If the Philadelphia Flyers are selling, who’s buying what?
Barring some sort of Phillies-esque miracle run, it’s most likely that the Flyers are going to be out of the playoff race by the time the all-star game rolls around. It’s not like we should be surprised by this. This is pretty much the same group of guys that were rolled out and injured last year, minus the additions of Tony DeAngelo and Nic Deslauriers.
So, when the trade deadline comes around, who will be calling Flyers GM Chuck Fletcher? Likewise, who might they be inquiring about? Let’s break this roster down and see what’s up.
I’ve broken the players into the following categories:
- Untouchable…Unless the Return is a LOT of 1st Rounders
- Not Untouchable, But Not Going Anywhere…Unless the Price is Right
- Young Guys Who Still Need To Prove Themselves
- Possible Disgruntled Players who may be moved, but not for much.
- Role Guys Who Won’t Fetch Much
- Most Likely Gone
Let’s begin.
Flyers: Untouchable…Unless the Return is a LOT of 1st Rounders
Travis Konecny, Carter Hart
Let’s be honest, these guys aren’t going anywhere. Unless someone offers us five first-round picks and/or a bunch of top, NHL-ready prospects, Konecny and Hart are staying put for the long term. Teams have pulled the trigger on young players who are awesome all the time. In some cases, it works out well. In others, it’s a disaster. Still, I can’t see these guys moving out of Philly for a few years.
Konecny has become the player he once was. He is just 8 points shy of his 2019-20 totals and is about halfway toward last year’s totals in about a third of the games. This is also with him missing some games due to injury.
Hart is having a great year. While it may not show up in the “wins” category, he is having an amazing year in net. He is the best goalie the Flyers have had since the days of Ron Hextall and Brian Boucher. Unless someone gives us a king’s ransom, he ain’t going anywhere.
Flyers: Not Untouchable, But Not Going Anywhere…Unless the Price is Right
Nic Deslauriers, Rasmus Ristolainen, Travis Sanheim, Ivan Provorov, Scott Laughton, Joel Farabee
There is the possibility that someone could pick up the phone and inquire about these guys. It doesn’t hurt to listen. But unless there is a staggering offer, much like Konecny and Hart above, these guys are staying put.
Now, Deslauriers is a different story. He may not have the talent the others have, but he brings a physicality to this team that it desperately needs. He’s well-liked by his coach and his teammates. For that reason, he isn’t on the move.
Likewise, Scott Laughton is the leader of the team this season. He is the lone player with an “A” on their sweater. He does a lot of the little things that don’t show up in the stat sheets.
Farabee had two good seasons for a young player coming into this season. Then he got hurt this offseason and has struggled to find his former self. The Flyers will be patient with him because if he can become great again, he can be one of the young mainstays for this team.
While Risto and Sanheim are overpaid and probably hard to move on those merits alone, they are both having decent seasons. Likewise, Provy is having a bounce-back year. While you might be able to get something good for the three of these blue liners, it would have to be a lot to consider moving them. Also, the Flyers seem to like to have a steady, dependable core of defenders around them. Barring something unseen, these guys are staying. But again….for the right price…
Flyers: Young Guys Who Still Need To Prove Themselves
Felix Sandstrom, Cam York, Owen Tippett, Egor Zamula, Wade Allison, Morgan Frost, Noah Cates, Tanner Laczynski
All of these guys are young. All of them have shown flashes of greatness. Coach John Tortorella has said he is going to play the kids. For us, in order to see what we really have, we have to let this team develop and turn into something. At some point, time may run out on some of these players, like Frost. But without giving them a chance, we won’t know what we have. The only way any of these guys are moving is if they are packaged as part of a deal to get something really awesome.
Flyers: Possible Disgruntled Players Who May Be Moved, But Not For Much
Kevin Hayes, Tony DeAngelo
These guys could go either way. If they aren’t upset at being benched and start performing the way they should, they will find themselves in the “untouchable” categories. However, that pendulum swings the other way too. If these guys pout and demand a trade (and to be fair, the same could be said for every Flyer), you won’t get much, if anything for them. When NHL teams smell blood in the water, you won’t get much of a fair trade in return.
All Flyers fans sincerely hope it doesn’t come to this with these two players. They can become integral parts of what this team is trying to be. A nasty divorce suits nobody. I really feel that both players love playing here. Let’s not get to that point.
Flyers: Role Guys Who Won’t Fetch Much
Nick Seeler, Zach MacEwen, Patrick Brown
These are three guys who easily could move into the “untouchable, but” category. All three seem to be the type of players that Coach Tortorella loves to have in his lineup. All three have been plugging holes all season and have done well. Seeler is having the best year of his career and MacEwen has really come to play as a solid fourth-liner.
You could trade them, but why? You wouldn’t get much for them.
While all of the focus on a team is on the superstars, and for good reason, your team rises or falls on the role players who do their job. They don’t get as high a paycheck as the top guys, but you can’t win without them. Lukas Sedlak is a great example of this and it is a shame he couldn’t stick around. But these guys aren’t going anywhere and I, for one, hope they stick around longer than this season.
Flyers: Most Likely Gone
Justin Braun, James van Riemsdyk
These guys are vets. They bring valuable leadership and experience to any team they can come to. They are also both on expiring contracts. Teams looking to make a push will want a guy like JVR and Brauny.
Last year, Braun brought the Flyers a third-round pick from the Rangers. That’s not a bad haul. I don’t think he’ll bring us that much back, but a fourth-rounder for a rental player might not be too much to ask for. But if a bidding war between competing teams heats up, the Flyers could drive up the price.
JVR seems to have found his scoring touch recently. If he keeps that up, he might bring the Flyers a nice haul. Look for one of the top teams, maybe a Carolina Hurricanes or Florida Panthers looking to jump-start their offense, to make a play. Or one of the Western Conference teams, like Dallas or Vegas, or Winnipeg might want to add another winger to add to their offense.
And the best part is, we can resign them in the offseason. Braun came back on a cheap deal. JVR, if he takes a DEEPLY discounted price could return as well.
Of course, at the same time, this means also having faith that Fletcher can pull something good off. With the way some of his deals have gone, it is totally not inconceivable that he could trade JVR and a 2nd round pick this year for a 3rd round pick in 2026, a 6th round pick for this year, and a used Zamboni.
It’s still too early to tell. Players get hurt and teams may get desperate. Maybe the Flyers have nothing teams want. Maybe the Flyers could suddenly turn it all around and become a buyer, not a seller. We’ll see.