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The Philadelphia Flyers are looking to the future, and with that comes the expectation they'll offload Claude Giroux at the NHL trade deadline. The veteran center should have a plethora of teams interested in bringing him aboard, and he could be a key contributor to any contending team.
Giroux has spent his entire 15-year career with the Flyers, and is set to take part in his 1000th game on Thursday night against the Nashville Predators. There's a belief that the organization will wait until after Giroux's 1000th game before offloading him. Still, that means the 34-year-old could be with a new team as early as Friday.
This season, Giroux has featured in 56 games for the Flyers. He has 18 goals to his name in 2021-22, alongside 24 assists for a total of 42 points. While no longer the player he once was back when he provided the Flyers with 102 points in his All-Star season in 2017-18, Giroux could still be a valuable addition for teams in need of a center.
With all of that in mind, here are a few teams that would be great fits to land Claude Giroux from the Flyers.
Flyers' Claude Giroux destinations at 2022 NHL trade deadline
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With the Lightning looking to earn a three-peat of Stanley Cup titles, they'll need all the firepower they can get. After losing some offensive firepower this offseason, the Lightning still look formidable as ever, but if they want to put themselves above the competition, Giroux would be a great addition. Giroux is an experienced scorer who could step into the third line in Tampa Bay as a veteran leader. The Lightning don't have a trove of draft capital to offer in a Giroux deal, but if they can find a way to make a deal worth with the Flyers, it would be a huge boost to the team as they look to make NHL history.
The Florida Panthers are all-in on winning the title this season, and have been scoring in bunches throughout the year. Jonathan Huberdeau can seemingly put the puck on his teammates' stick at will, and adding another seasoned scorer to the mix such as Giroux would be beneficial to the entire roster. Florida could offload some future draft picks and a young asset or two in order to bring Giroux to the team and further improve their chances of winning it all this year. The Panthers know their window for a championship isn't exactly wide, so going all-in in 2022 and landing a player of Giroux's caliber at the deadline could be a difference-maker down the line for Florida.
The Colorado Avalanche are loaded at virtually every position on the ice. Despite the talent on the roster, there's one area of weakness the Aves should be trying to improve upon. The team is among the worst in hockey when it comes to faceoff percentage, and adding Giroux would be a perfect way to address that area of need. Giroux is one of the best in the league when it comes to faceoffs, which would generate more time in the attacking third for the Avalanche, who are one of the highest-scoring teams in the league. The Aves have been linked to Giroux in recent weeks, and the fit makes perfect sense. With Giroux able to secure more possession for the team, players like Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar, and Gabriel Landeskog would stand to get more looks on goal.
