Jan. 31: Both teams officially announced the swap late last night. It’s the Flames’ own 2025 second-rounder and their 2028 seventh-rounder heading to the Flyers.
Jan. 30: The Flames and Flyers are working on a trade that will send winger Andrei Kuzmenko to Philadelphia, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet adds that winger Jakob Pelletier is heading to the Flyers as part of the swap. Heading Calgary’s way in return are forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost, Seravalli reports. Friedman adds that the Flyers were on Kuzmenko’s 12-team no-trade list, but he waived the clause to make the move happen. Finally, Seravalli reports a second-round and seventh-round pick are headed to the Flyers along with Pelletier and Kuzmenko to complete the trade.
To put things plainly, Kuzmenko is a pending unrestricted free agent needing a change of scenery. The soon-to-be 29-year-old has struggled to stay in the lineup this season despite a $5.5MM cap hit. While he missed some time due to a lower-body injury in December, he was recently a healthy scratch for a three-game stretch and has been limited to 37 of Calgary’s 49 games overall. In those appearances, the Russian sniper is averaging just over one shot on goal per game and has converted at a career-worst 10.3% rate, working out to only four goals and 11 assists for 15 points.
That dip in production is evidence of the 5’11” winger’s inconsistency, but he’s shown flashes of proper top-six play since arriving in the NHL as an undrafted free agent signing by the Canucks in 2022. He erupted for 39 goals and 74 points in his rookie season while playing primarily on Elias Pettersson’s wing, shooting at a league-high 27.3% and averaging over 16 minutes per game with strong possession metrics (52.9 CF%, 55.2 xGF% at even strength).
Kuzmenko landed a rich two-year, $11MM extension midway through his rookie campaign as a result of his efforts, but it’s been marred by up-and-down play. His production dropped to eight goals and 21 points through the first 43 games of the 2023-24 campaign before he was sent to Calgary in the deal that sent Elias Lindholm to the Canucks. He rediscovered his sharp-shooting ways after the move to Alberta, ending the season with 14 goals and 11 assists for 25 points in 29 appearances. He was the second-most productive Flames forward after the swap on a per-game basis, trailing only Nazem Kadri (36 points in 33 games).
But as in Vancouver, Kuzmenko hasn’t been able to carry his production over into year two with his new club. His minus-seven rating ranks fourth-worst on the team, but possession metrics paint a much rosier picture. His 53.6 CF% at even strength is sixth on the team and fourth among forwards, while his expected +1.9 rating is fifth. He’s not generating nearly enough individual offense to make his strength as a scorer shine through, but he’s not been a meaningful liability away from the puck, either.
Philly picks up an inconsistent but high-ceiling option on the wing in Kuzmenko, and they pick up a similar but younger archetype in Pelletier. Selected in the first round by the Flames in 2019, he’s only just beginning to break through as an impact NHLer. The 23-year-old has only 10 points in 37 career appearances entering the season and even cleared waivers on his way down to the minors at the beginning of the season. He’s gotten more chances in the NHL lineup as the campaign has progressed, though, and has earned an everyday role in the lineup over the last six weeks.
Since first being recalled at the beginning of December, Pelletier is tied for sixth on the Flames in scoring with 11 points (4 G, 7 A) in 23 games. He also has a team-high +10 rating during that span despite averaging only 12:57 per game. There’s significant upside with both players, especially if thrust into consistent top-six roles.
The Flyers also open up some long-term flexibility by dealing Farabee, who’s had similar struggles to Kuzmenko this season, to Calgary. He costs slightly less than Kuzmenko against the cap – $500K, to be exact – but is signed through the 2027-28 campaign. Philadelphia will get out of Kuzmenko’s deal in a few months and also open up short-term cap space by swapping the $2.1MM Frost for a six-figure Pelletier.
Farabee has a much longer NHL track record than Kuzmenko despite being four years younger, but he’s also failed to flash the ceiling Kuzmenko has. His career-highs only check in at 22 goals and 50 points, both set last season while skating in all 82 games for Philadelphia. The 2018 first-rounder has 90 goals and 201 points in 383 career outings for the Flyers since entering the league six years ago.
