It has now been days since one single tweet has sent all of us into a dizzying spell of speculation. And, no, sorry this isn’t about Matvei Michkov reportedly coming to Philadelphia next season.
Last Wednesday, TSN’s Travis Yost reported that the Philadelphia Flyers and Ottawa Senators have a “framework of a trade” in place and since then both fan bases have been throwing out ideas of who could be involved and what the purpose of it could be. Players, picks, prospects — really anything feels possible between these two teams who have been linked for months.
We have already gone over who the Flyers could be targeting from Ottawa. With the aim to get younger and more skilled, it feels like there is a whole lot of options on that Senators team that the Flyers could be interested in. But what about the other side? What players on the Flyers could the Senators really want?
We know that Ottawa is kind of over rebuilding. They have traded away their last two first-round selections and already have all of their young players in the NHL. Essentially, they are where the Flyers want to be in a few years, to see the fruits of their drafts either make the NHL or not. But they do just need to make that next jump and they have already tried to do exactly that but it has backfired in a major way in the form of Alex DeBrincat no longer wanting to be in that city.
So, what Flyers could potentially be on the move and heading up north?
Scott Laughton
This feels like the most obvious answer. Scott Laughton has been linked to the Senators before and considering that he is known for his leadership and ability to rally his teammates, it just feels like exactly what a young team who needs to take that next step, wants to get more of.
And we all know that he essentially has one foot out of the door already. The Flyers have been in discussions with other teams about Laughton but aren’t saying that they are actively shopping him. But with two years remaining on his contract with a $3-million AAV, and him certainly not being around when this team is good again, the logical thing to do is to let him experience some potentially more enjoyable hockey with a more skilled team.
He might have hated the Senators growing up in a town close to Toronto, but it does seem like he could fit perfectly on that team that just needs an added boost to their floor. And maybe it could be good for Laughton too.
Joel Farabee
This feels like more of a longshot than Laughton taking his talents to the Canadian Tire Centre, but Joel Farabee is under contract for four more years and the Senators just need someone good who is going to be playing for them for a while. If the Flyers really feel like they can take advantage of the situation and move a player who probably hasn’t hit his ceiling in Philadelphia but might not be exactly the player they want when this team is good again, then they might just go for it.
Trading away Farabee does feel more like an odd move, but it would all be in the context of what the entire trade looks like. The Senators, as we have mentioned, clearly want some security, so would Farabee as the main piece back for defenseman Thomas Chabot make sense for both sides? Ottawa gets a young winger to help their scoring depth and Philadelphia gets to suddenly have a top-four of Cam York, Travis Sanheim, Jamie Drysdale, and Chabot — all four mobile blueliners who can distribute the puck.
It would need a whole lot to pry Farabee from this team, but no doubt the Senators are interested.
Rasmus Ristolainen
On the other side of the coin, compared to Farabee, the Flyers would love to have the Senators fall in love with acquiring the big, hulking Rasmus Ristolainen.
Ristolainen is under contract for three more years and has a $5.1-million cap hit. That is not very good for a team who probably puts him on their bottom pairing and needs some financial wiggle room to just exist. Ristolainen obviously plays a heavy game of hockey and there seems to be nothing the Senators want more than to balance out their skilled forwards and blueliners with some rugged tough guys.
On their blue line, the most physical player might be Artem Zub and then beyond that, it’s all about moving the puck and skill. And even upfront, you have Brady Tkachuk — perhaps the most physical forward in the league — and then not a whole lot else. If they want to burn some cap space and enjoy some physical hockey, maybe they really, desperately, want Ristolainen in Ottawa.
Plus, they can probably have him for almost nothing, at this point.
Travis Konecny
This is about who the Senators want from the Flyers, right? Because there is really no way that the Flyers are trading Konecny this summer, and especially to Ottawa.
We all know that the likely outcome of Konecny’s upcoming unrestricted free agent status next summer is that he signs a long-term deal to stay in Philadelphia that will get announced before the 2024-25 season starts. The team likes him too much, and he wants to stay here, so it’s a natural conclusion and now the two parties just need to decide on some numbers.
But, there are certainly some teams poking around and nabbing the Flyers’ best player and the Senators are most likely one of them. Konecny has connections to Ottawa, of course, having played junior hockey there, and the team could use a player like him. Hell, they drafted Tyler Boucher 10th overall not too long ago because he was a dude who likes to get physical and annoy opposing players, while also scoring at an okay clip. Konecny would be everything they dreamed of as a player.
But, he’s staying here and that is fine by us.
The Senators and Flyers are going to make a trade eventually. The only thing is we don’t even know if players, picks, prospects, or a combination of all three, will be involved — but all signs are pointing to something happening and it might be one of these players making the trip up to Ontario. If not, then that’s fine too.
