June 23rd has been more than a coincidence in recent Philadelphia Flyers history as the club has orchestrated 4 rather large trades between 2011 and 2017.
It started in 2011 with Mike Richards and Jeff Carter, happened again in 2012 with James van Riemsdyk, followed suit in 2014 with Scott Hartnell, and after a 3-year hiatus it took place again in 2017 with Brayden Schenn. On this day in history – 4 separate occasions – we look back at the infamous “trade day” that is the 23rd of June.
Mike Richards to LAK and Jeff Carter to CBJ, June 23rd, 2011
The franchise altering trades that some can argue the Flyers haven’t recovered from took place on the 23rd of June, 2011, and almost an hour apart from one another.
It was well documented that the two cornerstones had bumped heads with the coaching staff – primarily head coach Peter Laviolette – and were 2 of some that didn’t partake in the “Dry Island”. Their off-ice activities were well-documented for years but it never seemed to affect their on-ice play – or at least to the naked eye – since they were producing elite numbers on a yearly basis.
The captain and the heartbeat of the Flyers, Mike Richards produced 133 goals and 349 points across 6 seasons and 453 games. Between 2007-08 to 2010-11, Richards scored 112 goals and 283 points in just 315 games, while chipping in with 16 goals and 49 points in 57 post-season games during that span as well.
He was traded to the Los Angeles Kings along with Rob Bordson for Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds, and a 2nd round pick.
As for Jeff Carter, he scored 181 goals and 343 points in 461 games across the same 6 seasons as Richards from 2005-06 to 2010-11. He scored 115 goals and 211 points in his final 236 games for the Flyers, which included a 46-goal campaign in 2008-09 and then back-to-back 33+ goal seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11. His playoff numbers weren’t as good as Richards’ as he scored 13 goals and 21 points in 41 games between 2007-08 and 2010-11.
He was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Jakub Voracek, a first round pick which turned into Sean Couturier, and a third round pick which turned into Nick Cousins. Carter was relatively upset about the trade and didn’t initially report to Columbus. He found his way to Los Angeles at the trade deadline for Jack Johnson and the two former Flyers ended up playing instrumental roles in their Stanley Cup victory.
Richards’ career took a hard turn after Philadelphia and only lasted 5 more seasons before leaving the NHL at the age of 30. He scored 46 goals and 133 points in 257 games across 4 seasons in Los Angeles, while scoring 10 goals and 37 points in 61 playoff appearances in 3 seasons that ended with 2 Cups. He finished things out in Washington in 2015-16, playing in only 39 regular season games with 2 goals and 5 points, before going pointless in 12 postseason contests.
Carter spent the next 10 seasons in Los Angeles and is currently heading into his fourth season with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored 194 goals and 383 points in 580 games for the Kings, 41 goals and 85 points in 169 games for the Penguins, and chipped in with 15 goals and 25 points in 39 games for the Blue Jackets. He is a veteran of 1,249 games and 431 goals with 2 Cups and much better numbers in the post-season. He scored 26 goals and 53 points in 73 games for the Kings- including 10 goals and 25 points en route to his second Cup – and 10 points in 13 games for the Penguins.
Brayden Schenn played in 6 seasons with the Flyers, scored 109 goals and 246 points in 424 games before being traded – on the 23rd of June as well – to the St. Louis Blues in a deal that landed the Flyers 2 first round picks, which in turn became Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee. Schenn has played a near-identical 425 games, scored 131 goals and 341 points, and won a Stanley Cup in his second season with the Blues.
Wayne Simmonds became a premier power forward around the NHL during his 8-year tenure with the Flyers. He scored 203 goals and 378 points in 584 games but between 2011-12 and 2016-17 he scored 163 goals and 305 points in 447 games. That run included 2 seasons of 31+ goals and another 3 more seasons of 28+ goals. He was a fan favourite for his style of play, which unfortunately cut his time and production short. He finished his time in Philadelphia all banged up, had 16 goals and 27 points in 62 games before being traded to Nashville at the 2019 trade deadline and then had pit stops in New Jersey, Buffalo, and Toronto.
