Pat Verbeek might want to start updating his resume. That’s the chatter around league circles after the Philadelphia Flyers dropped a five-year, $90 million offer sheet on Leo Carlsson. And here’s the worst part for Anaheim — this whole mess was avoidable.
The Ducks have a week to decide: match that $18 million annual cap hit and watch their salary cap implode, or let Carlsson walk and collect four first-round picks as compensation. Neither option looks good. But according to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, the real fireable offense happened long before the offer sheet landed.
“Consider that the Ducks could have probably landed Carlsson at eight years and $100 million last summer, based on what he said he was willing to agree on,” Wyshynski wrote. “Now, it’s $90 million on a five-year term.”
Do the math. Anaheim could have had Carlsson locked up through his prime at $12.5 million per year. Instead, they’re staring down $18 million annually for half the term. If his next contract runs three years and builds on that average annual value? The Samueli family just got stuck paying tens of millions more than they needed to for one player.
The Roster Carnage Nobody Saw Coming
Remember when the Ducks had that wave of young talent that was supposed to carry them for a decade? Yeah, about that. Jamie Drysdale is gone. Mason McTavish, Trevor Zegras, and Olen Zellweger — traded to Buffalo. All of them shipped out. And now Carlsson could be next.
Anaheim still has some promising pieces. Cutter Gauthier, Jackson LaCombe, Beckett Sennecke. But suddenly that core looks thin. Really thin. Wyshynski put it bluntly — “There’s certainly an argument to be made that Verbeek has the franchise trending in the wrong direction.”
And honestly? That argument gets stronger by the day.
The Ducks could have handled this a year ago. Locked up their franchise center at a reasonable number. Kept the cap flexible. Maybe even kept some of those other young guys around. Instead, they waited. And now Verbeek is sitting on a gamble that could blow up the roster for years.
If Anaheim matches, they’re handcuffed. If they don’t, they lose a 20-year-old who was their top pick and already looks like a legitimate star. Four first-round picks sound nice in theory. But ask any rebuilding team how those picks actually pan out. It’s a crapshoot.
Verbeek’s seat was already warm. This offer sheet just lit a match.
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