player.
A report now indicates the Ducks will announce Friday that they are matching.
"An NHL source with direct knowledge of the situation tells me the Ducks have made their decision.
On Friday, they will announce that they are matching the Flyers' offer sheet."
- Marco Normandin
On Friday, they will announce that they are matching the Flyers' offer sheet."
- Marco Normandin
Match or not, the offer sheet already did its quietest damage the moment it carried a hard date.
The Ducks have already paid for it. To keep defenseman Pavel Mintyukov from a second offer sheet, Anaheim locked him up at $7.2 million over the weekend.
Verbeek's whole method is running out of clock
Pat Verbeek wins RFA fights by waiting. Troy Terry signed minutes before his arbitration hearing, and Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale both dragged into training camp.
Mason McTavish held out last fall before folding on a six-year deal. Delay is Verbeek's leverage, not his weakness.
An offer sheet erases that. There is no arbitration to walk to the brink of and no camp to outlast, only a seven-day window Daniel Briere chose specifically.
The trap tightens around Cutter Gauthier
Gauthier cannot be offer-sheeted because he lacks the service time, which normally makes him exactly the RFA Verbeek would slow-play into September.
He led Anaheim with 41 goals last season. Now his teammate's $18 million cap hit becomes the comparable his agent points to, and Verbeek can no longer buy months to soften the number.
Matching Carlsson leaves roughly $10 million for the player who just outscored everyone on the roster.
Walking away hands Philadelphia four first-round picks instead.
Briere didn't only target Anaheim's best center. He targeted the clock that made its negotiating style work.
The Ducks may keep Carlsson on Friday and still lose the summer.
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