ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE

Huge huge huge day for the Flyers.  Actually let's make that 4 huges.

Carter?  Traded.  Richards?  Traded.  Bryzgalov? Signed.

My head is still spinning trying to make sense of it all.  There was always a decent chance Carter would be traded, and Richards was a dark horse trade candidate, but both of them traded?  Shocking.

The bottom line;
Out;
-Richards ($5.75 cap hit)
-Carter ($5.27 cap hit)

In;
-Ilya Bryzgalov ($5.6m cap hit)
-Brayden Schenn ($3.11 cap hit)
-Wayne Simmonds (RFA, $2 cap hit?)
-Jakub Voracek (RFA, $2.5 cap hit?)
-Picks: Columbus's 1st (8th overall), LA's 2nd, Columbus's 3rd

These are blockbuster moves.  Richards and Carter were supposed to be the face of the franchise and each are signed to mega-long term deals.  Schenn was ranked the best prospect in hockey by hockeysfuture.com, and Voracek was another very high pick who may be ready to take off in the NHL. Simmonds is a promising physical winger, and that collection of picks the Flyers added is nothing to scoff at.  Note that the Carter to Columbus deal is basically exactly as speculated a few days ago, with which I was pretty satisfied.

Obvious questions yet to be answered are the contracts for Simmonds and Voracek, and if Versteeg is yet to be traded.  I'd still say there's a fair chance Versteeg goes at the draft, but they no longer have to deal him.  Here's the Flyers lineup as of right now (pay no attention to the lines);

Voracek-Briere-Hartnell
Simmonds-Giroux-JVR
Versteeg-Schenn-???
Powe-Betts-Nodl
Shelley

Pronger-Carle
Coburn-Timonen
Meszaros-Gustaffson
Bartulis

Bryzgalov
Bobrovsky

The lineup above costs ~$56.5 against the cap, and does not include values for Voracek or Simmonds.  Also, if you didn't notice, Leino is not in this lineup, but Versteeg is.  That leaves $7.8m for 3 wingers.

It will be difficult to judge it all until the dust settles, but suffice to say I am excited.  Big upgrade in goal? Check?  Clear cap space? Check.  Add energy and size on the wings? Check.  Add draft picks?  Check.  It remains to be seen what lies ahead for Richards and Carter, but based on their performance last year, this overhaul is fantastic.  Of course they could just as easily have much better years in the future, so it's a risk.

So who are these guys the Flyers got?
-Bryzgalov.  I said last month he was the best goalie out there, but the Flyers likely couldn't fit him on the roster without trading Richards or Carter.  Turns out they were willing deal them both!  Allow me also to pat myself on the back for pretty much nailing his contract value.  Bryzgalov should be good, people.  There are no guarantees, but he's one of only two goalies in the league to finish top 10 in Vezina voting the past two years (Luongo being the other).  Even more impressive, he was a 3 star selection in 44% of his starts last year, and that was in what most consider to be an "off" year for him.  I am very hopeful.

-Schenn.  This guy is a very hot prospect.  The #1 prospect according to some, as mentioned above.  In January in the World Junior championships, he set the tournament record for points, was named the top forward and won the tournament MVP.   I can't say what to expect from him next year in the NHL as a 20 year old, but he projects to be an allstar NHL center for years to come.

-Simmonds.  He is still developing as a NHL player, but he's young (23 at season's start) and the Flyers will look for him to be around 20 goals/45 points.  From what I have seen, he's a physical player and his hits are heavy.

-Voracek.  The #7 pick in the 2007 draft, another winger with size still finding his role in the NHL (22).  No doubt though, he has high end potential.  His numbers at this point of his career compare favorably to Carter at the same point, and the Flyers will hope for 20+ goals and approaching 60 points.

Overall, I am excited.  The Flyers successfully addressed their biggest needs.  They added youthful, sizable physical wingers, made a huge upgrade in goal, got good draft picks, and added the best center prospect in hockey.  The price they paid was steep, but I think most Flyers fans were ready to say goodbye to Carter and Richards for better or for worse.  Exciting times indeed.  It almost feels like one of those trade frenzies you only pull off in video games.