The Philadelphia Flyers have interest in St. Louis Blues goaltender Jaroslav Halak, according to Tim Panaccio of Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia on Friday afternoon.
Flyers interested in Jaroslav Halak, according to report
The Philadelphia Flyers have engaged in discussions with the St. Louis Blues about Jaroslav Halak, according to a report.
Jonathan Daniel
Citing an NHL source, Panaccio reports Philadelphia has made inquires into the availability of Halak. The 28-year-old goaltender is entering the final-year of a four-year, $15 million contract that carries an annual average value of $3.75 million against the salary cap. He is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
According to the source, St. Louis will require a "very good player" in return for Halak, but won't require one of their top guys. In the majority of rumors involving the Flyers, Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier are often mentioned as players of interest from opposing clubs. This source seemingly indicates that the Blues are not asking for either player.
While Panaccio's report doesn't specifically mention any player by name, 27-year-old forward Matt Read has surfaced in rumors and was reportedly connected to a potential deal with the Los Angeles Kings for restricted free agent goaltender Jonathan Bernier. Read certainly could be described as a very good player and is even more valuable given his disproportionate annual average value of $900,000. Set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer, Read stands to earn a sizable raise.
Considering Halak will also hit the unrestricted market next summer, the two teams might find common ground in a deal. However, Read’s involvement in these discussions is merely a speculative perspective and is not mentioned in Panaccio’s report.
In terms of Halak, he is one of three goaltenders on the Blues roster. Brian Elliott is also entering the final-year of his contract, which carries an annual average value of $1.8 million. The club also has 22-year-old goaltender Jake Allen, who will be a restricted free agent this summer.
Many have speculated that the Blues will attempt to use their depth in goal to improve the forward group. Whether that is true remains to be seen.
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