Seeing a trade during the Stanley Cup Final is rare. Seeing a trade of this size even more so. But seeing a three-way happen in real-time is especially rare, and makes for some fun discussion around the water coolers at work.  

The Philadelphia Flyers have traded defenseman Ivan Provorov to the Columbus Blue Jackets in a three-team trade involving the Los Angeles Kings. 

Here is the full move between the Flyers, Kings, and Blue Jackets. 

• The Flyers sent Ivan Provorov along with forward Hayden Hodgson to the Kings. 

• In return, the Flyers received goaltender Cal Peterson, defenseman Sean Walker, defenseman Helge Grans, and the Kings’ 2024 second-round pick.  

• The Blue Jackets acquired defenseman Kevin Connauton from Philadelphia in exchange for a 2023 first-round pick (22nd overall) and a conditional second-round pick in either the 2024 or 2025 NHL Draft.  

• The Kings then flipped Provorov (Kings retain 30% of his cap hit) to the Blue Jackets in exchange for Connauton. 

The Columbus Blue Jackets acquire Ivan Provorov in three-team trade involving Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings.@RuoffMortgage | #CBJhttps://t.co/zLce8jA8Lv

— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) June 6, 2023

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Columbus is looking to compete next season. First, they hire a new head coach, and it’s one who is known to be hard on players, Mike Babcock. He is not a “players’ coach”, he is known to be very demanding. A team with Patrik Laine and Johnny Gaudreault. So, they have the star power, but they were lacking in grit on the blue line.  

Enter Ivan Provorov. Philadelphia wanted to be rid of his contract and all the distractions that swirl around him. The Yaroslavl, Russia native was the first, of several players in the NHL to refuse to wear a Pride Night-themed jersey last season for “religious beliefs.” 

At his best, Provorov can be a skilled puck-moving defenseman, capable of scoring 15-20 goals and 40-50 points while also playing solid defensive hockey. Which is exactly what the Blue Jackets need. He’s 26 years old and can help improve the team immediately if he focuses on his game. Also, he is still young enough to become a long-term fixture for this team. Better still, he is affordable under the cap because as per Cap Friendly, the Kings retained 30% ($2.025 million) of Provorov’s $6.75 million salary. 

For Philadelphia, this move puts rookie GM Danny Briere’s stamp on this team only weeks into his tenure. He rids the team of a distraction, but does so in a way to help the rebuild he has begun, adding a coveted first-round pick (22nd) in 2023 plus two second-round picks in 2024, all for taking on Cal Peterson’s cap hit of $5 million until 2025. 

But wait, there’s more! 

Briere also provides a major boost to his blue line by adding not one, but two well-regarded right-handed defensemen with puck-moving skills. Helge Grans, 21, is entering his third professional season and is ready to make an impact in the NHL. Also, Sean Walker, who at 5’11’’ is undersized for the “Broad Street Bullies” style of play, but is a very mobile puck-moving defender. Adding to that is goalie Cal Petersen, who could be the catalyst for another move that can help Briere in his rebuild. There is going to be speculation about Briere attempting to trade the Flyers’ current starter, Carter Hart. Both goalies struggled last season, and this could become a competition for the starter’s job. 

But what about the Kings you might ask…..well….they now have $13.2 million in projected cap space for 2023-24 with 16 roster players under contract. This leaves them room to retain Vladislav Gavrikov. He brings exactly what the Kongs needed, a big, mobile shut-down defenseman who can play a physical style, eat up top-four minutes and provide some offense. 

Who won this trade? Well, everyone does, because they all come away satisfied.