Bombshell: Flyers make offer to Weber; will Nashville match?
Philadelphia Flyers news on Philly.com
Bombshell: Flyers make offer to Weber; will Nashville match?
Sam Carchidi, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Flyers hope they have found Chris Pronger’s successor.
His name is Shea Weber, a 6-foot-4, 232-pounder who is arguably the game's best all-around defenseman.
They signed a 14-year offer sheet for a reported $110 million late Wednesday night for Weber, a restricted free agent with Nashville. Weber, owner of one of the game's hardest shots, had 19 goals and anchored Nashville's stellar defense last season.
The righthanded-shooting Weber scored 10 power-play goals last season, had a plus-21 rating and was a finalist for the Norris Trophy, given to the league's top defenseman.
TSN was first to report Wednesday's stunning development.
If Nashville matches the offer, Weber, 26, remains with the Predators.
The Predators, who lost all-star defenseman Ryan Suter to free agency recently, have seven days to match.
If the Preds don’t match, the Flyers would have to give Nashville four first-round picks — reasonable for a player of Weber's stature.
After the season, the Flyers said it was “highly unlikely” the team would make an offer sheet to Weber, the Predators' captain.
That changed after the Flyers struck out with marquee free agents Zach Parise and Sutter. Both signed 13-year, $98 million deals with Minnesota.
NHL owners are trying to put a stop to mega-long-term contracts. They want the new CBA to limit contracts to five years.
It would be shocking, however, if the NHL's Players' Association agreed to that limit. The CBA expires on Sept. 15.
The Flyers' deal with Weber is apparently heavily loaded with upfront money — a reported $26 million signing bonus. Will Nashville, a small-market team, be able to afford such a hit?
Then again, can Nashville afford NOT signing Weber after failing to get Suter back in the fold? (Of the seven offer sheets that have been signed since 2005, six of the teams matched and retained their player's rights.)
According to multiple reports, Weber would receive $14 million in each of the first four seasons, and $12 million in the fifth and sixth years, followed by $6 million per season in years 7-10. He would get $3 million in his 11th year, and $1 million in each of his last three seasons.
TSN's Darren Dreger said Nashville was trying to work out a deal for Weber, but it is "believed several deadlines passed before the Flyers grew tired of waiting and Weber signed the offer sheet."
Give the Flyers credit for their boldness. If they land Weber, they would probably have the league's best defense, one that might look like this: Weber and Kimmo Timonen, his former Nashville teammate; Braydon Coburn and Nick Grossmann; and Andrej Meszaros and Luke Schenn.
Bruno Gervais, Erik Gustafsson, Marc-Andre Bourdon and Andreas Lilja would be among the candidates for the extra D-man spot.
By giving an offer sheet to Weber, the Flyers are, in a roundabout way, saying what everyone has feared — that Pronger's Hall-of-Fame career is over because of a concussion.
With Weber the Flyers would become instant Stanley Cup contenders.
Without him, they have not made improvement from the team that was eliminated in the second round of last season's Stanley Cup playoffs.
Follow Sam Carchidi on Twitter @BroadStBull.
Nashville will have to match or else this will be the demise of their franchise that isn't in a huge market. So I wouldn't expect Weber will be in orange and black. This was a bold move by Homer but this is something that he would have offered him next year as a UFA if Weber didn't move this year.
— LAFlyer- We are also forgetting one basic thing. Weber wants to play in Philadelphia. Is Nashville really going to match for a player who obviously doesn't want to play for them? Also, they can't trade him for a year. Are they going to want a player, who wants to be somewhere else, for a year and pay him $14 million to boot? The Flyers are holding all the cards and Nashville's management knows it.— syddan26
- Nashville will match, Nashville won't match... All good arguments for why and why not. Bottom line is this could go either way and nothing is a sure thing. This will no doubt be an interesting few days.
