The Philadelphia Flyers made a seemingly minor trade on Sunday. The Flyers landed forward Boris Katchouk from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for defenseman Roman Schmidt, PuckPedia showed.
On the Wild’s side, the deal is likely aimed at boosting the club’s depth at the AHL level. Schmidt has not NHL action this season. In fact, the former third-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning has yet to play in the NHL.
Schmidt played in 16 games for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms without registering a point. He came over from the Lightning in a minor league trade earlier this season.
As for Katchouk, that’s where things get interesting. The 27-year-old is a former second-round pick, interestingly enough, of the Tampa Bay Lightning. He’s played in 179 NHL games, scoring 15 goals and 36 points.
That situation seems to point towards a bigger deal. In particular, the Flyers could be gearing up for a trade involving one of their current roster players. While several names have floated around throughout the season, Katchouk could be in line to take over a roster spot should someone get moved by the NHL trade deadline.
The likeliest outcome is that Katchouk heads to Lehigh Valley, and that’s that. But this move does seem interesting. The Flyers' acquiring a legit depth forward could be a precursor for something bigger coming down the pipeline.
Flyers could be looking for depth
Assuming that a major trade is not on the horizon, the Flyers could simply be looking to add depth. At the moment, the Flyers remain down a key depth forward in Rodrigo Abols. Additionally, Tyson Foerster remains out of the lineup.
Then, younger forwards like Denver Barkey and Nikita Grebenkin have shown promise, but aren’t quite ready to take over the world. Meanwhile, veterans Nic Deslauriers and Garnet Hathaway have been healthy scratches at times.
While the Flyers remain within striking distance of a playoff spot, they could just pivot and sell. That means that having some extra bodies around could help the club finish out the season. In the offseason, GM Daniel Briere could get down to the business of rounding out the roster for next season. That may include giving Katchouk a good look at training camp next fall.
So, it’s reasonable to think that Katchouk could get a look at some point this season. Again, the likeliest outcome is that Katchouk heads to the AHL. But should the Flyers need additional depth, the club’s most recent acquisition could step in.