Flyers hoping to land huge return for Scott Laughton.
If the Philadelphia Flyers are going to trade forward Scott Laughton, it won't be cheap for the team that acquires him.
The Philadelphia Flyers are very clearly moving towards a rebuild and it is starting to sound like veteran forward Scott Laughton is one of the trading chips that could fetch the Flyers a significant return.
On Saturday night, National Hockey League insider Elliotte Friedman revealed that, although the Flyers were not actively shopping Laughton, they had received significant interest from rival teams regarding the player's availability.
"I heard at the combine that one of the names that was probably mentioned the most was Scott Laughton," revealed Friedman during the second intermission of Game 4.
Friedman indicated that the Flyers would likely prefer to keep Laughton around as a veteran leadership figure for what is expected to be a young group moving forward, but he also indicated that the offers may simply be too tempting for Flyers general manager Daniel Briere to turn down.
"I think in a perfect world I think they would like to keep Laughton, but if they get the right price they will consider it," said Friedman. "I've just heard that there's been a lot of teams calling about him and like Ted DiBiase said, the Million Dollar Man, 'Everybody's got a price.'"
It does genuinely sound like the Flyers place a great deal of value in Laughton however, with Anthony Di Marco of The Fourth Period reporting that the Flyers have already turned down "late first round pick offers" from teams interested in acquiring him from the Flyers.
As for the teams that have expressed interest in Laughton that largely remains a mystery at this time. David Pagnotta has reported that the Ottawa Senators are in the mix, but given the level of interest there appears to be for Laughton they are likely just one name among a long list of NHL teams that are interested in his services.
Laughton is currently on a very team friendly deal with a cap hit of just $3 million per season and has 3 years remaining on his current deal. Any teams acquiring Laughton would be getting an affordable center with several more years of control on his contract, all factors that are no doubt contributing to the Flyers' high asking price.
