Flyers Trade Scott Laughton, Andrei Kuzmenko at Deadline

In the days leading up to the deadline, and even on Friday morning, the Flyers were quiet. Then they made their deadline-day moves in the early afternoon.

First, they traded Andrei Kuzmenko, just acquired from Calgary on Jan. 31, and a 2025 seventh-round pick to the Los Angeles Kings for a 2027 third-round pick. The Flyers retained half of Kuzmenko’s $5.5 million cap hit for the remainder of the season.

Then, they made their big move. The Flyers traded Scott Laughton to the Toronto Maple Leafs, along with a 2025 fourth-round pick and a 2027 sixth-round pick, for a 2027 conditional first-round pick and forward Nikita Grebenkin. The Flyers are retaining half of Laughton’s cap hit for the remainder of this season and next season. The 2027 first-round pick from Toronto is top-10 protected.

Laughton, 30, played in 661 career games with the Flyers, scoring 106 goals and 265 points over parts of 12 seasons. He was a 2012 first-round pick of the Flyers, ultimately becoming a leader in the locker room over the years.

Kuzmenko, 29, played in just seven games with the Flyers. He scored two goals and had five points with the Flyers.

Grebenkin, 21, played in seven games with Toronto in the NHL this season and had nine goals and 21 points in 39 games in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies. Prior to that, he spent three seasons in the KHL. In his final KHL season, he had 19 goals and 41 points in 67 games. The 6’2”, 209-pound right winger also provides size to the Flyers.

At the final moments of the deadline, it appears to Flyers got one more trade in. They sent veteran defenseman Erik Johnson to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for forward Givani Smith.

Johnson, 36, joined the Flyers at last season's deadline. He played in 39 games with the Flyers over two seasons, scoring three goals and three assists. Johnson returns to the Avalanche, a team where he spent parts of 13 seasons.

Smith, 27, has played 13 NHL games this season between San Jose and Colorado. He has also played in six games with Colorado's AHL team, with one assist.

As the deadline passed, Rasmus Ristolainen remained a Flyer. He has two years remaining on his contract beyond this season and interest had cooled on him in the weeks prior to the deadline. The Flyers also reportedly had interest generated in Ryan Poehling and Egor Zamula, but no deal was completed.

The Flyers have 19 games remaining this season, starting with Saturday afternoon against the Seattle Kraken.

Kevin Durso is Flyers insider for 97.3 ESPN. Follow him on social media @Kevin_Durso.