At 24 years old (25 in a few weeks), Farabee fits the Flames’ retooling timeline better than Kuzmenko, and even if his $5MM cap hit is steep for his inconsistent production, he’s cost-controlled in the event he breaks out. This season has been difficult for Farabee, who’s shooting at a career-worst 8.1% and has eight goals with 11 assists for 19 points through 49 games. That’s the worst point-per-game pace of his career by a decent margin, and his possession impacts are also among the worst on the Flyers. While the cost control could be a gift if he returns to a 50-point pace in top-nine minutes, Calgary is taking on a significant amount of risk with three more seasons left on his contract.
They do pick up a promising young center in Frost, matching the type of player general manager Craig Conroy has been looking to acquire since their hot start to the season. Calgary was among the teams to check in with the Sabres on Dylan Cozens’ availability, Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic said a couple of weeks ago, but Frost is a much lower-risk option contractually as a pending restricted free agent with a $2.4MM qualifying offer.
Frost, 25, was a first-rounder in 2017 and ranks fifth on the Flyers in scoring with 25 points (11 G, 14 A) through 48 games. He was an eyebrow-raising healthy scratch on a few occasions early in the season but has played every game since Nov. 23. He’s on pace to produce in the 40-50 point range for three years straight now, averaging north of 15 minutes per game and steadily improving in the faceoff circle. His 51.6% win rate on draws this season is a career-high and immediately ranks tops among Flames with at least 100 attempts this season.
The Flames ended up with a net cap gain of $800K in the swap, a negligible figure considering they entered the night with nearly $44MM in current space, per PuckPedia. No corresponding transactions will be required to execute the deal with an equal number of roster players changing hands, either.
Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period was the first to report the Flames were sending draft picks to the Flyers to complete the deal.
Kuzmenko is gonna break Torts after about 2 lazy shifts. Guy is gonna have an aneurysm.
hah yeah was about to say the same thing. This trade idea seems crazy
There’s been rumors he’s going back to the K this summer anyway. I think they’re seeing if he can elevate Michkov and don’t really care if he doesn’t since he just matches Farabee’s cap hit for this season to make the trade work otherwise. Pelletier can pretty much fill right into Farabee’s spot for about $4mil less and Frost was due for a raise that I wouldn’t have been super thrilled about committing to. Now they have some financial flexibility to go after a more expensive player (Hi Canucks) or get creative with the roster.
I don’t think people are talking enough, including it not even being written in this article, about the fact a big part of this trade is that Kuzmenko gives Michkov a fellow Russian forward who can translate for him. I don’t know if people outside the Flyers fanbase realize that Michkov can’t speak English and this season he’s had to have weekly one on one meetings with Torts and a translator to discuss coaching and improvement. Having a guy who can in the middle of a game translate on the bench and play with him is a big boost.
Horrible trade by Philly
Conroy picked their pocket, unless the pick is a 1st.
2nd and 2028 7th
He may also have bailed them out of a cap jam as Farabee has 3 more years on his contract.
Cap jam? 5 million isn’t much and the cap is going up.
This is just a salary dump by Flyers so they have cap room to go after big free agent this off season. Can now trade Risto and Laughton to open up more space. Not like they were a playoff team and Torts hates Farabee and Frost.
Terrible trade for the Flyers. Farabee and Frost will flourish in Calgary.
Not really.
Looks like a “win win” for both teams. Although I don’t like it for either team
A win/win but you don’t like it for either team? Where do you come up with this stuff?
Flyers got fleeced. 2 good middle 6 forwards that will only get better for Calgary imo
Flames get better in the short term, which is understandable as they are much closer to the playoffs. Neither Farabee nor Frost were living up to expectations in Philly, so management decided to send a message to the rest of the room and save some cash in the process.
Briere got pants.
No the Flames got 3 years of Farabee at 5 mil per.
This forum is why the comments are often the best part of this site. A bunch of you think it is a great deal for the Flames. Except for the bunch of you who think it is a great deal for the Flyers. Except for the guy who thinks it is a win/win for both teams but doesn’t like the deal for either team. To all of you: please, please keep posting!
What’s your opinion?
You’d have to actually watch hockey to have an opinion on hockey.
We were all waiting for doghockey to tell us what to think, but beings you delayed, us rebellious peasants became restless and broke protocal.
He’s too busy watching VGKs cap numbers to watch hockey.
Farabees money is off the books! Yeaaaa
Pro Hockey Rumors is currently looking for writers, Let’s see what you’ve got pretty boy! There will be one requirement, You have to know hockey, Is that going to be a problem?
Your grammar and punctuation is brutal,Mr.Pro.Hockey.Rumors writer.
