Martin Necas, a long-standing potential Philadelphia Flyers trade target, has extended his stay with the Metropolitan Division rival Carolina Hurricanes for a few more seasons, signing a two-year, $13 million contract to remain in Raleigh through 2026.

Necas, 25, has had his name entrenched in NHL trade rumors for virtually the entire offseason after his father claimed the young forward was growing frustrated with his Hurricanes role and wanted to move on to a new club. Martin Necas Sr. claimed that his son wanted to play on the Hurricanes’ first line and first power play unit.

As a Flyers trade target, this is one reason why Necas was a logical choice. The Flyers have had the NHL’s worst power play for three years in a row, and outside of Travis Konecny (and now Matvei Michkov, who originally was not a consideration in trade rumors due to his contractual status), the Flyers didn’t really have top-tier right wing.

Owen Tippett was moved to the left wing, as was rookie forward Tyson Foerster. Joel Farabee was relegated to bottom-six duties, and Bobby Brink was in and out of the lineup after returning from his AHL stint with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Therefore, Necas had a clear path to a king’s ransom of playing time with a featured role on the Flyers. How far trade talks went, or if they ever started at all, is unclear, but it’s now in the past one way or another.

The 2017 No. 12 overall pick enjoyed a breakout season in 2022-23, scoring a career-high 28 goals, 43 assists, and 71 points in 82 games but took a step back last season, dropping down to 24 goals, 29 assists, and 53 points in 77 games.

Necas was able to improve on his playoff performances, scoring four goals, five assists, and nine points in 11 games after posting four goals, three assists, and seven points in 15 games in 2022-23.