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The Philadelphia Flyers are in the thick of the playoff race in 2024-25. They have work to do in a tight Wild Card race, however. Many expected the Flyers to make a trade leading into the March 7th deadline. And it appears like they have identified Calgary Flames winger Andrei Kuzmenko as a fit for their team.
The Flyers are trading for Kuzmenko, according to Daily Faceoff insider Frank Seravalli. This move reunites the four-year veteran with Philadelphia's star prospect Matvei Michkov. Michkov and Kuzmenko played together in the KHL with SKA St. Petersburg during the 2021-22 season.
The trade is not complete at this point in time. However, we do know the parameters of the trade. The Flames are sending Kuzmenko and forward Jakob Pelletier, as well as a second and seventh-round draft pick, to Philadephia, according to Seravalli. In return, the Flyers are sending forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost north of the border.
Andrei Kuzmenko has had an up-and-down four seasons in the NHL. At one point, it seemed as if he was a budding star sniper. He scored 39 goals in his rookie campaign with the Vancouver Canucks. However, he could not match that production in 2023-24. He had just eight goals in 43 games when the Canucks traded him to the Flames.
Kuzmenko had 14 goals in 29 games following the trade to Calgary last year. Unfortunately, he could not build upon this. He has just four goals this season through 37 games. Now, he'll try to bounce back with the Flyers.
Frost is a fit with the Flames given their need for a center high in the lineup. He is a restricted free agent at the end of this season. He had some consistency issues and some run-ins with head coach John Tortorella. As a result, they move on.
Farabee is similar to Kuzmenko with the inconsistency issues. However, he does not have a near-40-goal season under his belt. In fact, he has yet to score 25 goals in a single season to this point. In 2024-25, he has eight goals and 19 points in 49 games. He carries a $5 million cap hit through to the 2027-28 campaign.
Pelletier was once a top prospect for the Flames. Calgary seemed to have high hopes for his future. However, he has not produced well at the NHL level. This season, he has struggled with injury. He has skated in just 23 games to this point in the 2024-25 campaign. Pelletier has four goals and 11 points during that span.
