Photo Credit: Katelynn Reiss
Carter Hart is considered by everyone to be the Flyers’ goalie of the future. They are all right, as Carter Hart is going to be in Philly for a long long time. Hart was drafted in the 2nd round of the 2016 NHL draft and made his NHL debut for the Flyers on December 18, 2018. The Flyers won the game 3-2. At the time, Hart became the youngest goalie since Carey Price to win his NHL debut along with becoming the youngest goalie in Flyers’ franchise history to win his NHL debut.
What if Carter Hart wasn’t a Flyers, though? With the Flyers’ season getting worse by the day, and teams like the Edmonton Oilers having superstars in place but needing a goalie, maybe the unthinkable becomes a little more possible. Even though Hart is probably the only untouchable Flyer (other than maybe Joel Farabee), it would take a king’s ransom, and then some for the Flyers to deal their future. So, just for fun, what would a Carter Hart trade look like?
With goalies getting drafted higher than ever now, taking a goalie in the first round and having him reach the NHL a year later seems easy enough to accomplish during a rebuild. If the Flyers decide to totally rebuild, Hart could absolutely be on the block. The thing with rebuilding is, instead of holding on to players and trading them a year late, to capitalize on their value, they should be traded during the season. Trading Hart at this year’s deadline, if the Flyers decide to do a hard rebuild, is beneficial for the franchise. Here’s why.
Hart is in the first of a three-year deal he signed with the Flyers after a down season last year. So far this year, he has looked like the goalie he was drafted to be. All three years hold a cap hit of $3.979 million which is an attractive price for a lot of teams looking for a starting goalie. Also, at the end of the deal, after the 2023-2024 season, he still has RFA status. Essentially, if the acquiring team plays their cards right, they could have Hart for basically as long as they want. Hart will also still only be 25 years old when the current contract expires, so he should have about eight to 10 years of good hockey left in him. Obviously, the Flyers’ rebuild would ideally be completed around the time his contract expires, so they could extend him and then work the cap around him. But, any other team could also do that as well, and instead of building structuring around him, all they have to do is fit him in. Hart being on a cheap deal, at 23 years old, with long-term control, would immediately make him the most attractive goalie this deadline, this offseason, and maybe even next deadline. As well as the contract situation Hart also has playoff experience, which is immense for young goalies.
Hart stole the series for the Flyers in the bubble versus Montreal. Brian Elliott was not going to win them that series if he started all six games. Sure, it was in a neutral site, with no fans, and the Flyers played an opponent with no real offensive threats. The Flyers also could not solve Carey Price at all, so Hart had to be pretty close to perfect. Hart had also just turned 22 before the bubble playoffs began, and being a 22-year-old living by yourself in an isolated hotel room for weeks is not an easy thing.
Looking at potential fits, there is at least one extremely obvious one. Hart’s hometown team, the Oilers, are on the playoff bubble, and desperately need good goaltending. His cap hit fits in the Oilers’ roster if the Flyers take back either one of their NHL goalies, which they would have had to do anyway. Mikko Koskinen has a $4.5 million cap hit for the rest of this year and Mike Smith has a $2.2 million cap hit through the end of next season. The Flyers would get their pick and they should take back Koskinen. Not only is he the better goalie, but he is also a pending UFA so the Flyers would have the choice whether they want to bring him back or not.
Moving onto other assets, the Flyers would be well within their right to ask for at least four picks/prospects and potentially five if they can create some kind of bidding war. It will start with two firsts, a top prospect, and another lesser prospect. A 2022 first-round pick, 2023 first-round pick, Philip Broberg, and Carter Savoie might be a good enough package for the Flyers to begin thinking about moving Carter Hart.
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Broberg has eight career NHL games under his belt, with an assist, and was picked 8th overall back in 2019. Savoie is playing in the NCAA for the University of Denver but could make the jump to the AHL by next season. On the picks side, the Flyers need to do everything they can to add another first in the 2023 draft. That draft is absolutely loaded and has two generational talents in Connor Bedard and Matvei Michkov. Looking at the 2022 draft, the Flyers could potentially end up with two lottery picks if Edmonton can’t squeeze into the playoffs which means the Flyers would have the best odds in the NHL of adding Shane Wright. Wright isn’t a generational talent, but he would immediately become one of the Flyers’ better players. The second lottery pick is contingent on the Oilers making this trade.
So, to review, we have the Flyers acquiring G Mikko Koskinen, D Philip Broberg, F Carter Savoie, 2022 first, and 2023 first in exchange for G Carter Hart.
By no means am I saying that I want the Flyers to do this, but if they decide to completely blow it up, a Carter Hart trade would really help speed up this rebuild.
