Ever since the Lightning entered the league in 1992, they have been frequent trade partners with the Philadelphia Flyers in deals both big and small. Their favorite, however, were draft day deals swapping draft picks. There were five consecutive years the two teams exchanged picks during the draft from 2000 to 2005 consisting of seven total trades. Despite 26 trades (and counting) between the organizations featuring some memorable names, there isn’t one deal that stands above the rest as a franchise altering move. Just two teams that make frequent, rather inconsequential deals. What could be better?
12/8/92 – Dan Vincelette for Steve Kasper
Dan Vincelette was the Lightning’s expansion pick from the Chicago Blackhawks in the summer of 1992. He never played for the Flyers.
Steve Kasper was a veteran forward who spent parts of two seasons with the Flyers. He concluded the 1992-93 season with the Lightning and retired during the summer.
3/18/94 – Rob DiMaio for Jim Cummins and 1995 fourth round pick (Radovan Somik)
Rob DiMaio was the Lightning’s expansion pick from the New York Islanders. He played three injury-riddled seasons with the Flyers before being claimed by the San Jose Sharks during the 1996 waiver draft and traded to Boston later the same day.
Jim Cummins spent one season with the Flyers as a sparingly-used enforcer. He spent even less time with the Lightning, suiting up for just 14 games over the following two seasons before a trade in February of 1995 sent him to Chicago.
Six months later, the Flyers would reacquire the 1995 fifth round pick.
9/6/94 – 1995 fourth round pick (Radovan Somik) for Alexander Selivanov
Alexander Selivanov was a Flyers’ draft pick in 1994 by never played for the organization. He went on to play five seasons with the Bolts, starting his career hot but eventually saw a dip in production and was dealt to the Edmonton Oilers in early 1999.
The Flyers drafted forward Radovan Somik 100th overall in 1995. He played two seasons in North America, both with the Flyers, mainly in a depth role.
2/2/95 – Mike Greenlay for Scott LaGrand
Mike Greenlay was a minor league goaltender who played three seasons in Tampa’s system. He finished the 1994-95 season with the Hershey Bears of the AHL after the trade and retired a short time later.
Scott LaGrand was a journeyman minor league goaltender. He played one season with the Atlanta Knight, the Lightning’s IHL affiliate, and left the organization during the offseason.
8/20/97 – 1998 first round pick (Simon Gagne), 1999 first round pick (Maxime Ouellet) 2000 first round pick (Justin Williams), 2001 first round pick (Tim Gleason) for Mikael Renberg and Karl Dykhuis
The Flyers originally shipped the four first round picks to the Lightning as compensation for signing restricted free agent Chris Gratton in the 1997 offseason. They wanted the picks back, so they dealt Renberg and Dykhuis to Tampa to do so.
Mikael Renberg is best remembered as one-third of the Legion of Doom with Eric Lindros and John LeClair. His production did not carry over to Tampa, but he was named captain for the 1997-98 season.
Dykhuis was a defenseman who played his first consistent NHL minutes with the Flyers after toiling in the Blackhawks’ minor league system. He spent a season and a half with the Bolts, leaning harder into an enforcer role before being reacquired by the Flyers.
The Flyers used three of the four first round picks themselves, but dealt the 2001 first to Ottawa for a later pick used on defenseman Jeff Woywitka.
12/12/98 – Mikael Renberg and Daymond Langkow for Chris Gratton and Mike Sillinger
In December of 1998, just 16 months after the Chris Gratton offer sheet and compensation, the Flyers and Lightning made a pair of trades that virtually undid all the moves, the first being Renberg and Gratton returning to their original teams after struggling in their new environments.
Renberg played parts of two more seasons in Philly but never refound his original success. He was traded to the Coyotes in 2000.
Daymond Langkow developed into an NHL regular with the Flyers after struggling in the Lightning’s system. He played three years in Philly and was traded to the Coyotes in the summer of 2001.
Chris Gratton, who hit the 30-goal plateau during his first run in Tampa, was essentially a depth enforcer by the time he returned. He played parts of two seasons with the Bolts and was shipped to Buffalo at the 2000 trade deadline.
Mike Sillinger was a journeyman forward who spent two seasons in Tampa, his fifth team. He had the best offensive season of his career to that point in 1999-00 and was dealt to cross-state rivals the Florida Panthers at the 2000 trade deadline.
12/28/98 – Karl Dykhuis for Petr Svoboda
The second trade to conclude the undoing of the previous year’s mess was when the Flyers reacquired Karl Dykhuis from the Bolts.
