Leo Carlsson Says NHL 'Players Are Thanking Me' After Ducks Matched Historic Contract Offer Sheet

Leo Carlsson signed a massive five-year, $92 million offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers this summer, which the Anaheim Ducks ultimately matched.

At the time, the deal represented the highest average annual salary in the league, and players around the NHL were apparently very happy that Carlsson upended the market in such a manner:

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"Obviously it's a huge deal for the league," he told Sportsnet's Sean Reynolds .

The Ducks, meanwhile, made their own bed on this situation.

Anaheim general manager Pat Verbeek has a reputation for trying to squeeze every last penny out of young players in extension talks, a habit that ultimately contributed to players like Jamie Drysdale, Mason McTavish and Trevor Zegras playing elsewhere.

The Ducks had months to exclusively negotiate an extension with Carlsson, who said publicly he would take a deal in the realm of eight years and $76 million, or about half the AAV of the offer sheet he ultimately signed.

Instead, the Ducks didn't get anything done and the Flyers pounced, signing Carlsson to a deal that included around $85 million in guaranteed signing bonuses. It was an offer aimed to prevent the Ducks from matching, though Anaheim ultimately relented.

But there have been repercussions. Veteran forward Chris Kreider was waived Wednesday and restricted free agent Cutter Gauthier remains without a contract. By waiting until Carlsson signed an offer sheet, the Ducks reduced their chances of keeping the current core together.

"Personally, it's a hard question," Carlsson said when asked about the team-building complications that come with one player having a large cap hit. "Everyone feels different. Obviously it's such a weird business, like I don't want to see Chris leave. Hard business, for sure."

But overall, NHL players seem pleased that Carlsson moved the market in the way he did.