Ducks Considering Whether Carlsson ‘Really Wants To Be Here’

The Anaheim Ducks are taking their time (they have six days remaining) before deciding on whether to match the massive offer sheet signed by Leo Carlsson with the Philadelphia Flyers. That $18M blockbuster offer hit like a ton of bricks. 

One of the things we must keep in mind, however, is the fact that the player has to agree to sign the offer sheet with the intention that he would move to that new team, as Carlsson did with Philadelphia. And that is one of the things that the Ducks' front office has to be weighing. 

According to insider Frank Seravalli, he has come to the conclusion that that is the main consideration the Ducks are struggling with right now. 

With any offer sheet signed, there is always an inherent question: Does this player want to be here?

What must be part of Anaheim's calculus now with an AAV of this magnitude is whether that's the case with Carlsson. The more calls I make, the more I believe that's in question.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 4, 2026

Does this player want to be here? "What must be part of Anaheim's calculus now with an AAV of this magnitude is whether that's the case with Carlsson. The more calls I make, the more I believe that's in question."

Of course, it's easy to say that if someone waves $18M per year under your nose, it would be tough for anyone, much less a 21-year-old kid, to say no, no matter how comfortable he was in his current situation. 

Pat Verbeek's difficult negotiating style may have forced Carlsson's hand

But there's something else that could be at play here. 

Ducks GM Pat Verbeek is notorious for squeezing his players and making the process difficult before agreeing to any long-term contracts. See Mason McTavish as the most recent example, and Trevor Zegras before that. Both of them are now ex-Ducks. 

In fact, it seems that Carlsson would have taken $9.5M over eight years if Verbeek would have negotiated with him last summer when he became eligible. Here are the receipts:

Leo Carlsson would’ve signed under 10M for 8 years last summer.

Disasterclass by Verbeek pic.twitter.com/sUgJg7U9nH

— William Leblanc (@xwleblancx) July 3, 2026

Hockey Hall of Famer, Chris Pronger, has also suggested that Verbeek just might have gotten himself into this mess.

The Philadelphia Flyers signed Leo Carlsson to an offer sheet worth $18M AAV 🤯

I have a lot of thoughts on this move by Danny Briere and the Flyers. Donthe Anaheim Ducks match? Share your thoughts 👇#offersheetseason pic.twitter.com/oFyW4t7rPe

— Chris Pronger (@chrispronger) July 4, 2026

Pronger says, although Verbeek wasn't susceptible to getting hit with an offer sheet for one of his players due to the large amount of cap space they have, he certainly was due to the "let's call it, frugality with which they have negotiated in the past," he said. "It may have come back to bite him here."