True to his word, Flyers general manager Daniel Briere pulled the trigger on a trade Wednesday which could be the first of several.
With the NHL trade deadline coming up on Friday, Briere moved aggressively by acquiring Colorado center Ryan Johansen and a 2025 first-round draft pick in exchange for defenseman Sean Walker and a fifth-round pick in 2026.
Johansen, 31, shoots right-handed. The Vancouver native goes 6-foot-3, 198 pounds. He was selected fourth overall in the 2010 NHL Draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets.
He played four-plus seasons in Columbus, then was traded to the Nashville Predators during the 2015-16 season. After the 2022-23 season, he went to the Avalanche.
In 905 NHL games, Johansen has scored 202 goals with 376 assists for 578 points.
This season he has played in 63 games with 13 goals and 10 assists for 23 points.
He is signed for the rest of this season plus next season at $8-million per year. That will be the final season of an eight-year contract with Nashville.
Walker, 29, was acquired in last year’s Ivan Provorov trade with Los Angeles.
In 63 games with the Flyers, he produced six goals/22 points with a plus-9. He was a steady performer for the Flyers and was a big part of why the Flyers lead the NHL in shorthanded goals with 14. His steady partner was Nick Seeler.
One of the key reasons Walker was expendable was because he is not signed for next season and can become an unrestricted free agent.
