Photo Credit: NHL.com
It took one trade, yes one trade to get hockey lovers talking once again. Flyers’ General Manager Danny Briere wheeled and dealt yesterday, and it was a doozy with sending their best defenseman to the Columbus Blue Jackets. It was a deal that worked for both sides as Ivan Provorov can get a fresh change of scenery, while the Flyers recoup draft capital which can possibly be used for leverage for future deals.
“We’re open for business. We’ll listen if it makes sense. If the value is there for us, definitely,” Briere said. “That’s kind of the luxury of having a lot of picks, and unfortunately, in the situation we’re at when you finish a little lower in the standings, you have better picks. It’s good and it’s bad. You have to suffer for it. Nothing’s off the table on our side.”
“We’re open for business.” – Flyers’ General Manager Danny Briere
The trade involving Provorov is not about succeeding next season from a Flyers standpoint. This deal was made to hopefully look good within two to three years for the orange and black. They received a future first round pick that will take one to three years to possibly crack the NHL, and two second round picks that could also take another two to four years to crack the NHL, as well. I say possibly because it’s not always guaranteed that these young prospects even crack the NHL lineup.
In addition, a cheap Sean Walker ($2.65 million cap hit) can be paired with Nick Seeler this coming season, and Walker can also be used as capital at the trade deadline since he would be on an expiring contract. Helge Grans is a 21-year-old right-handed defenseman and he has some middle pairing upside. Overall, this deal was about the future of the orange and black, this deal was not made for them to contend next season, “For us, what we were looking at is young guys and picks. We’ve said it from the beginning, so that was the major reason behind it,” Briere said yesterday. “If it makes sense. It all depends if things make sense. We felt this trade made sense at this time for us. That’s why we moved ahead. Like I’ve said earlier, there’s always two sides to it – three sides in this case – so you never know. If it makes sense and there’s a good return on other things, we’ll consider it, but it’s too early to tell.”
Trading Ivan Provorov was the best trade for the Flyers in almost 12 years (Richards, Carter trades). Provorov didn’t always agree with Torts, and wanted to be on a winner. He wasn’t the most popular teammate, and at times would be by himself during team activities off ice. This should be a fresh start/change of scenery for him. It’s about time the Flyers were on what appears to be a winning trade for once.
One thing is for certain Briere is not done wheeling and dealing. He could use the #22 pick as leverage to move within the top four picks of the draft, or he could keep it and use it for more capital in a deal(s), “I’m still in the same spot I was. We’re open for business. We listen on everybody. Everybody’s being treated the same way for us on our side,” Briere calmly said. What happens next is anyone’s guess, could Carter Hart be the next domino to fall? Stay tuned.
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