Dykhuis spent just 50 games with the Flyers upon his return before he was sent to Montreal early in the 1999-00 season.
Petr Svoboda was a longtime defenseman who spent three seasons with the Lightning where he’d become the first Czech-born player to play in 1,000 NHL games. He retired following the 2000-01 season.
3/20/99 – Sandy McCarthy and Mikael Andersson for Colin Forbes and 1999 fifth round pick (Michal Lanicek)
Sandy McCarthy was an enforcer who spent 81 games with the Lightning over two seasons, and another 71 games for the Flyers over two season, yet did not play a full campaign with either squad.
Mikael Andersson signed with Tampa during their first season and spent the next seven seasons with the Lightning. He played just 43 games in Philly over the following 11 months before he was dealt to the Islanders.
Colin Forbes was the Flyers’ seventh round pick in 1994. He played 14 games for the Lightning to close out the 1998-99 season and eight to start the 1999-00 season before he was traded to the Ottawa Senators.
The Bolts drafted goaltender Michal Lanicek 148th overall in 1999. He never played for the organization and retired shortly thereafter after a brief run in various minor leagues.
6/25/00 – 2000 sixth round pick (Roman Cechmanek), 2000 seventh round pick (John Eichelberger), 2009 ninth round pick (Milan Kopecky) for 2000 fourth round pick (Johan Hagglund)
This was the Lightning trading into the fourth round of the 2000 draft after dealing their own pick to Toronto.
They selected forward Johan Hagglund 126th overall. He never left his native Sweden during his career.
The Flyers get the 171st overall pick (Roman Cechmanek), 210th overall (John Eichelberger), and 287th overall (Milan Kopecky) picks in return.
Neither Kopecky or Eichelberger played in the NHL, but Cechmanek spent three seasons with the Flyers.
6/24/01 – 2002 third round pick (Brett Skinner)(traded to VAN) for 2001 fourth round pick (Aaron Lobb), 2001 fifth round pick (Paul Lynch), 2001 seventh round pick (Dennis Packard)
The trade was the Lightning acquiring a trio of picks during the later rounds of the 2001 draft in exchange for a third round pick the following year in 2002.
The Flyers would trade the 2002 third round pick in a package deal with the Vancouver Canucks for enforcer Donald Brashear.
The Lightning acquired picks 123 (Aaron Lobb), 138 (Paul Lynch), and 219 (Dennis Pacakrd) in 2001. Lobb never played professionally after college. Lynch played a few seasons in the ECHL before retiring, and Packard was an AHL journeyman but never played in the NHL.
6/24/01 – 2002 seventh round pick (Mathieu Brunelle) for 2001 eighth round pick (Jean-Francois Soucy) and 2002 ninth round pick (John Toffey)
In the two franchise’s second trade of the 2001 draft, the Lightning acquired an eighth round pick in 2001 and a 2002 ninth round pick in exchange for a seventh rounder in 2002.
The Lightning took forward Jean-Francois Soucy 252nd overall in 2001. He played a few seasons in the ECHL and a handful in low level minor leagues and retired in 2011.
They also picked forward John Toffey 287th overall in 2002. He played 87 ECHL games before retiring.
The Flyers picked forward Mathieu Brunelle 201 overall in 2002. He played in nine AHL games and spent the rest of his career, which spanned until 2020, in various minor leagues.
6/21/02 – 2002 first round pick (Joni Pitkanen) for Ruslan Fedotenko, 2002 second round pick (Tobias Stephan) and 2002 second round pick (Dan Spang)
This was the Flyers moving up to the fourth overall pick in 2002. They took defenseman Joni Pitkanen and he became a key member of their blueline for three seasons before he was traded to the Oilers.
Ruslan Fedotenko played four seasons with the Lightning, including scoring both the team’s goals during game seven of their 2004 Stanley Cup victory over the Flames.
The second round picks were 34th and 52nd overall, and Tampa traded both of them. They dealt the 34th overall pick to Dallas in exchange for defenseman Brad Lukowich and dealt the 52nd overall pick to San Jose for the 60th overall (Adam Henrich) and 162nd (Girard Dicaire) overall in 2002. Neither of them played in the NHL.
6/22/03 – 2004 seventh round pick (Chris Campoli) (traded to NYI) and 2004 ninth round pick (John Carter) for 2003 eighth round pick (Raimonds Danilics) and 2003 ninth round pick (Zbynek Hrdel)
For the third consecutive draft, the Flyers and Lightning swapped picks. The Bolts acquired an eighth and ninth rounder in 2003 in exchange for a seventh and ninth rounder in 2004.