Sean Couturier has spent his entire 11-season career in Philadelphia, amassing 180 goals and 460 points in 721 games. Between 2017-18 and 2020-21, Couturier was a premier centre in the NHL with 104 goals and 252 points in just 276 games and winning the 2020 Selke Trophy for his defensive acumen. He got injured in 2021-22 and has yet to return to the ice but he is planning on making a comeback in 2023-24. He scored 30+ goals twice and registered 76 points in back to back years and built out a solid niche around the league as being one of the better two-way centres in the game.
James van Riemsdyk to TOR for Luke Schenn, June 23rd, 2012
After 3 underwhelming seasons in Philadelphia after being drafted 2nd overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, the Flyers decided it was high-time to ship out the recently-extended James van Riemsdyk to Toronto for Luke Schenn.
The elder brother of Brayden was more of a defensive defenseman but the Flyers felt that they needed to beef up on the back end and were willing to do a 1-for-1 deal that included one of their prime prospects at one point in time.
van Riemsdyk’s first Flyers tenure: 196 games played, 47 goals, 52 assists, 99 points, +13, 9 power play goals, 14:03 ATOI
With the Maple Leafs: 413 games played, 154 goals, 140 assists, 294 points, -47, 45 power play goals, 17:54 ATOI
He became a top power forward with the Maple Leafs that included 2 seasons of 30+ goals as well as 2 seasons with 60+ points. As for Schenn, he spent parts of 4 seasons in Philadelphia with 213 games under his belt, 12 goals and 42 points, 140 PIM, 18:16 ATOI, 712 hits, and 344 blocks. He became the whipping boy for a few seasons before being traded to the Los Angeles Kings in a deal that included Vincent Lecavalier for Jordan Weal.
Schenn has since spent time with the aforementioned Kings, Arizona Coyotes, Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning, and returned to the Toronto at this year’s trade deadline. He has 2 Stanley Cups under his belt from his time in Tampa Bay.
van Riemsdyk came back to Philadelphia after his contract expired in the summer of 2018 and scored 99 goals, 99 assists, 198 points, played in 331 games, was a -39, registered 33 power play goals, and averaged 15:54 TOI. He is set to hit unrestricted free agency on the 1st of July.
Scott Hartnell to CBJ for R.J. Umberger, June 23rd, 2014
Scott Hartnell was a member of the Flyers since the summer of 2007 when Paul Holmgren acquired his negotiating rights, alongside Kimmo Timonen, from the Nashville Predators for the 1st round pick they originally got from Nashville in the Peter Forsberg trade from the trade deadline.
Hartnell and Timonen signed 6-year deals almost immediately with the former’s contract coming in at $25.2 million total. He had come to Philadelphia on the heels of 7 seasons in Nashville, scoring 106 goals and 253 points in 498 games. In 7 years with Philadelphia, he scored 157 goals and 326 points in 517 games.
Hartnell had three 20+ goal seasons as well as two 30+ goal seasons, including a career-high 37 in 2011-12. He was premier power forward for that day and age, he racked up 908 PIM along the way, 931 hits, and 57 power play goals. Unfortunately, it was reported that there was some rift between player and the front office and Ron Hextall decided it was high-time to send Hartnell to Columbus for former Flyer, R.J. Umberger.
Hartnell had just come off a 20-goal and 52-point season but Hextall’s thought-process behind the deal was that even though they shared similar AAVs, Umberger’s ended 1-year earlier than Hartnell’s. He would play 4 more seasons, 3 in Columbus and his final year back in Nashville, where he scored 77 goals and 170 points in 296 games, including back-to-back 23+ goal seasons immediately after the trade.
