Wayne Simmonds Traded to Nashville Predators

The 3 P.M. deadline came and went on Monday, and Philadelphia Flyers fans started to feel like maybe their fan favorite, Wayne Simmonds, was staying for the year.

As it turns out, the trade was filed with the NHL at 2:57 P.M., and didn’t break until a few minutes late.

Simmonds will be reunited with former coach Peter Laviolette, who gave Simmonds the time he needed on the powerplay to be a 30-goal scorer. He knows how to use the forward, so the move makes sense enough for Simmonds to cross his no trade clause.

Earlier, it was rumored that Simmonds nixed a trade farther west, to Calgary. The details on that one haven’t been released.

Coming from Nashville is 24 year old forward Ryan Hartman and a conditional 2020 fourth round draft pick. If Nashville wins a playoff round, the pick turns into a 2020 third rounder.

Per @FlyersNerd

Wayne Simmonds NHL Forward Rank: 241

Ryan Hartman NHL Forward Rank: 211

Hartman is 6 years younger and only a RFA at the end of year

Predators will win a series and Flyers will get a 3rd round pick too

Good deal for the Flyers

— Philly Sports (@PHLAnon) February 25, 2019

Hartman scored 19 goals as a rookie in Chicago in 2016-17, but only has 20 points in 64 games this season. It was his first full year in Nashville until the deadline. Hartman is on an expiring contract counting $875,000 against the cap in a full year. He’ll be an RFA at season’s end.

The former first round pick talked about his expectations for the new team. “I play a physical style, get to the dirty areas. A hard-nosed game. Flyers hockey.”

Realistically, there’s not much more the Flyers could have done with Simmonds. He vetoed at least one trade, and time was running out to move him. With prospects Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee having great seasons, his production is more than replaceable. What the Flyers will miss is the intangibles, and for that he will be missed.

https://twitter.com/BarSouthNCelly/status/1099824475753697280

Simmonds scored 203 goals in the orange and black, with 784 penalty minutes. In the playoffs, he scored 15 points in 30 playoff games. Per hockeyfights.com, Simmonds dropped the gloves 41 times for Philadelphia.

GM Chuck Fletcher could always send him an offer in free agency if he chooses not to re-sign with Nashville. “With plenty of cap space available this summer, we feel we’ll have the opportunity to address our needs,” said Fletcher.

The Wayne Train has left the station.