Philadelphia Flyers Win in Trade to L.A. Kings
By Regina Ham
It has been a whirlwind of a past 24 hours for both the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings.
The Philadelphia Flyers-Los Angeles Kings trade is the biggest news in the NHL since the beginning of the season. In a surprising move, the Flyers traded defensemen Luke Schenn and forward Vincent Lecavalier to the Kings for center Jordan Weal and a 2016 third-round pick. It was a smart move by the Flyers and a somewhat confusing one by the Kings. Flyers GM Ron Hextall needed to make a move and it was decided that in order to give Lecavalier the playing time he wanted, he needed to leave Philadelphia and go elsewhere. Even the attitude that Lecavalier gave made it easier for him to be traded and for the Flyers to move him along.
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Lecavalier came to the Flyers in 2013 as a free agent. He was signed to a five-year, $22.5 million contract with the team after leave the Tampa Bay Lightning. He wasn’t as productive as he had been during his 14 seasons with the Lightning and during the 2015-16 season, he only made an appearance in seven games and had one assist. He wasn’t going to see any ice time and it was about time for him to move on from his current team. He had become a financial pain as well for the Flyers, with a $4.5 million yearly that strapped the team’s ability to add players. The Flyers will still need to pay 50 percent of Lecavalier’s salary through 2016-17 and 2017-18 at $2.25 million. However, according to Rotoworld, Lecavalier will be retiring at the end of the season and the team won’t have to pay the rest of his salary.
Getting rid of Luke Schenn is also a big weight of the Flyers’ back. He was brought into the organization on a trade that sent James van Riemsdyk to the Toronto Maple Leaves. He didn’t live up to the hopes that were placed on him. Schenn was a mid-level player at best and didn’t live up to expectations. He was sometimes a healthy scratch but he was a physically large player. Yet despite his physicality he wasn’t a strong skater and he wasn’t fast, which cost the team. He won’t be missed and it’ll give the Flyers room to find someone in the free agency market. The Kings will also have to deal with the fact that Schenn will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. That could see him leave his new team and put the Kings in a pickle.
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There was no bad angle for the Philadelphia Flyers in this deal. Flyers GM Ron Hextall did great work when it came to dealing with the team’s biggest issue: the salary cap. Lecavalier was expensive for the Flyers to keep and didn’t even have a solid place in the lineup anymore. Hextall knew that to get and keep the talent the Flyers need to be a top-tier NHL team and Stanley Cup contender, things would have to change.
If Hextall can buy out R.J. Umberger, there is a way he can go into the summer free agency with almost $13 million to use. The financial flexibility is going to be a wonderful thing for the Flyers and it might even be enough to take a chance on Steven Stamkos, who is a free agent once his contract with Tampa Bay is up. They have room to keep rookie sensation Shayne Gostisbehere too, a huge impact player for the team since he was called up on November 14th. While the Flyers won’t become a Cup contender overnight, they’ll have the ability to make moves that will make them one in the next few years.
Next: Vincent Lecavalier's Attitude Made Flyers Trade Possible