NHL Rumours: Carlsson Offer Sheeted, Mintyukov Next, Bedard’s New Deal & Giroux’s Decision

In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we look at the chaos with the Anaheim Ducks, which includes the monstrous Leo Carlsson offer sheet, and they could be facing another offer sheet, too.

Next, the Chicago Blackhawks may feel the effects of the Carlsson deal as they look to extend star centre Connor Bedard. Finally, Claude Giroux is still looking at his options and could be making a decision on where he wants to play soon.

Carlsson Offer Sheet Changes Shape of NHL

With an offseason full of superstar trades and speculation, the Philadelphia Flyers may have made a move that not only takes the cake as the biggest move of the offseason, but it has the potential to change the NHL and the salary cap as we know it.

By tendering an offer sheet to Carlsson, the Flyers have made him the highest-paid NHL player, and the Ducks have a very difficult decision to make.

It was widely known that Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek was going to match any offer sheet to get his top-line centre back, but Flyers general manager Daniel Briere called that bluff.

With the five-year deal carrying a $18 million cap hit, matching it would consume over half of their remaining cap space, and they still have Cutter Gauthier, Pavel Mintyukov, and Tyson Hinds to sign. Getting that all in under $17 million will be hard enough, but they are likely also looking at improving their defensive group, too.

After losing John Carlson, Jacob Trouba, and Radko Gudas, their defense took a massive hit, and while they have some good internal pieces, they have taken a huge step back in that position.

Not only does this handicap the Ducks and their decisions, but it will also have a domino effect on the rest of the league.

Is Mintyukov the Next Offer Sheet Target?

Looking at the offer sheet targets for this offseason, Carlsson was certainly among the list, but so was Jason Robertson, Mavrik Bourque, and the Ducks’ Mintyukov.

Following the Carlsson offer sheet announcement, Jeff Marek took to X and posted, “An offer sheet for Mintyukov at $4,775,666 only costs a 2nd.”

While Marek is a well-respected NHL insider, this wasn’t necessarily him reporting anything as a rumour, but not long after, a post from Puckpedia added fuel to the fire.

Via X, Puckpedia stated, “Several teams have approached Mintyukov’s agent [Dan Milstein] about an offer sheet, and it seems likely at least one is formally offered today.”

Milstein then took to his own account, sharing a video of someone eating popcorn captioned “Oh…this is gonna be good!”

The inference is that Milstein and his client, Mintyukov, are going to sign an offer sheet.

AFP Analytics has Mintyukov’s projected deal as a two-year deal worth $3.4 million annually, or longer term at six years and around $6 million annually.

If a team is going to try and pluck Mintyukov, it may take more than the suggested amount from Marek, as that is a reasonable price. The Ducks may be in a tough situation to match it, even at a fair price, but it will be interesting to see how teams approach this.

Bedard’s New Baseline Set By Carlsson

It was unfortunate for Bedard to be faced with another apparent shoulder injury, as Jim Parsons wrote about in yesterday’s column.

Today, much of the talk is already past the injury. A lot of people are focusing on what Carlsson’s new deal means for him and the Blackhawks.

Irfaan Gaffar reported on the DFO Rundown that Bedard is looking for a new deal similar to the one signed by Kirill Kaprizov, which was a $17 million average annual value. That deal saw Kaprizov be the highest-paid player in the NHL for…two days?

Kaprizov’s title was stripped by Carlsson and the offer sheet, but Bedard having a $17 million ask before the offer sheet could be changed now.

Gaffar stated that the Blackhawks weren’t ready to go to the $17 million mark, but now that Bedard and his camp can look at Carlsson’s $18 million, there may be an even bigger gap.

There is a lot to love about both players, they have had very similar development paths post-draft, and they are both future number-one centre superstars.

Why would Bedard ask for any less?

Of course, negotiations are always two-sided. Some players are willing to take less to allow for better team construction, but players are entitled to ask for what they feel they deserve.

Giroux Still Choosing Between Senators, Flyers, and Oilers

While he may not be the biggest name on the market, Claude Giroux has been one of the more intriguing free agency stories.

After hitting the open market in 2022, he went to his hometown Ottawa Senators and has played four strong seasons for them. While they are plugged up on bottom-six players, general manager Steve Staios has talked about bringing him back, and they would find the room.

Staios also stated that part of the reason the Senators were so quiet on July 1 was that they were keeping the door open for Giroux.

The Flyers have reportedly been in the mix for Giroux, too. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch wrote, “Not so fast; sources close to Giroux told the Ottawa Citizen late Friday that “he hasn’t made his decision yet” on where he’s headed.” (from ‘Will Claude Giroux stay or will he go? Fans of the Senators and Flyers want to know’, Ottawa Sun, July 4, 2026)

With the Flyers and Senators heavily in the mix, the Edmonton Oilers have made their pitch, too, but according to Mark Spector, the Oilers are out on him now.