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Flyers: Looking back at the Brayden Schenn trade

By Nick Butler

Jan 7, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; St. Louis Blues center Brayden Schenn (10) blocks a shot against Philadelphia Flyers right wing Jakub Voracek (93) during the third period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 7, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; St. Louis Blues center Brayden Schenn (10) blocks a shot against Philadelphia Flyers right wing Jakub Voracek (93) during the third period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports /
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Let’s take a trip into the time machine back to June of 2017. The Flyers are coming off of a 39-33-10 season, finishing 6th in the Metropolitan Division and 11th in the Eastern Conference. In the 50th anniversary season, Dave Hakstol coached his second season in Philadelphia as the team missed the playoffs. Wayne Simmonds led the team with goals that season with 31, Claude Giroux lead in assists with 44, and Jakub Voracek lead in points with 61. However, this is a look at Brayden Schenn.

Schenn was the fifth overall draft pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, selected by the Los Angeles Kings. Schenn came Philadelphia in a trade back in 2011 that brought Wayne Simmonds and a 2012 second-round draft pick to Philadelphia for Mike Richards and Rob Bordson. Philadelphia ended up trading that second-round pick, but Simmonds and Schenn were fantastic players for the Flyers in their respective times here.

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Brayden Schenn played 79 games, had 25 goals, 30 assists, and a +/- of -13. He was very impressive in this season. Overall he played six seasons with the Flyers. Schenn became a mainstay on the roster in the 2013-2014 season, playing 82 games and scoring 20 goals with 21 assists. In his time with the Flyers, Schenn played 424 games, scored 109 goals, and had 137 assists.

Of course, the Flyers GM at the time, Ron Hextall, didn’t come out and say it, but the Flyers were headed towards a retooling of their farm system and bringing in prospects for the future. In the 2017 NHL Draft, Hextall selected Nolan Patrick with the second overall pick.

The Flyers were approached with a trade. Brayden Schenn for Jori Lehtera, their first-round draft pick at 27, and a conditional first-round pick on the 2018 draft.

Lehtera was just a player to sweeten the deal and bring in a player that would eventually come off the books sooner rather than later. He played 89 games for the Flyers and scored four goals and seven assists in two years. He also played five games for the Phantoms as well, recording one goal and two assists.

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Once off the books, the Flyers and Lehtera parted ways as he then went to play for SKA Saint Petersburg. He played 51 games and recorded 15 goals and 15 assists.

Morgan Frost was selected with the 27th pick of the 2017 Draft. Frost was highly scouted and was said to be a very similar player to Vincent Trochek. He came to the Phantoms in the 2019-2020 season. He played 41 games and scored 13 goals and recorded 16 assists. He also made Philadelphia debut as well.

Frost played in 20 games and scored two goals and recorded seven assists playing on a line with Claude Giroux and Travis Konecny.

This season, Frost only played two games before getting injured. He is currently out for the rest of the season with a dislocated shoulder which had to have surgery. Frost is still expected to be a big part of this team’s future and will have plenty of time playing in the future.

Joel Farabee became that conditional pick in 2018, being drafted 14th overall. Farabee drew comparisons to Mikael Granlund at the time. He played one year for Boston University before going pro. He played 37 games, grabbing 17 goals and 19 assists.

He then came to the Phantoms in 2019, playing only five games and recording three goals and one assist. He would play 52 games during his rookie season, recording 8 goals and 13 assists. He was sent down once during his stint with the Flyers and when he came back up, he made sure he wasn’t going back down.

This season, Joel Farabee has played 25 games and scored 12 goals, and has recorded 12 assists as well. He has been a big piece to the Flyers offense this year. He most certainly will be a big part of the future as well.

Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers /

Philadelphia Flyers

Since the trade, Brayden Schenn has been a big part of the Blues’ success. In his three seasons in St. Louis, not including playoffs, Brayden Schenn has played 225 games and scored 70 goals and 112 assists.

In their cup run, Brayden Schenn played 26 games and scored five goals, and recorded seven assists. This season, Schenn has played 28 games and has scored 12 goals, and recorded 12 assists. Looking at it, Joel and Brayden have the same stats this season with Joel playing fewer games.

When you take everything into perspective, the St Louis Blues won the trade in the present having won a cup. The Blues turned it around that season that they won the night Jordan Binnington shut out Philadelphia. The Blues were dead last in their division, but after that night, something changed.

Some of the Blues players, along with Schenn of course, went to a bar in Philadelphia and something just seemed to click. This is also where “play Gloria” came from as well.

If you look at the big picture, the belief is Philadelphia did win this trade. They got a bad player off the books and have two building pieces for the future in Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost. Frost and Farabee have high ceilings and can become way better than Schenn ever could have been.

Farabee is looking like he is going to become a high-scoring player with plenty of different skills and abilities Schenn does not have. Frost also is looking like he is going to be a playmaker. He has a really good hockey I.Q. If he can gain some more muscle and play with more confidence, he will be a big threat in the NHL.

Only time will tell who has ultimately won this trade.

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