Philadelphia Flyers Trade Dan Hamhuis' Rights to Pittsburgh Penguins

It’s not often that bitter instate rivals strike a deal, but last night that changed for the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins as TSN announced a deal between the two clubs.

The Philadelphia Flyers acquired the exclusive negotiating rights to former Nashville Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis for defenseman Ryan Parent and a conditional draft choice on June 19, only to find they could not get Hamhuis signed to a deal.

The Flyers inability to get Hamhuis under contract necessitated the deal which saw Hamhuis’ rights traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for the Pens third-round draft choice in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

As it stands right now, the Penguins have yet to announce a deal with Hamhuis. It is widely believed that longtime Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar may be asking for a three-year deal in the neighborhood of $5 million per, which may be too rich for the Penguins; enter Hamhuis.

While Hamhuis is not considered to bring the same offensive abilities that Gonchar possesses, it should be noted that Hamhuis has had to play second fiddle to both Shea Weber and Ryan Suter in Nashville, which has no doubt been a factor in his lack of offense over the years.

Hamhuis posted five goals and 19 points last season with no power play goals. If Hamhuis signs with the Pens, one can expect him to receive a lot more power play time, which should see him become a 30 to 35-point guy in no time.

In the end, the Flyers traded Parent for what amounts to a shot in the dark (the conditional draft choice), which is pretty frustrating for Flyers fans.

Clearly, having lost out on Hamhuis, Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren will have to step up his trade options and/or be active during free agency in order to fill the hole left behind by the loss of Parent.

Sorry Flyers fans, your Hamhuis dreams are over!

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Until next time,

Peace!