The Colorado Avalanche went all out at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline. Colorado made a major trade with the Buffalo Sabres, sending Bowen Byram out of town in exchange for Casey Mittelstadt. However, there was a move prior to that. The Avalanche acquired defenseman Sean Walker from the Philadelphia Flyers that same day.
Colorado acquired Walker and a 2026 fifth-round pick from Philadelphia in the deal. In exchange, veteran forward Ryan Johansen and a 2025 first-round pick went to the Flyers. Johansen was waived shortly after the trade became official, though. And it appears unlikely he ever plays for the team.
With all this in mind, let's take a deeper look at this trade. How does it shake out for the Avalanche and Flyers? Here are our NHL trade grades for Colorado and Philadelphia for the Sean Walker deal.
Avalanche trade for Sean Walker
Usually, other trades don't factor into these NHL trade grades. It's about grading the deal on its own merits and seeing how each team does. However, the Byram trade feels somewhat connected to this one, even if they are officially separate moves.
Let's focus on Walker first and foremost. The pending free agent is having a career season following an offseason trade from the Los Angeles Kings. He went to Philadelphia as a mere cap dump. But he became a force on their second pairing and one of the top defensemen on the trade market this season.
Of course, there will be concerns about whether Walker can maintain this level of play. Especially considering that they did give up a once-dominant 22-year-old Stanley Cup champion with a ton of upside to make room for him. That said, this trade did accomplish one important matter: getting out of Johansen's contract.
Johansen came to the Avalanche as the hopeful second-line center. However, it simply didn't work. Johansen struggled to produce offensively in Colorado. And recent reports indicate there was friction between Colorado's stars and the veteran center.
In any event, getting out of Johansen's cap hit allowed them to make this deal. Furthermore, it gave them room to add Mittelstadt and provided enough depth to justify trading Byram. On paper, Walker is an upgrade over the young Byram, but time will tell how this works out. For now, it's a solid deal for Colorado.
Flyers trade Sean Walker
The Flyers were in a playoff decision at the time of this deal. They tried to extend the 29-year-old Sean Walker, but the two sides couldn't agree to terms. As a result, they sell high on a player who burst onto the scene this season. And they good a respectable return for their efforts.
As mentioned, Johansen likely won't play for Philadelphia. There is some injury issue with the veteran center going on right now. But once that clears up, he likely spends the rest of the season in the AHL. He was included because the Avalanche needed to get out of the cap hit, and Philadelphia had the space to take him on.
The Flyers wanted to receive a first-round pick in return for Walker, and they got it. In all honesty, you could argue they needed to receive a first in any trade. The team is in a playoff spot. Trading a valuable player for anything less would have been disastrous. If taking on Johansen is the price to pay, it's an easy one for general manager Daniel Briere.
Philadelphia showed impressive asset management here. They took on Walker in the summer to fill space on the roster in what was supposed to be a rough season. Instead, he helped the team contend for the playoffs before fetching them a first-round pick. This is fine work for the Flyers.
Grades and final thoughts
The Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche receive relatively similar marks for the Sean Walker trade. Philadelphia gets a slight edge in this deal, though. They are trading the best player in the deal, but they did well to get the return they received here. Colorado upgrades on the blueline, but it's hard to ignore what they may have traded away in Bowen Byram in order to make this move. Still, it's certainly not a terrible move from Colorado.
Colorado Avalanche: B+
Philadelphia Flyers: A-
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