The Philadelphia Flyers have traded forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost to the Calgary Flames in exchange for wingers Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier, along with a 2025 second-round pick and a 2028 seventh-round pick, both teams confirmed Thursday night.
All players involved are likely looking for a change of scenery as Kuzmenko and Farabee were struggling with under 20 points this season. Kuzmenko notably was looking for a new home after Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman revealed, the Russian winger had waived his no-trade clause to let the deal play out.
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The Flyers desperately need to make a change as they have the third-lowest odds to make the playoffs at +830 and can hopefully build towards something with the new additions. Frost will be a big loss for Philadelphia as he leaves the team where he was fourth on the team in points with 25 in 48 games.
Calgary is looking to stay in the hunt as they are 25-18-7 this season and find themselves in a tight battle for a wild card spot. They are +172 to make the playoffs and likely made the move, hoping it would keep the team’s foot on the gas.
The Flames newest additions in Farabee and Frost are two former first round picks and at one point held high prospect pedigree. They’ve both spent their entire careers with the Flyers organization and have both seen solid years with roughly 45-50 points. If the Flames can get the same level of production out of the two, this could be a great deal for them.
Kuzmenko, 28, will be joining his third team after being traded to the Flames from the Canucks, where he blazed onto the scene with nearly 40 goals and totalling 74 points in his rookie campaign. He has since struggled to find the same magic with 61 points over the last two and a half seasons. The Flyers will hope to help him find that level once again.
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Philadelphia should get a new fan favorite in the deal with Pelletier. The high-flying physical winger plays Flyers-style hockey and has the best point per game average of any player in the deal this season with 11 points in 23 games played.
The 23-year-old Quebec native was the Flames’ first round pick in 2019 and is finally getting his first opportunity with the team and he has made his presence felt with his work ethic.