The Flames need Frost to find his ceiling and for Farabee to rebound to win this deal. If they don’t, this trade keeps the Flames in the mushy middle.
The Flyers made an NBA trade here. Got a good (I guess, never paid attention to Pelletier) young player and, after they either flip Kuzmenko or let him walk, get some cap space for some guys they didn’t love. Their risk in this deal is low and they have options now.
briere basically traded farabee and frost for a 2nd ,with hopes of getting a 2nd or 3rd for kuzmenko pelletier will be sent down,seems fair 2 seconds for farabee and frost
Kuzmenko isn’t bringing a 2nd or 3rd back, lolz.
He cleared 10 million in cap space for an underperforming wing.
These are all bad contracts. Whomever pays less, wins.
I don’t think this is too bad for the Flyers. Farabee and Frost are fine but probably were never going to be good 2nd liners in Philly. To get cap space, a second, and a potential everyday player in Pelletier isn’t that bad of a haul for fairly limited players. I could also see both doing much better for the Flames outside of Torts’ system, so it’s a worthwhile gamble for Calgary.
There’s the potential that both Frost and Farabee will play to a higher level now that they’re free from Torts, so I like this trade for the Flames. Outside of the cap space angle, I’d be disapointed as a Flyers fan.
Have you watched them? Lol
If you watch them play then there’s reason to be optimistic about them in Calgary. I don’t think Frost was a good fit for the Flyers grit and grind defensive style of hockey. With the Flames there should be more space to operate and I think they will utilize his offensive skill set better.
Actually I have. Have you?
Flyers are in a rebuild; this trade will help them lose a few more games and get them a guaranteed top 10 pick (perhaps top 5) in the draft plus gives them extra cap flexibility for next season and beyond. They now have 8 picks in the top 50 in 2025 the draft. I expect another trade before the deadline (Risto and/or Laughton) to create even more cap space/extra picks then perhaps hunt for 1C in the offseason. Farabee hit his ceiling, I like Frost’s upside but it was the cost of getting rid of Farabee’s contract. The players coming back likely will not have a future in Philly so can only judge this trade in the future.
Will Tortorella be around for the rebuild? I like Ristolainen’s game this year but Drysdale, no.
They are in the middle of the rebuild. Question is whether Torts will be around afterwards. Ristolainen has played well recently and is a luxury at $5.1m for another 2 seasons; he has trade value and contenders should have interest. Drysdale has been terrible and has zero trade value. Couturier’s contract is the albatross at $7.75m for another 4 seasons…
I think the Flyers will draft their 1C. They now have 3 picks in the first round, 4 seconds, and 3 thirds. This is before any Risto or Laughton trades. Frost and Farabee were change of scenery guys and getting a second, a young player with upside, cap space, and a Russian player who can help Michkov are all good things. It’s also going to help them lose more and draft higher.
Totally agree. It gives the Flyers more optionality in the offseason. They were not making the playoffs this year either way…
And it probably means they hold onto Laughton since they are so thin down the middle which is good for the locker room and solid value with a cap hit at $3m for next couple of years
The only way this season is a failure is if they end up drafting in the middle of the first again. They are several years away from contention. They have some defensive depth, they have a star in Michkov, their goalie depth in the system suggests that they are good going forward, Jett looks like he could be a 2C, and they have some second and third line guys in Konecny, Tippett, and Forrester. What they need are a 1C and a 1D.
The Flyers didn’t have much leeway in the Cutter Gauthier trade but perhaps Briere thought he was getting another Ryan Ellis, the one they had but never got to play. Trouble is that Drysdale is no Ryan Ellis offensively and defensively he is a liability. Agree about Coots, a legacy of the failed GM Chuck Fletcher. A buyout looms on the horizon. It’s Comcast’s money; glad it’s not mine.
I’m definitely in the “good trade for both teams” camp. They’re both exchanging gambles, and sometimes that’s all you need to restart someone’s career. Good hockey trade.
Pelletier is positive force, he was waived earlier this season but has comeback with a passion. I think Philly fans will be pleasantly surprised by his motor, work ethic and hockey sense. The Flames are going to miss him, and the fans too. But as they say, you have to give up something good to get something good. Hopefully both teams can benefit from this trade.
Kuzmenko has tremendous skill, but he has to be engaged to use it. I’m not too sure how Torts will deal with his lack of commitment on the defensive side though.