According to Elliote Friedman, the Philadelphia Flyers could well be looking to part ways with fan-favorite Jake Voracek. The 31-year-old winger is coming off of a pretty productive campaign, but with the team in clear need of some retooling and a hefty cap-hit to his name, this isn’t surprising.
I’m going to stress that this situation has been described as “not acrimonious” to me, but Philadelphia and Jakub Voracek have discussed that it might be time for a change, as well. Voracek is expected to be left unprotected for the expansion draft (and was told so), where former Flyers coach Dave Hakstol would weigh in. Should that fail, Philly will look elsewhere.
Elliotte Friedman – 31 thoughts
Voracek potted 9 goals this season along with 34 assists in only 53 games, 13 shy of his 2019 total in 16 fewer appearances. The Czech Republic native has three years left on his deal with a $8.25M AAV, which for a Flyers team with $13M in projected cap space is particularly heavy considering their drive to get younger.
The expansion draft is an obvious event to turn to if you’re Chuck Fletcher. Knowing that Voracek has plenty of experience with the Kraken’s new Head Coach, Dave Hakstol, is going to play into the decision of whether or not to protect him. The only downside is that surely, a player of Voracek’s experience and a liber should at least carry some intrinsic trade value.
The Flyers need some reinforcements on defense as well as some top-6 depth at center. They could realistically look to move Voracek in the offseason and that would make far more sense as it would allow some more flexibility during the Draft and open up some more opportunities deeper into the offseason as opposed to having to be very tight with their remaining cap space.
Watching Voracek go would be heartbreaking for Flyers fans. He’s been on the team since 2011 and has been a mainstay ever since, producing endless memories through every era of Flyers hockey. However, all good things must come to and end and it’s likely that he could well be the first of a few sad cap casualties over the next few years.
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