Just over nine months ago, two young general managers made a deal as their teams were playing.<\/p>\n
At 12:41 a.m. on Jan. 31, the official email sent out word that the Flyers and Calgary Flames had swapped players in a trade. Ahead of the two teams meeting Sunday at Xfinity Mobile Arena (7 p.m., NBCSP+), let\u2019s revisit the trade.<\/p>\n
Who was involved in the Flyers-Flames trade?<\/p>\n
Calgary Flames received: Forwards Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee<\/p>\n
Flyers received: Wingers Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier, a second-round pick in 2025, and a seventh-rounder in 2028. <\/p>\n
What happened to Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost?<\/p>\n
Farabee and Frost were both first-round draft picks for the Flyers. Frost was selected No. 27 overall in 2017 and Farabee went No. 14 overall a year later. Both picks were acquired in the Brayden Schenn trade to the St. Louis Blues in 2017.<\/p>\n
\u00bb READ MORE: Flyers takeaways: Outshooting the Maple Leafs but missing opportunities, penalty kill excelling, and more<\/a><\/p>\n And both needed a change of scenery<\/a> to spark their games. Frost, 26, wrapped up his Flyers career with 135 points (50 goals, 85 assists) in 278 games. The 25-year-old Farabee collected 201 points (90 goals, 111 assists) across 384 games with the Orange and Black, including career highs of 22 goals and 50 points in 2023-24.<\/p>\n After moving to Alberta, Frost notched 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in 32 games last season, with Farabee chipping in six points (three goals, three assists) in 31.<\/p>\n This season, Frost has settled in with two goals and seven points in 13 games. He had a five-game point streak (five points) snapped Saturday night in the Flames\u2019 4-2 loss to the Nashville Predators. Although he primarily played center in Philly, Frost has spent the past four games on the wing, skating on Calgary\u2019s top line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri.<\/p>\n Like the 2-9-2 Flames this season, Farabee\u2019s game is still finding a rhythm. He has two goals and six points across 13 games this season, but is on a four-game point streak with four points (two goals, two assists).<\/p>\n What happened to Andrei Kuzmenko and Jakob Pelletier?<\/p>\n After dealing with visa issues and finally suiting up after the 4 Nations Face-Off break, neither Kuzmenko nor Pelletier stayed for long with the Flyers organization.<\/p>\n Kuzemko played well, highlighted by his five points in seven games, including two on the power play. But his tenure ended after 35 days as he was dealt at the trade deadline to the Los Angeles Kings with a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft (Will Sharpe) for a third-rounder in 2027.<\/p>\n The Russian scored five goals and 17 points with a plus-minus of plus-6 in 22 games for L.A. One of the criticisms by former coach John Tortorella<\/a> was Kuzmenko\u2019s defense.<\/p>\n \u00bb READ MORE: Flyers three-game win streak snapped as they\u2019re unable to shake off Maple Leafs inside Xfinity Mobile Arena<\/a><\/p>\n This season, he has three goals and seven points in 13 games, including two goals and three points on the power play for the Kings. He is skating on the top line with captain and center An\u017ee Kopitar and winger Adrian Kempe.<\/p>\n Pelletier spent the rest of the 2024-25 season with the Flyers, bringing enthusiasm and drive to the lineup. But he didn\u2019t really show what he could bring on a nightly basis until Tortorella was fired in late March. Under Tortorella, he had three assists in 16 games while averaging 9 minutes, 34 seconds of ice time. Across the final nine games under interim coach Brad Shaw, he had five points (two goals, three assists) and averaged 12:12 of ice time.<\/p>\n Not given a qualifying offer, Pelletier became an unrestricted free agent and signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 2. He has been playing with Syracuse of the American Hockey League and has 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in nine games this season.<\/p>\n Who did the Flyers take with the 2025 second-round pick?<\/p>\n The Flyers used the 2025 second-round pick \u2014 which ironically was No. 48 of the draft, the same number Danny Bri\u00e8re<\/a> wore \u2014 to take Shane Vansaghi. <\/p>\n The rugged winger was impressive at development camp with his grit, forechecking, hitting, and overall game. A 6-foot-2, 215-pound winger, he earned the nickname \u201cThe Mack Truck\u201d from Flyers director of player development Riley Armstrong.<\/p>\n Drafted out of Michigan State, Vansaghi left development camp focused. The St. Louis native had six goals and 16 points in 37 games for the Spartans as a freshman, playing on the fourth line.<\/p>\n \u201cI always want more. I\u2019m never satisfied. And I want to score more goals, want to have more hits, want to earn more ice time,\u201d he said in July.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s really no expectations,\u201d he added. \u201cI\u2019m going to show up at Michigan State, and I\u2019m going to do everything I can to prove to the coaching staff that I belong up in the lineup, playing more minutes, and that\u2019s my goal. I believe I can do that, and I think that, just like my self-belief and confidence, will get me there.\u201d<\/p>\n This season, he has a goal and an assist in six games for the Spartans, the No. 1 team in NCAA hockey. Vansaghi has been a staple on the second line alongside Gavin O\u2019Connell and Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Cayden Lindstrom. <\/p>\n \u00bb READ MORE: \u2018Always going to be home for me\u2019: Scott Laughton reflects on his life and legacy with the Flyers<\/a><\/p>\n In October, in front of several members of the Flyers front office, including president Keith Jones<\/a>, Bri\u00e8re, and Armstrong, Vansaghi led the way for the Spartans as he consistently controlled the boards, was strong on the puck, and drove to the net in back-to-back wins against Boston University, then the No. 1 team in the country. On the first night, he had a game-high 10 shot attempts and tied teammate Maxim Strb\u00e1k with six shots on goal, including one that found the back of the net.<\/p>\n What is the trade grade today?<\/p>\n At the time, the grade was a B.<\/a> Today, the grade is a B+.<\/p>\n The core of this trade was always about freeing up cap space for the Flyers. Farabee is signed at a $5 million cap hit through the 2027-28 season, and Frost, who was a pending restricted free agent, was expected to receive a qualifying offer with a minimum of $2.4 million; he signed a two-year deal with an annual average value of $4.375 million with the Flames.<\/p>\n Dumping their salaries and Kuzmenko\u2019s \u2014 he was an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season \u2014 opened up the Flyers\u2019 wallets. Kuzmenko got a one-year deal at $4.3 million.<\/p>\n With the space, they were able to sign current NHLers Christian Dvorak and Noah Juulsen to one-year stopgap deals as young stars grow their game in the AHL. Dan Vlada\u0159, who has been outstanding and has maybe supplanted Sam Ersson<\/a> for the top spot in goal, signed to a two-year deal.<\/p>\n But the real focus has always been the summer of 2026. The Flyers have several restricted free agents, including forwards Trevor Zegras<\/a>, Nikita Grebenkin, and Bobby Brink<\/a>, defenseman Jamie Drysdale<\/a>, and Ersson. Puckpedia has the Flyers\u2019 cap space at $47.65 million. <\/p>\n The only question, while the focus was always on big-game hunting next summer, is if there will be anyone left, as some of the biggest names like Jack Eichel, Connor McDavid, and Kirill Kaprizov have all been locked up by their current teams.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Just over nine months ago, two young general managers made a deal as their teams were playing. 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