The Flyers traded the 2004 seventh round pick to the Islanders for defenseman Mattias Timander. They also selected forward John Carter 291st overall, the last overall pick, in 2004. He did not play professionally after college.
The Lightning drafted forward Raimonds Danilics 255th overall in 2003. He did not play professionally. They also drafted forward Zbynek Hrdel 286th overall in 2003. He had a brief run in the AHL but spent most of his career in his native Czech.
6/27/04 – 2005 third round pick (Oskars Bartulis) for 2004 fifth round pick (Brandon Elliott), 2004 sixth round pick (Jan Zapletal) and 2004 sixth round pick (Karri Ramo)
A fourth consecutive draft day trade! Yet again, the Bolts acquired multiple picks in this year’s draft for a higher pick in next year’s draft.
The Bolts landed the 158th overall (Brandon Elliott), 188th overall (Jan Zapletal) and 191st overall (Kari Ramo) in this deal. Neither Elliott or Zapletal played in the NHL. Ramo, however, served as a backup goaltender for the Lightning for three seasons.
The Flyers would draft defenseman Oskars Bartulis 81st overall in 2005. He played five seasons in the organization including 66 NHL games.
7/30/05 – 2006 second round pick (Shawn Mattias)(traded to ARZ) for 2005 third round pick (Chris Lawerance) and 2005 fourth round pick (Blair Jones)
A fifth consecutive draft day trade! As what became typical, the Lightning acquired two picks during the 2005 draft in exchange for a higher pick in the future.
The Lightning picked 89th and 102nd with their new picks and took Chris Lawrence and Blair Jones respectively. Lawrence played in various minor leagues but never made the NHL. Blair Jones spent six seasons with the Lightning organization, mainly in the AHL.
The Flyers later traded the 2006 second round pick to Arizona for defenseman Denis Gauthier.
11/9/06 – Darren Reid for Daniel Corso
After their draft day deal streak was snapped in 2006, this was the next trade the two teams made.
Darren Reid was a depth forward who spent two seasons with the Flyers’ organization, mainly in the AHL after the trade.
Daniel Corso was a journeyman forward who played just six games with the Phantoms and 58 with the Springfield Falcons of the AHL after the trade. He did not see NHL action with either club.
2/25/08 – Vaclav Prospal for Alexandre Picard and 2009 second round pick (Richard Panik)
Vinny Prospal was drafted by the Flyers in 1993 and saw the height of his playing career peak when he joined the Lightning in 2001. He played 18 games with the Flyers to conclude the 2007-08 season and rejoined the Bolts in an offseason trade.
Alex Picard played three seasons with the Flyers’ organization split between the AHL and NHL. He played 20 games for the Lightning and left for Ottawa in free agency.
Tampa Bay drafted Richard Panik 52nd overall in 2009 and he spent three seasons with the Lighting before being claimed on waivers by the Maple Leafs in October of 2014.
6/18/08 – 2008 seventh round pick (Joacim Eriksson) and 2009 conditional pick (Alex Hutchings) (traded to TBL)for Vaclav Prospal
This trade occurred two days before the 2008 NHL draft. The Lightning reacquired Vinny Prospal after dealing him to the Flyers for their playoff push. He re-signed and played one more season in Tampa Bay.
The Flyers drafted goaltender Joacim Eriksson 196th overall in 2008 but they never signed him to an entry-level deal and lost his rights. He spent a bulk of his career in Europe and played a single game for the Vancouver Canucks.
The conditional pick was a fourth rounder that was converted when Prospal re-signed with the Lightning. The Flyers would later trade the pick back to Tampa in November.
6/30/08 – 2009 sixth round pick (Dave Labrecque) for Janne Niskala
The Flyers drafted forward Dave Labrecque 153rd overall in 2009. He did not sign with the team.
The Flyers had acquired defenseman Janne Niskala six days prior from the Predators. He played six games with the Lightning before being waived and later released by Tampa and returned to his native Sweden.
11/7/08 – Matt Carle and 2009 third round pick (Simon Bertillson) for Steve Eminger, Steve Downie and 2009 fourth round pick (Alex Hutchings)(prev acqured)
Defenseman Matt Carle played 12 games with the Lightning after being acquired from the Sharks during the offseason. He ended up being partnered with Chris Pronger for a bulk of his four-year tenure with the Flyers. He was not re-sign in the 2012 offseason.