As for Umberger, this was his second tenure with the Flyers after scoring 49 goals and 116 points in his first 228 games. In his first 3 years with Columbus, he scored 26, 23, and 25 goals respectively, while chipping in with 46, 55, and 57 points. In his final 2 years with the club he scored a combined 28 goals and 58 points in 125 games. He was brought over to Philadelphia and wasn’t even a shell of his former self as he scored just 11 goals and 26 points in 106 games before having his final year bought out.
Brayden Schenn to STL for Jori Lehterä, 27th overall in 2017, and conditional 1st in 2018, June 23rd, 2017
Brayden Schenn was part of 2 trades on the infamous June 23rd, this time around, he was jettisoned off the team to the St.Louis Blues for 2 first round picks and Jori Lehtera.
Lehtera was a salary match as Hextall was more focused on the incoming first round picks. He was eyeing Morgan Frost at the back end of the first round and struck the deal without the knowledge of many of his trusted advisors. The following year, the Flyers drafted Joel Farabee in the first round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.
Schenn had carved out a nice role with the Flyers but his inconsistencies while playing 5-on-5 hockey plagued him. He scored 20, 18, 26, and 25 goals respectively in his final 4 seasons, which included 17 power play goals in 2016-17.
What also didn’t go over too well, as was the case in the NHL at that time, was filing for arbitration as it was usually frowned upon and seen as a big no-no. Even though they hammered down a deal just moments before the hearing was set, Hextall made the move one year later but had his eyes set on Frost and accumulating more draft capital.
Since the deal, Schenn has 131 goals and 341 points in 425 games, which includes surpassing the 20-goal mark 4 times and surpassing 54+ points 5 times. He registered a career-high in goals and points the following season in 2017-18 with 28 and 70. En route to the Cup, Schenn tallied 5 goals and 12 points. He is about to embark on year-4 of his 8-year deal that he signed back in 2019.
As for the Flyers, they acquired Lehterä, who was an overused veteran in his 2 seasons with the club. In 89 games he scored 4 goals and 11 points and while he only averaged 10:05 TOI, it seemed like he was used 20+ minutes a game.
Frost had an injury-riddled beginning to his NHL career but finally came to his own in the final 56 games of the 2022-23 season, pacing his club in points in that final stretch. In totality, he has 26 goals and 69 points in 158 games across 4 seasons but improved from 5 goals and 16 points in 55 games in 2021-22 to 19 goals and 46 points in 81 games this past season. In his final 54 games, he scored 16 goals and 40 points – compared to the 6 he registered in his first 27 games.
Farabee went from 8 goals and 21 points in 52 games during his rookie year to 20 goals and 38 points in 55 games the following year during the COVID-shortened season. He then scored 17 goals and 34 points in 63 games in 2021-22 but struggled this past season as he was recovering from neck surgery he underwent in the summer. He scored 15 goal and 39 points in 82 games.
Farabee wasn’t supposed to be ready for opening night, let alone the first month of the season, but he miraculously made the recovery just in time. He didn’t miss a single game but there were moments he was pressing but it was also very apparent he had forced his way back into the lineup far too soon. He endured a 24-game stretch where he didn’t score a single goal and only registered 2 assists. He did however bounce back and followed that up with 6 goals and 12 points in 15 games to end the year on a high, including goals in 4 straight games after snapping his 24-game drought.
The Flyers are expecting a bounce back performance from Farabee who should be ready and healthy for the 2023-24 season and are hoping that Frost can add to his 46-point season with a brand new contract.
2024 Stadium Series Trip
Flyers Nation and Philly Sports Trips have teamed up to bring you on an amazing bus trip to the 2024 NHL Stadium Series between the Flyers and Devils. Place an early deposit to reserve your spot at the ultimate tailgate experience at MetLife Stadium before the game. The package includes a game ticket, round-trip charter bus, an all-inclusive tailgate party with unlimited cold beverages, “Philly Style” catered food, live entertainment, and more.
