The ludicrous asking price to take on the final year of JVR's contract is revealed; no wonder the Flyers didn't move him
When James Van Riemsdyk left the Leafs as a free agent in 2018, Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall jumped at the chance to bring him back to Philly, backing up the Brinks truck and offering JVR $35M over 5 years (a $7M AAV) to return to where it all started.
JVR had just come off of back-to-back campaigns with the Leafs where he had notched 29-goal and 36-goal seasons, posting 62 and 54 points in 82 and 81 games, respectively. With that type of production, you knew he was going to get paid that summer, but in retrospect, $7M per season was certainly a bit rich.
Van Riemsdyk dealt with some injury trouble in his first season back in Philly, playing just 66 games, but he was still able to maintain a similar level of production, posting 27 goals and 48 points over that span before seeing a bit of a dip in production in 2019-20, during the COVID-shortened season.
The Middletown, NJ native was right back at it 2020-21, putting up 43 points in 56 games during a second COVID-shortened season, but by that time, the Flyers had begun playing him on the 3rd line for stretches and had appeared to have soured on the big winger. His name was being brought up in trade rumours, but despite attempting to move him, new GM Chuck Fletcher was unable to get a suitable return.
This past season, a 33-year-old JVR posted his worst season since his rookie year, managing just 38 points in 82 games and seeing his stock absolutely plummet. The Flyers tried in earnest to move him all year and throughout the offseason, but have thus far not found a deal that they could sink their teeth into. Well, now we know why he wasn't moved.
According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the asking price from teams to take on JVR's the final year of JVR's contract is the Flyers' 2023 1st round pick.
I can't blame the Flyers for not wanting to move what is very likely going to be a lottery pick and a chance at one of Connor Bedard or Matvei Michkov, two of the most electrifying young talents in recent memory.
At this point, I'd imagine that the Flyers are simply going to embrace the idea of a rebuild and begin dealing off useful contracts in exchange for draft capital and prospects and perhaps take on some bad contracts in exchange for assets, much like what we're seeing with Chicago and Arizona currently.
