{"id":493414,"date":"2026-07-04T20:06:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T00:06:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=493414"},"modified":"2026-07-04T20:06:55","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T00:06:55","slug":"nhl-rumours-anaheim-ducks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/07\/04\/nhl-rumours-anaheim-ducks\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Rumours: Anaheim Ducks to Match Any Offer Sheet on Star Centre"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/07\/01\/nhl-rumours-american-star\/\" target=\"_self\">another edition of NHL Rumours<\/a> from the crew at <em>Last Word On Hockey<\/em>. With offer sheets becoming one of the NHL&#8217;s biggest offseason storylines, another young star has entered the conversation. <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/FriedgeHNIC\/status\/2072708259937419585?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Sportsnet&#8217;s Elliotte Friedman reported<\/a> the Anaheim Ducks are prepared to <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/07\/01\/barrett-hayton-offer-sheet\/\" target=\"_self\">match any offer sheet<\/a> presented to restricted free agent <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/c\/carlsle01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-02_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Leo Carlsson<\/a>. Friedman also noted Anaheim&#8217;s relatively quiet offseason has been intentional, allowing the club to maintain the salary cap flexibility needed to retain one of its franchise cornerstones.<\/p>\n<p><em>All NHL rumours come from their original source and are subject to change.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOB9x2wP33w\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3943px; aspect-ratio: 3943\/2629;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<p><span>Credit Image: \u00a9 Peter Joneleit\/Cal Sport Media<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>NHL Rumours: Anaheim Ducks to Match Any Offer Sheet on Star Leo Carlsson<\/h2>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Saw one offer sheet yesterday \u2014 Barrett Hayton\/New Jersey \u2014 and are wondering about more. Heard over the past few hours Anaheim guaranteed it will match any attempt on Leo Carlsson, and the reason the Ducks haven\u2019t made many moves is to make sure to be in a safe cap position.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/FriedgeHNIC\/status\/2072708259937419585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 2, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><em>Rumour: Speaking on social media Thursday morning, Friedman reported the Ducks &#8220;guaranteed&#8221; they would match any offer sheet on Carlsson should another team attempt to sign the 20-year-old centre. He added Anaheim&#8217;s lack of significant free agent activity has been by design, ensuring the club remains in a comfortable salary cap position to retain Carlsson regardless of the contract structure.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The report follows the New Jersey Devils successfully signing Barrett Hayton to an offer sheet, leading many around the league to wonder whether additional restricted free agents could become targets.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Analysis: Friedman&#8217;s report says as much about Anaheim&#8217;s long-term planning as it does about Carlsson himself. The Ducks have been connected to several free agents this summer, yet general manager <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/v\/verbepa01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-02_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Pat Verbeek<\/a> has largely<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/06\/30\/greer-contract-anaheim\/\" target=\"_self\"> avoided handing out expensive,<\/a> long-term contracts. According to Friedman, that restraint appears deliberate rather than passive.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Carlsson has become one of the most important pieces of Anaheim&#8217;s rebuild since being selected second overall in the 2023 <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/06\/14\/5-2026-nhl-draft-prospects\/\" target=\"_self\">NHL Entry Draft.<\/a> The Swedish centre has already <a  href=\"https:\/\/hockeystats.com\/players\/leo-carlsson\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">demonstrated the size, hockey sense and two way ability<\/a> expected of a future first-line centre. While injuries have limited portions of his first two NHL seasons, they have done little to change the organization&#8217;s belief that he is a foundational player.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at:\/\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mladmwa6m62c\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreiajdw7x62xj5hh2zytw6yw4wmxvgzm62cd5cygq2ypbtseb7j4yh4\">\n<p>Anaheim goal!Scored by Leo Carlsson with 13:24 remaining in the 3rd period.Assisted by Troy Terry and Chris Kreider.Vegas: 0Anaheim: 2#ANAvsVGK #ForgedInGold #FlyTogether  <\/p>\n<p>&mdash; <a  href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">NHL Goals (@nhlgoals.bsky.social)<\/a> <a  href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74\/post\/3mladmwa6m62c?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">2026-05-07T04:05:57.622485Z<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/embed.bsky.app\/static\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2>Leo Carlsson Critical to Ducks Future<\/h2>\n<p>Offer sheets remain relatively uncommon across the NHL, but the Hayton situation has reminded teams that they are once again a realistic negotiating tool. Friedman&#8217;s report suggests Anaheim has already prepared for that possibility. Rather than risking the loss of Carlsson or scrambling to create cap space, the Ducks have preserved financial flexibility to immediately match any contract another club could present.<\/p>\n<p>That approach also aligns with where Anaheim sits in its competitive window. The organization has assembled one of the league&#8217;s strongest young cores featuring Carlsson, <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/g\/gauthcu01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-02_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cutter Gauthier<\/a>, <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/l\/lacomja01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-02_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jackson LaCombe<\/a>, and <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/s\/sennebe01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-07-02_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Beckett Sennecke<\/a>. Losing Carlsson through an offer sheet would significantly alter the franchise&#8217;s long term outlook, even with draft pick compensation; it is near impossible to imagine that happening.<\/p>\n<p>Nothing in Friedman&#8217;s report indicates another club is actively preparing an offer sheet. Instead, the takeaway is that Anaheim has already made its decision. Should another team test the Ducks, Verbeek appears ready to ensure Carlsson remains <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.hockeystatcards.com\/players\/8484153?year=20252026&amp;type=2\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the club&#8217;s franchise centre<\/a> for years to come.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo Credit: Credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to another edition of NHL Rumours from the crew at Last Word On Hockey. With offer sheets becoming one of the NHL&#8217;s biggest offseason storylines, another young star has entered the conversation. Sportsnet&#8217;s Elliotte Friedman reported the Anaheim Ducks are prepared to match any offer sheet presented to restricted free agent Leo Carlsson. Friedman [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5399,"featured_media":476283,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20,4547,34,4548,4321],"tags":[6492,2661,7589],"class_list":["post-493414","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ducks","category-hockey","category-news","category-nhl","category-rumours","tag-anaheim-ducks-rumours","tag-barrett-hayton","tag-leo-carlsson"],"modified_by":"Levi Pike, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5399"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493414"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493414\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":493519,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493414\/revisions\/493519"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/476283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}