For a variety of reasons, half of the Flyers’ best shutdown pairing does not appear to be available for trade. Nick Seeler was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday due to a lower-body ailment, but his camp is making substantial progress toward a contract extension to keep him in Philadelphia, according to Darren Dreger of TSN. According to Anthony Di Marco of The Fourth Period, the arrangement is expected to last three or four years and will be worth roughly $3.3 million per year on average.
In conjunction with Seeler’s IR placement, the Flyers recalled blueliner Adam Ginning from AHL Lehigh Valley. This is the 24-year-old’s first recall of the season.
Seeler, 30, has risen from the shadows to form one of the league’s most capable two-way defensive pairings alongside Sean Walker, whose name has also been widely mentioned in trade discussions. According to MoneyPuck, the two pending UFAs have been critical in helping the Flyers break out for a potential playoff berth, with a team-high 55.9% anticipated goals share in their 645 minutes together this season. Seeler has gotten less use at even strength, averaging 14:46 per game compared to Walker’s 16:47, but he is tied for the team lead with top scorer Travis Konecny with a +15 rating. His overall average per game is 16:58, a career high.
He gradually evolved into a multi-competent NHL player after beginning his career as a bottom-of-the-lineup enforcer with the Wild in the late 2010s. Since joining the Flyers in 2021, Seeler has six goals, 23 assists, and 29 points in 183 games. One of those goals and 12 points came in 63 games this season.
While not assured, Seeler’s extension enhances Walker’s chances of finding a new home within 48 hours. The Flyers are far ahead of schedule in their reconstruction, and general manager Daniel Brière has preached patience and not compromising long-term success for short-term benefits in the weeks coming up to the deadline. Walker could command a first- or second-round pick as well as a slew of other attractive assets based on the market established by the Chris Tanev swap last month, after the Flyers acquired him as a cap dump in a three-way trade with the Blue Jackets and Kings last summer including Ivan Provorov.
Seeler is in the final season of a two-year, $1.55 million deal signed in May 2022. This season, his contract is two-way ($775K NHL/$350K AHL/$375K gt’d), however he has never been assigned to the AHL.
Unfortunately, the Minnesota native will miss a few games as the Flyers attempt to preserve third place in the Metropolitan Division. Assuming his IR placement is retroactive to when he was injured against the Blues on Monday, he will miss a pair of crucial games this week against the Panthers and Lightning.
Ginning, a second-round pick in 2018, may make his season debut if Walker is traded by Friday or the Flyers decide to dress seven defensemen. He has appeared in 52 games for Lehigh Valley this season, scoring twice and adding 11 assists for 13 points and a -9 rating. He’ll be an RFA with arbitration rights this summer after finishing his two-year, $1.85MM entry-level contract.
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