The 2023 NHL draft is just a couple away and as the Philadelphia Flyers’ latest attempt at a rebuild heats up, Nobody on the roster is safe from the ever-spinning trade rumor mill, and that includes 29-year-old forward Scott Laughton. The 20th overall pick in 2012 has been a main roster staple since 2016 and has risen to the occasion as the locker room leader despite not being awarded the captain’s “C”. If the Flyers do considering moving him, where would the most likely landing spot be?
Number 5: St. Louis Blues
The Blues have emerged as a potential landing spot for Laughton, but it’s a little fuzzy as to why. They’re an organization stuck between a rebuild and competition and may not be the best situational suitors, but with three first round picks in 2023 and at least one of them rumored to be in play for Laughton, who are the Flyers to ask questions?
Number 4: Edmonton Oilers
You just know Ken Holland’s ears perked up at the phrase “affordable, reliable forward.” The Oilers are a cap-strapped team who could use a solid middle-six forward on the cheap, and Laughton’s $3 million cap hit may be enticing enough for them to take a shot at him. It sounded like the Oilers expressed interest in Travis Konecny, so maybe there’s a larger deal to be crafted if they wanted both of the Flyers’ forwards. For the Flyers, the Oilers don’t exactly have an abundance of assets to make a blockbuster trade, let alone a reasonable deal for Laughton or Konecny individually, but their desperation to compose a roster that finally puts them over the top is palpable.
Number 3: Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche’s repeat attempt was foiled in 2023, and with star forward Gabriel Landeskog slated to miss the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign, the team is going to need to get creative to keep themselves cap compliant yet put a winning team on the ice. They currently only have five forwards under contract for next season accounting for $33.5 million in total cap. Laughton’s role as a Swiss army knife and his cost-effective $3 million cap hit could go a long way for a playoff team. The Avs do hold their own first round pick this year, which is 27th overall.
Number 2: Ottawa Senators
Ottawa emerged as a front runner for Laughton when his trade rumors started to bubble up last week, and for a relatively young team looking to establish themselves, adding a very solid depth forward and great leader like Laughton makes plenty of sense. The catch? Well the Senators don’t have a pick in the first three rounds of the 2023 draft. They do have a system full of prospects in their early 20’s to choose from, however, with guys like Jacob Bernard-Docker, Ridly Greig, Tyler Boucher among the interesting names. It could be a place for the Flyers to get a tangible return for Laughton instead of the hopes and dreams of draft picks.
Number 1: Toronto Maple Leafs
Laughton is a Toronto area native and the Leafs are always looking to add cheap, solid forward depth, it could be a match made in hockey heaven. For the Flyers, the Leafs may actually provide an interesting trading ground. They only have five total picks in the first four rounds in the next three years of drafts, but they own Boston’s first rounder this season (28th overall) and their own next season. Not only that, but they’ve got plenty of prospect depth as well, including Topi Niemela, Roni Hirvonen, Ty Voit and Nicholas Robertson. With new GM Brad Treliving at the helm and a taste of the second round of the playoffs, the Leafs may be more desperate than ever to ice a cup-winning roster, which could be good for teams like the Flyers who have main roster plugins to sell.
Honorable mention
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are one of those teams that always seem to be on the brink of a breakthrough, but have always failed to capitalize on any momentum they may garner. Now, they’ve got a $14.7 million weight attached to themselves for the next two seasons with the peaks of the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts effecting their cap space, so they’ll have to get creative if they intend of staying competitive for the future. Laughton would provide them a cheap boost down the middle to help out their relatively thin center depth. For the Flyers, the Wild do have their 2023 first and second round picks (21st and 53rd overall) which seems to be similar to the asking price the Blues are offering as well.
By: Dan Esche (@DanTheFlyeraFan)
photo credit: nhl.com
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