Philadelphia Flyers: Kevin Hayes Is A Perfect Fit

The Philadelphia Flyers promised to be aggressive this summer. They delivered on that promise by trading for Kevin Hayes and he will be a perfect fit in their lineup.

The Philadelphia Flyers have attempted to get the jump on their rival teams in free agency. They risked a fifth-round draft pick, sending it to the Winnipeg Jets for the negotiating rights to center Kevin Hayes. They now have sole rights to speak with Hayes until June 23rd.

Trading a late pick for the chance to bring in Hayes is well worth the risk for the Flyers. They have a few holes to fill on their roster, but the most important one is to find a second line center.

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The Flyers have the ability to put together one of the top scoring lines in hockey. They have moved Claude Giroux to left wing and he found instant chemistry with Sean Couturier at center. They have played with a plethora of other wingers, but Travis Konecny deserves the role above anyone else.

That leaves a solid pair of wingers in James van Riemsdyk and Jakub Voracek to play together on the second line. What the pair need between them is a solid, two-way center who can get the puck to JVR in front of the net.

Hayes happens to specialize in setting up his opponents. He averaged just over 0.50 assists per game and could definitely replicate that production with offensive wingers like van Riemsdyk and Voracek by his side.

First, the Flyers are going to have to come up with a contract offer good enough to entice Hayes into foregoing free agency in a few weeks. Brock Nelson basically set the bar for this type of player, signing a six-year deal at $6 million per season.

Nelson scored 25 goals and 53 points this season in 82 games. Hayes split the season with the New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets and finished with 19 goals and 55 points in just 71 games. The Flyers would have to hand him a six year deal at $6.5 million to get him to sign on the dotted line.

Hayes would fit in perfectly as not only the second line center, but also on special teams. He would be a prominent penalty killer, taking over for a role that Dale Weise and Jori Lehtera were pushed into last season. He could also bring a scoring touch to the second wave of the powerplay.

At even strength, Hayes would help Flyers centres slot properly as well. Nolan Patrick was drafted second overall in 2017 but hasn’t been able to push past 31 points in either of his first two seasons.

Hayes filling in on the second line would take some pressure off Patrick and allow him to develop as a third line center. Playing against other teams third defence pairings on a line with Scott Laughton and Oskar Lindblom would give the 20 year old a chance to develop his offence at a more comfortable pace.

Hayes would fill a huge need for the Philadelphia Flyers and slot the centres behind him properly. This would give the team tremendous depth and give them a real chance to return to the playoffs next season.