News broke on Thursday evening that the Philadelphia Flyers and Calgary Flames were discussing a trade. It seemed to be a routine deal, with the Flyers trading for Andrei Kuzmenko to reunite him with star rookie Matvei Michkov. However, the deal broke wide open when the inclusion of Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee was reported. This deal became rather large after that. So without further ado, let’s hand out grades to the Flames and Flyers.
Full trade
The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired forwards Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier from the Calgary Flames. Additionally, Philadelphia is also acquiring a 2025 second-round pick and a 2028 seventh-round pick. In exchange, the Flames are acquiring forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost. There is no salary retention in this deal, according to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun.
Flyers trade Joel Farabee
The Philadelphia Flyers are in an interesting spot with this trade. They moved the two best players in the deal without question. And yet, it’s hard to concretely say they lost or came out in a bad spot.
The Flyers hoped both Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost would become major pieces to their future. After all, Farabee had 20 goals in his second career season in a shortened campaign. Frost posted back-to-back 40+ point seasons before this year. These are players who can produce at a high level.
However, both players were inconsistent, and that hurt them in the end. In return for their services, the Flyers receive a second-round pick that can be very useful. They also get a former top prospect in Jakob Pelletier who has seen his projection drop a ton over the last few seasons. And then we get to Andrei Kuzmenko.
Kuzmenko is not great defensively. This is going to be a massive sticking point for head coach John Tortorella. However, his familiarity with Matvei Michkov could come in handy. Of course, this is if Kuzmenko can find some consistency offensively.
The biggest reason for the Flyers to do this is salary cap flexibility. They incur about $325,000 in current year salary cap through this deal, according to PuckPedia. However, they get out of Farabee’s $5 million cap hit over the next two seasons. Moreover, they avoid a potentially expensive extension for Frost.
All in all, this is not the worst move for the Flyers. It’s a bit uninspiring when looking at what the players are. But there is potential for Kuzmenko and Pelletier to find their games in Philadelphia. The real win is gaining salary cap flexibility, which could allow them to strike big for a long-term center down the line.
Flames trade for Joel Farabee
The Calgary Flames wanted a center, and Morgan Frost is a great fit for the role. As mentioned, he showed he could produce at a high level rather recently. He could become the team’s second-line center in the future and help provide needed playmaking higher in the lineup.
The intriguing part of this trade is the inclusion of Joel Farabee. Farabee has shown he can score at an incredible clip. For instance, had the 2020-21 season been a full 82 games, his pace would have seen him finish with 30 goals. However, he has struggled with inconsistency in recent seasons.
If he can rediscover his scoring touch, this isn’t the worst move for the Flames. He could join Frost on the second line and bang in the goals. Farabee could also become a valuable power-play option for Calgary. The fit in the lineup is easy to see. But at the same time, it’s also to see how it could fall flat.
In the end, the cost isn’t entirely steep on paper. The second-round pick is a lot to cough up, especially without salary retention in this deal. But sending Kuzmenko’s $5.5 million salary out for this season cancels it out. For this season, at least. Kuzmenko is a free agent at the end of the year.
Pelletier is a player who has some upside. And it seemed like the Flames wanted him to be a part of their future. However, he has not played well offensively in the slightest. It may be a bit early to give up on him, especially in favor of inconsistent players. But they are more established, so the Flames know what they’re getting.
In the end, this is not a perfect trade for the Flames, either. They get two players who could work out for them in the long run. In the same vein as how Kuzmenko and Pelletier could work for the Flyers. Until that happens, though, it’s hard to give them the highest of grades.
Grades and final thoughts
Both the Flames and Flyers get above-average marks for their part in the Joel Farabee trade. Neither side truly moved the needle or added a game-breaking talent. Instead, they got something they needed for pieces that weren’t working out. The Flames received a center and scoring winger while the Flyers avoided having to pay those players. In saying this, there is a non-zero chance this blows up in both their faces. Such is the risk of trading in the NHL, one would suppose.
Philadelphia Flyers grade: B-
Calgary Flames grade: B-
