If there’s one player that has seen the light of day with trade rumours, it’s Philadelphia Flyers forward Scott Laughton.
The veteran has been rumoured in trade talks since before he signed his 5-year contract in the spring of 2021. Those rumours have only intensified in recent years with the Flyers supposedly ushering into a rebuild.
There were reports that suggested the Flyers rejected deals involving late first round picks for Laughton in the summer of 2023, which was the first year under Daniel Brière’s tenure as general manager of the club. He put the hockey world on notice when he announced everyone was on the table, however his asking prices were high – Laughton included.
As we near closer and closer to the trade deadline – set for the 7th of March – Laughton’s name will only get more popular. He is the type of player that contending teams froth at the mouth for, he is generally seen as the missing link to balance out a playoff roster, and he does a little bit of everything on and off the ice.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been linked for years, even dating back to 2020-21. They’ve never given up chasing the dream and it sounds like they’re looking to intensify their pursuit once more this season, according to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta.
“Scott Laughton scored against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, a team that tried to acquire him from the Flyers in the past. He has one more year on his contract after this season and comes with a $3 million cap hit. Philadelphia is willing to listen, and I’m sure Toronto won’t be the only team that pokes Flyers GM Danny Briere between now and the deadline.”
There’s no denying that teams will be inquiring, there’s no denying that this year’s trade deadline is probably the best time to do it, and there’s certainly no denying that a move like this is almost a slam dunk for a rebuilding team. However, the Flyers haven’t operated as such and there could be more to the situation at hand.
At one point in time in recent memory, teams like Chicago, San Jose, Buffalo, Montréal, and Detroit have torn their foundations down and looked to move off expiring contracts and veterans that don’t fit their narrative or their rebuilding paths. The Flyers admitted from day one they would not usher into a traditional rebuild and keeping Laughton in the fold for as long as they have is a prime example.
The biggest boon in holding onto Laughton for all these years is that his trade value would rarely diminish. You knew exactly what you were going to get from the former first round pick, he gave it his all year-in and year-out, and his off-ice intangibles were almost as important as his on-ice production.
The Flyers stood pat in 2022-23 as they were looking to build a culture and identity and got rid of veterans like Kevin Hayes and Tony DeAngelo to achieve that. Then in 2023-24, the Flyers came within a few games from clinching a playoff spot, and their only real consequential move at the deadline was dealing Sean Walker.
Laughton was also the only player to have worn a letter on his jersey after the Claude Giroux trade before the Flyers announced Sean Couturier as the team’s next captain. Brière had raved about him, John Tortorella has had nothing but complimentary things to say about him, and his teammates have the highest amount of respect for one of their fearless leaders – a very key reason as to why he hasn’t been moved yet.
At a time when the Flyers could’ve opted to stock pile draft picks and/or prospects, they chose to stand pat to keep the core of their team intact, and it’s hard not to think Laughton was apart of that group with how he was looked upon by everyone in the organization.
There’s also been almost zero indication that he is even on the move to begin with this year. Usually you have an idea, especially when you’re not competing for a playoff spot, like how we knew last year that Walker and Nick Seeler were possibly on the move.
The Flyers attempted to re-sign both defensemen but opted to trade Walker after it became clear they wouldn’t be able to agree on a deal before the trade deadline. However, they did come to terms on a 4-year deal with Seeler, another player that holds similar qualities to Laughton on and off the ice, which could be a indication that perhaps they could look to keep him around even after the expiration of his current deal.
The theme here is that the Flyers are either playing a really tough game of chicken where they want to see if anyone cracks under the pressure and succumbs to their trade demands or they believe they can rebuild with an already established core that they can then add to either through trades or free agency down the road.
If the Flyers stand pat and keep Laughton through the end of the regular season, some questions need to be asked and answered. This is the final year the Flyers can use “term” as a negotiation tactic because he will be playing on an expiring contract in 2025-26.
If your ultimate goal was to trade Laughton, why would you wait 2+ years when you could’ve gotten way more for him at the draft floor in 2023 or 2024? Keeping him around for 2-3 seasons of almost meaningless hockey would do a lot more harm than good if they eventually decided to trade him next year.
The Flyers’ trade deadline plans are currently unknown and while they’ve mentioned that they won’t add for the sake of making a move, they’ve been relatively quiet on unloading players as well. Laughton is the second longest tenured Flyer behind Couturier and the 12-year veteran has become an essential piece to Tortorella’s system.
The extent of his power is unknown but Tortorella does have a seat at the table that includes Brière and Keith Jones when it comes to player personnel. If he does in fact stick around until the end of his contract and beyond, players like Laughton – who holds similar qualities to players like Seeler – might remain with the Orange and Black as cultivating a culture and identity is at the top of their wish-list, which is something Laughton checks off.
I’m not saying the Flyers won’t move Laughton or that they’re not planning on making a move, but take the trade rumours with a grain of salt when you factor in just how much the organization values what he does for the team on and off the ice. As we all know, the Flyers operate differently from other organizations and they truly value one of their own, and Laughton fits the bill to a tee.
Rejecting first round picks was a bold move and it remains to be seen if those types of offers are still on the table. However, Brière played hardball when it came to Walker and ultimately received the first round pick he was coveting in return although he did have to take on the contract of Ryan Johansen, which didn’t seem too problematic until that situation reached a boiling point.
If a trade materializes, it should be done this year due to the fact that he would still carry another year under his contract at just $3 million against the cap. If he’s kept through the 2024-25 season, perhaps they have bigger and better plans for #21 that goes beyond our comprehension of their master plan.
However, with the Maple Leafs snooping around once more, the next two months will be very interesting as we will get more insight on what the “New Era of Orange” is all about.
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