Flying Forward: 3 Reasons to Like Travis Sanheim’s New Contract

The Philadelphia Flyers have signed the first of its restricted free agents, who happens to be defenseman Travis Sanheim. Sanheim signed a bridge deal for two years, $6.5 million. The cap hit $3.25 million per season and the defenseman will be a restricted free agent again come the end of the 2020-21 season. The Flyers will look to get the other three restricted free agents signed before free agency so they know how much cap space they have to play with for a back up goalie. 

There are a few reasons to like this contract, but here are the three reasons this contract makes sense for both sides.

1) Sanheim Can Prove Himself

There is no doubt that Sanheim made some big strides in his development once Dave Hakstol was fired. He went from being on the third pairing or benched to top pair by the end of the season. Sanheim got a chance to play consistent minutes, without restraint, under interim head coach, Scott Gordon, and he seemed to flourish. The 23-year-old defenseman seemed to develop into an all around defenseman that could be used in any situation by the end of the season. 

During the 2018-19 season, he had nine goals, 26 assists and 35 points in 82 games played. He was second on the team’s defense in scoring and his 26 assists ranked fifth on the team. Sanheim was just one of three Flyers’ defenseman to play in all 82 games so he is a durable player. The bridge deal will allow the defenseman to prove himself and keep developing into a better all around defenseman than he already is, and he could wind up being a solid top four guy by the end of the contract.

2) Cap Hit

The Flyers came into the offseason with a lot of cap space, but with all the wheeling and dealing that Chuck Fletcher has been doing, it has dwindled. Fletcher picked up veteran defensemen Matt Niskanen and Justin Braun. Fletcher then went and signed free agent Kevin Hayes to a deal that has a cap hit of $7.14 million over the next seven seasons. The Flyers still need to sign Ivan Provorov, Travis Konecny, Scott Laughton and possibly Justin Bailey to new contracts before the season starts. They also need to add a backup goalie, and only have $17 million in cap space to get it all done.

The cap hit is a fair one for both player and team. Yes, it was only Sanheim’s first full NHL season last year, but the improvement from game-to-game was there. After he had a solid second half of the season, management had to realize a big pay day was coming for the kid. The only unfortuate thing about this contract is that it didn’t buy out any of his unrestricted free agent years, and he will be a restricted free agent after the 2020-21 season.

3) Expansion Draft Implications

Sanheim could possibly not be under contract once the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft rolls around for the new Seattle team. This means he may not be left exposed, and that would be a bonus for the team. The team has to leave one defenseman exposed who is under contract for the 2021-22 season and has played 40 NHL games the prior season or 70 NHL games the prior two NHL seasons. 

Also, by the time he is a restricted free agent again he will only be 25 years old, and possibly in the prime of his career.