The Flyers drafted Simon Bertillson 87th overall in 2009. He never left his native Sweden.
Steve Eminger played just a dozen games with the Flyers after being acquired from the Capitals in a notoriously bad trade. He played just 50 games with Tampa before again being dealt, this time to the Florida Panthers.
Steve Downie was the Flyers’ 29th overall pick in 2005. He spent parts of two seasons with them before the trade and would find regular NHL ice time for four seasons in Tampa.
The Lightning reacquired the 93rd overall pick in 2009 and drafted forward Alex Hutchings. He spent most of his career in the ECHL.
7/1/10 – Andrej Meszaros for 2012 second round pick (Colton Sissons)
In what ended up being a sneaky good deal for the Flyers, they acquired defenseman Andrej Meszaros, who spent parts of four seasons with the team and won the Barry Ashbee Trophy as the team’s top defenseman in 2011.
The Lightning then traded the 2012 second round pick to the Predators for goaltender Anders Lindback.
7/19/10 – Matt Walker and 2011 fourth round pick (Marcel Noebels) for Simon Gagne
Simon Gagne was a 10-year veteran with the Flyers who was a cap casualty after their 2010 playoff run. He was dealt to Tampa where he’d only spend half a season before being dealt to LA and would win a Stanley Cup.
Matt Walker was a defenseman who played eight games with the Flyers and 44 with the Phantoms before a back injury forced him into retirement.
The Flyers drafted forward Marcel Noebels 118th overall in 2011. He spent two seasons with the Phantoms and his contract was terminated when he refused to report to the ECHL.
2/18/12 – Pavel Kubina for Jon Kalinski 2012 second round pick (Brian Hart) and 2013 fourth round pick (Tobias Lindberg)
Pavel Kubina was a longtime defenseman for the Lightning. He joined the Flyers for their playoff push, playing 17 regular season games and five postseason games. He was not re-signed in the offseason and retired shorty after.
Jon Kalinski was an AHL forward. He played just five games with the Norfolk Admirals.
The Lightning drafted forward Brian Hart 53rd overall in 2012. He primarily spent his career in the ECHL.
The Bolts would trade the 2013 fourth round pick to Ottawa in a package deal for goaltender Ben Bishop.
3/2/15 – Radko Gudas, 2015 first round pick (Gabriel Carlsson)(traded to TOR) and 2015 third round pick (Matej Tomek) for Braydon Coburn
Braydon Coburn played nine seasons with the Flyers serving as one of their top defenseman for most of that stretch. He played six more seasons with the Lighting and won a Stanley Cup in 2020.
Radko Gudas was a loose cannon defenseman who struggled to rein in his physical ways with the Bolts. He would play four seasons with the Flyers, where he was slightly more under control, but still regularly caught the eye of Player Safety with his style of hockey.
The Flyers packaged the 2015 first round pick with their 2015 second round pick to move up to the 24th overall pick and select Travis Konecny.
They also drafted goaltender Matej Tomek 90th overall in 2015. He never signed with the club.
3/1/17 – Valtteri Filppula, 2017 fourth round pick (Maksim Sushko) and 2017 seventh round pick (Wyatt Kalynuk) for Mark Streit
Mark Streit was a veteran defenseman whom the Lightning would immediately flip to the Penguins for a fourth round pick.
Valtteri Filppula was a verteran forward who had one year left on his contract at the time of the trade. He played 101 underwhelming games for the Flyers and wasn’t re-signed during 2018 free agency.
The Flyers drafted forward Maksim Sushko 107th overall in 2017. He played three seasons in the organization, mostly in the AHL, and left for the KHL after his entry-level contract expired.
They also drafted defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk 196th overall. He spent three seasons at the University of Wisconsin and ultimately refused to sign with the Flyers, instead joining the Blackhawks organization.
10/7/20 – 2020 fourth round pick (Zayde Wisdom) for 2020 fourth round pick (Eamon Powell) 2020 fifth round pick (Jaydon Dureau)
The Flyers moved up to the first pick in the fourth round, 93rd overall, to select forward Zayde Wisdom.
Tampa acquired the 115th and 146th picks in return. They drafted defenseman Eamon Powell, who currently plays for Boston College and remains unsigned as of this writing. Jaydon Dureau is a forward who is signed and currently playing in the AHL.
By: Dan Esche (@DanTheFlyeraFan)
brotherlypuck.com 