In the offseason, the Flyers signed Christian Dvorak to be part of the solution at the center position. A one-year, $5.4 million deal was equal parts stop-gap for the Flyers and a bet on himself by Dvorak.

Dvorak, who turns 30 on Feb. 2, has been off to a strong start this season with nine goals and 25 points in 39 games. He’s on pace to nearly match his career-high of 18 goals and should shatter his career-high in points, 38.

Dvorak and the Flyers had long been rumored to be working on a contract extension, and that deal is completed. The Flyers signed Dvorak to a five-year deal with a $5.15 million cap hit on Monday.

Dvorak was a second-round pick by the Arizona Coyotes in 2014 and began his NHL career in the 2016-17 season. He had 15 goals and 33 points as a rookie in 78 games. His best season came in 2019-20, when he scored 18 goals and 38 points in 70 games. Arizona’s head coach that season was current Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet.

After the 2020-21 season, where Dvorak had 17 goals and 31 points in 56 games, he joined the Montreal Canadiens. In four seasons with the Canadiens, Dvorak had 38 goals and 103 points in 232 games.

The cap hit for Dvorak actually comes down in this extension, an even more manageable number as the salary cap rises in the NHL. The five-year term for a soon-to-be 30-year-old in the midst of a rebuild seems steep, but was also likely the cost of keeping the cap hit closer to the $5 million mark.

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.

Philadelphia Flyers Uniforms Through The Years

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