NHL Trade Grades: Flyers Send Frost and Farabee to Flames for Kuzmenko and Pelletier

NHL Trade Grades: Flyers Send Frost and Farabee to Flames for Kuzmenko and Pelletier0 of 2

Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The amount of trade drama in the NHL this season is remarkable given that the trade deadline is still a month away.

The Calgary Flames and Philadelphia Flyers combined to add their own chaotic twist to the cocktail, executing a trade while both teams were in the middle of their games. Media reports signaled an incoming move involving players who were literally in the lineup.

Frank Seravalli @frank_seravalliFull trade with pick detail, per sources:

To #Flames:
Joel Farabee
Morgan Frost

To #Flyers:
Jakob Pelletier
Andrei Kuzmenko
CGY 2025 2nd Round Pick
CGY 2028 7th Round Pick

The Flames added two players who will help reshape their identity now and in the future, while the Flyers cleared the decks of players who did not fit their long-term version.

Let’s evaluate the players involved and assess the deal’s merits for both the Flyers and Flames.

Calgary Flames1 of 2

David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Morgan Frost is a middle-six center who plays a 200-foot game. The 2017 first-round pick likes to get a lot of touches on the puck in the defensive and neutral zones. I like his skating, and he has good spatial awareness and a nice touch on the puck. Those tools make him good at finding teammates through the neutral zone to establish offensive zone possession.

A once-dominant offensive producer in the OHL, Frost hasn’t quite involved himself offensively as expected. He wasn’t able to consistently create scoring chances in Philadelphia, and he’s hovered around a 40-point average in his NHL career, peaking at 46 points in 2022-23.

With strong defensive performances and proven secondary offense, Frost is already a strong third-line caliber center. Even at age 25, there is potential for more now that he is away from John Tortorella’s tight grasp. He’s a nice fit for a Flames team whose top-six centers are currently the 34-year-old Nazem Kadri and 35-year-old Mikael Backlund, the latter of whom is particularly overutilized.

Joel Farabee, a winger, was the 14th overall pick in the 2018 NHL draft and has shown promise in his early NHL career. As a 20-year-old, he tallied 20 goals in 55 games in 2021. Even last season, when he and Tortorella didn’t see eye-to-eye, Farabee hit the 50-point mark.

Farabee’s game has fallen off this season, and it was time for the two sides to part ways. He’s still only 24 years old and has proven plenty in the NHL already.

Despite barely clocking at 6″0, Farabee has shown a willingness to play bigger than his size. In juniors, he was tenacious in the corners and around the net and sacrificial in the defensive zone. He hasn’t quite brought that to the NHL yet but, this season aside, Farabee has been an engine for offense.

There’s a reason why the Flyers signed him to a six-year, $30 million contract in 2021. He’ll have a chip on his shoulder in Calgary, and there is every reason to believe he could be a top-six winger for the next six-plus seasons.

Last season’s liquidation of most of the Flames’ core leaves general manager Craig Conroy trying to build anew. But in a transition season, rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf has boosted the Flames somewhat unexpectedly into the middle of the Western Conference playoff mix.

The acquisition of Frost and Farabee is a creative way to improve the roster that fits with the team’s realistic trajectory. They’re a better team now, but more importantly, the Flames brought in two young players who are under team control and could be fixtures on a good team as soon as next season.

Grade: A

Philadelphia Flyers2 of 2

Terence Lewis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

There is one angle to this trade that makes some sense for Philadelphia. Head coach John Tortorella, ever the stickler for details, has this team playing remarkably structured hockey.

With competent goaltending, the Flyers are a comfortable playoff team. However, they have limited cap space and no notable contracts coming off the books in the offseason.

Aside from goaltending, Philly lacks top-of-the-line talent. No disrespect to Owen Tippett and Travis Sanheim, but those two cannot be the best players on a team aspiring for anything more than 94 points and a first-round playoff exit. Between Farabee ($5 million through 2028) and Frost ($2.1 million now and due for a raise in the summer), GM Daniel Briere cleared out two mid-tier players to create wiggle room for upgrades.

Less understandable is how the Flyers got so little for two young, established NHLers.

Jakob Pelletier, who turns 24 in early March, has 21 points in 61 career NHL games. To be fair, he’s played much better than those numbers indicate, and he’s averaging under 13 minutes this season. The 5’9″ winger plays with a lot of heart and was dominant in minor-league hockey. He has a realistic chance to become a top-nine NHL winger.

Andrei Kuzmenko has had an up-and-down NHL career. He scored 39 goals in 2022-23 in Vancouver, and after a change-of-scenery trade to Calgary last season, he got hot with 25 points in 29 games. However, he has been pedestrian this season and fell out of favor in Calgary.

The almost-29-year-old has a $5.5 million cap hit, but his contract expires after the season. Maybe he catches fire in Philadelphia and re-signs, or maybe the Flyers flip him before the deadline for another asset.

Both players could provide value, but what stands out is how little market value the Flyers wrung from Calgary. Just months ago, Pelletier was on waivers as a free asset. Kuzmenko was a lame duck at the lowest value of his short NHL career.

Second- and seventh-round picks hardly make up the difference, given that Philadelphia traded two players with the track records and upside that Frost and Farabee offer.

Grade: C-