The 2024 offseason will be a massive one for general manager (GM) Danny Briere and the Philadelphia Flyers. In a spot needing talent to take their rebuild another step in the right direction, some players could be available to them that can be long-term assets. One of these is a center turned winger on the Carolina Hurricanes.
Martin Necas is a 25-year-old top-six forward for the Hurricanes who could be the odd man out for their offense in 2024-25. If they preach signing players like Jake Guentzel and Seth Jarvis in the offseason, Carolina might not be able to afford his next contract. Necas could be on the way out because of this.
Related: Hurricanes’ Cap Situation Could Force a Martin Necas Trade
The Flyers could very well be one of the teams with interest in his services. They should do everything in their power—within reason, of course—to get Necas on their roster. His upside makes a deal worthwhile.
Necas Can Reach Potential in Philadelphia
While Necas played on the right wing in Carolina, he would very much be a center in Philadelphia, playing there when he was young but never getting an extended look with the Hurricanes. Scoring 53 points in 77 games during his 2023-24 campaign might not seem like a lot, nor worthy of being “all-in” for, but he is a gamble for upside. He has shown that he can be a competent first-line player based on the eye and stats test.
For starters, Necas has borderline superstar vision. He sees the ice insanely well, and probably better than any Flyer on the roster for them in their last campaign — he can be a creation machine. Plus, he is an absolutely sensational skater, and that showed with a 99th percentile top-skating speed and speed bursts over 20 miles per hour. If that wasn’t enough, he has a cannon of a shot. As a result of these factors, he can be a high-end pure offensive player.
Necas was at his best in 2022-23, scoring 71 points in 82 games. The big reason his offense went down was, simply, due to being in a poor situation. He only had 13 power-play points in 164 minutes on the man advantage, so he could have seen a usage boost.
The real kicker is that at even strength, Necas spent 805 of his 1,162 total minutes without the Hurricanes’ “core four” of Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, Jarvis, and the deadline addition of Guentzel. Nearly 70 percent of the time, he wasn’t getting offensive support from the highest-quality forwards on his team — even the Flyers can help him with that.
If anything, Necas will be undervalued on the trade market because of his 2023-24 season, even if he’s better than the numbers say. His biggest weakness is probably his defensive play, as he doesn’t grade out too well on that front — this could scare teams away. Still needing a contract, the Flyers could get a bargain in a trade. It’s not going to be cheap, but the fact that he could be attainable at all is very exciting. He is the type of skilled forward that the Orange and Black need for their rebuild.
What a Trade Might Cost & Why
The Flyers’ 12th overall pick is practically untouchable for any team. With how much talent is likely to be on the board, it just wouldn’t make sense to trade it. The Hurricanes can weigh their options around the league considering how many teams need a player of Necas’ caliber, so that’s also important to consider.
Oliver Bonk being the centerpiece in the trade might make some sense. That wouldn’t be all in this hypothetical, though. Carolina would also receive Massimo Rizzo, ironically a former prospect of theirs, and the Flyers’ 2025 first-round pick via the Colorado Avalanche. It might sound like a lot, but this deal works well for both teams.
The Hurricanes get a top-four defenseman that they will end up needing once Brent Burns (39 years old) retires. They’d potentially have Jaccob Slavin, Scott Morrow, Alexander Nikishin, and Bonk as their top four for years to come. That could be a very formidable core, hence why Bonk would be so valuable here. Rizzo projects to be a bottom-six player who can be NHL-ready quite shortly, while the first-round pick can be used as trade bait or something to bolster Carolina’s prospect core.
The reason why the Flyers have to sacrifice so much is that it is not an easy thing to get a player who can be a first-line center. Necas has never been given a real opportunity to emerge as such, which is why he’s such a wildcard. In a system where he has more freedom and with ice time that reflects his abilities, he can be an elite player production-wise.
The Flyers haven’t had true first-line center play since 2020-21 when Sean Couturier was still in his prime. It’s simply not possible to win in the NHL without a player of that magnitude centering the top line. The Flyers have learned this the hard way, so they’re going to pay for it this time.
Both Jamie Drysdale and Carter Sotheran are two right-handed defenders who appear to have top-four upside. In that way, Bonk is sort of a luxury. While there’s always the possibility that he could be a first-pairing player, anything less would leave him in a strange spot. Here, the Flyers use him as the main package to land a great player in a position of need.
Projecting Necas’ Extension
As mentioned, Necas needs a new contract. This can go all sorts of ways for the youngster, but the most logical thing for him and the Flyers alike seems to be a long-term deal. He signed a bridge with Carolina on his last deal, so he’s probably looking for a big payday. If Philadelphia is trading for him, they should accept this potential request.
For an eight-year deal, Necas likely wouldn’t exceed the $8 million mark by too much, if at all. Even if he has the talent to be a dominant player, he hasn’t had the production of someone who should be calling his shots like this. Anywhere between $7 million and $8 million seems to be a nice sweet spot.
Could the Flyers Go for Another 1C?
With all the praises for Necas aside, he doesn’t exactly project to be a high-end first-line center. Instead of having one franchise center, the Flyers can go for two first-line caliber players and get some solid depth that way. Surrounding these centers with elite wingers can create a lethal offense.
Stanley Cup teams don’t do it often, but the 2018 Washington Capitals are somewhat of a model for this. Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom were both first-line quality centermen when they hoisted the Cup that season, but neither of them was a true franchise player per se.
There are a few options for the Flyers to get another Necas-esque player. First, they could always draft one. In the 2024 class alone, it seems somewhat likely that either Berkly Catton or Konsta Helenius could fall to them in 12th. If the former does, he might legitimately be a high-end center, no questions asked. The latter, based on production and skill, seems to be a slightly lesser prospect but still a phenomenal player nonetheless.
Or, the Flyers could always trade for another top center. This is a little bit harder to do, but it is also worth it if the right player is available. Someone like Trevor Zegras is the exact type of player that fits this description, even if it isn’t him specifically that the Flyers end up landing.
The big trades of the 2024 offseason could be coming up very soon. The first domino, Ryan McDonagh, fell on May 21. It might not be long before some young offensive stars get dealt — Philadelphia will want to be swift yet smart. Acquiring Necas seems like a savvy, Briere-type move.
