We have finally reached the week of the NHL trade deadline and as the hours tick away, we get closer and closer to definitive answers as to what exactly it is Danny Briere and the Flyers have been dreaming up. While we wait for the real thing to unfold, let’s make some early-week predictions about how Friday’s deadline will go down.
Number 5: Cap Space for Draft Picks
Whether or not the Flyers trade their own players is still very much open for speculation, but according to PuckPedia, they have just shy of $8.5 million in deadline cap space, which makes them a perfect candidate to play third party retention for trades across the league. They did so with Noah Hanifin last season, so expect more of that this season in the name of collecting draft picks to fluff their “rebuild.”
Number 4: They Add a Center
The Flyers should be focused on selling at the deadline, but they need to remain vigilant when it comes to opportunities to improve their own areas of weakness as well. No, this doesn’t mean giving up assets for a 35-year-old rental, but rather looking for younger players with term left on their deals or are under team contract as pending restricted free agents. They’ve got a lot of ground to make up after a quiet 2024 offseason, so anything and everything should be on the table at the deadline to ease their to-do list during the 2025 offseason.
Number 3: Risto Gets Moved
Ahead of the deadline it sure seemed like Ristolainen was going to be a hot commodity but then some surprising rumors emerged late last week that indicate that maybe he isn’t drawing the interest originally expected. The term on his contract could scare teams away during the deadline making him more of an offseason target, but the rumors of disinterest may just be a smokescreen for more teams to check in on his availability to play the field. Ristolainen still makes sense to trade and a deal will come at the 11th hour at the deadline.
Number 2: Not Actually the Laughts Supper
Laughton set the internet on fire when he posted a picture of himself and his Flyers’ teammates recreating the Last Supper, which fueled speculation for an imminent trade. While the Flyers probably should be dealing Laughton, it’s basically an on-running joke at this point that the front office is gun shy to do so. Laughton himself has openly acknowledged that it’s “that time of year” and he’s not focused on the noise. It was a decent troll job regardless, and will be even more fantastic when the Flyers once again refuse to trade him.
Number 1: They Trade Kolosov
Rookie goalie Aleksei Kolosov hasn’t played an NHL game since January 2 and hasn’t suited up in the AHL since January 29. He has been on the main roster since before the Four Nations break but doesn’t seem like he’s in line to get another opportunity any time soon. After all the drama that has followed him over the last calendar year and the clear inability (one way or another) to attempt to develop him, maybe it’s just time to part ways with the guy. It would need to be for a stable NHL option or a higher draft pick, but this is becoming a headache that may just not be worth grinning and bearing it anymore.
By: Dan Esche (@DanTheFlyeraFan)
photo credit: Getty Images
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