Signed,
Captain Obvious lol
— 7xChamp - I think first and foremost this offer sheet was genius for Homer (i wanted them to do the same thing last year with Stamkos) Either Weber is a Flyer and we got a new number defensemen who most of all will help clear out the front so bryz can, you know, see the puck this year (the Flyers let guys live in front of the net last year ) but is also a top flight leader and power play point men. If not, he goes back to the Preds and not to the Rangers or Pitt. I would also have to believe they put a no trade or limited trade clause in the deal so that means if the preds are going to keep they might have to keep him for the whole deal. So he stays in the west no matter what.
In end either thing happening is just fine. Win/win. Personally i am not sure if i see the Preds being able to match because of money issues. That team is already in hot water I don't see how they can pay better than half the value of the team to player over the next 6 years including the big time up front money this year alone. So i am 75% sure he comes to philly.
Also, knowing about the financial problems, if i was the Flyers i wouldn't trade anything but the picks. No swapping players in to the trade instead. Why would they. Have the young talent and the big time free agent. Then the Flyers would have no porblem parting with Mezaros for a next to nothing salary dump trade or another player like that. In fact they may be albe to still work out a deal packing Mezarros and Read for Bobby Ryan with maybe another player thrown in.— andyreidisfat - Weber would be due $27 million in the first calendar year. 2011-12 ticket sales for Nashville totaled $26 million.— NYFlyersFan
- @syddan26: The Maple Leafs will probably be somewhat angry if the Flyers include JVR in a trade for Weber since they acquired him in the Luke Schenn trade over a month ago.— drbob1
- They havn't got him yet, But its a start......Imagine Weber and Pronger in the future.....Best D in the Game. Come on Nasville turn it down, to rich for your blood.— shmoo
- They havn't got him yet, But its a start......Imagine Weber and Pronger in the future.....Best D in the Game. Come on Nasville turn it down, to rich for your blood.— shmoo
- We should also try to sign the Nashville scout who recommends defensemen for them to draft. They have quite a history of good ones there.— burholme
- I think the Flyers will package the Schenns back to Nashville in order to get their picks back. Normally, teams re-aquire their picks, or at least try.— Hexy4GM
- Interesting move. You have to wonder what long term effects it may have on that franchise in a town most believed wouldnt be too interested in hockey. On top of going after one of the prized free agents out there, Homer may have dealt hockey in Nashville a death blow all in one stroke. Interesting to think one man could do something that huge. Love it. Great move— Neebo
- imagine if Pronger comes back, Oooooh Boooooyyyy!!— chilenos
- Cindy Crosby and his cherry-pickin sister will be relegated to peripheral shooting,.....Bryz is lickin his chops— SyddBarrett
- We couldn't afford both Pronger and Weber. The point is, our offense was always predicated on having a Pronger led blue line to cover the risky offensive play. Without that presence... You've seen the results.
Weber IS the attempt to rectify that issue. You may as well dream that we also sign Chelios and Lidstrom and that the four of them all play together as one big, happy d-man family.
I read somewhere (Espn?) that a no-trade clause and a no-movement clause is included after the first year. I am not guaranteeing that, I did read it somewhere.
I think Nashville either signs him or we end up trading some pieces to reclaim at least two of those draft picks. Matt177 said in another thread: Matt Read and Gus, plus two picks. I could live with that easily, although I like both guys alot.— WestonF01 - Reality is the Preds WILL match this. Flyers 1000 is right. They may work out a sign and trade. As for those who feel Nashville cant afford this....think again. They offered Suter almost the same as he got from the Wild...AND they were going to go in on Parise. They can afford this....the thing is at what cost to them? Do they want to make this commitment? They cannot allow both Suter and Weber to leave for nothing. It would be a huge step backward for a franchise that has finally gotten to be one of the tops in the game. I can see a sign and trade, and with the $ available I could see the Preds next year making a free agent splash. If nothing else, the Flyers have kept Suter, Parise, and Weber away from the Pens, maybe rangers, and any eastern teams by their offers. Great moves!! (The Flyers knew Suter and Parise were not coming here, but by making those offers they insured no eastern teams would get them (Pens) and if they did they would tie up their cap room for years to come.)— Big D phillies fan
