Richards Sees his NHL linemate Join him in Philly

[Da_Chief]

Flyers acquire James Neal.

"In order to consistently mess with any chemistry we build he has to make trades and this is what he did here as well" Said Coach Clouston.

The deal see highly touted prospect Brett Connolly head to Toronto along with Niklas Bergfors and Nicolas Deslauriers. In return Flyers get James Neal and bag full of cash.

"I only have on goal in the CPHL this season, win the cup. In order to do that I will make sure I add as much help to the pro roster as I can" Said Schum.

Of course it's a long season and anything cap happen now and in the playoffs but so far the team has performed well. It is unknown where Neal will be slotted, as the Flyers don't have a glaring weakness in the top 9.

[SweetDoc]

Very nice deal for Toronto.

[flambers]

Wow very interesting deal....

[Da_Chief]

Originally Posted by flambers

Wow very interesting deal....

please elaborate.

[OILFAN #81]

Makes sense both ways. Philly is in it to win it right now and they are the team to beat in the East.

Toronto gets some very solid pieces for Neal.

In terms of value, I like it slightly for Toronto BUT Philly gets the best player in the deal right now and the cup is what he is going for.

Therefore I think it is even.

PS.....nice trade Rob, you were due!

[Swayze11]

Makes sense for both teams. Flyers get a proven NHLer to add to their stacked team and Toronto gets some REALLY nice building blocks for the rebuild.

[Prototype]

We had a hard time with this one, being that we really liked Neal, and didn't want to trade Richards to Nashville without getting Neal in return.

But, as this season is a wash, regardless if we hold our 1st or not, when we started the rebuild, it was about picking up assets, and depth. We feel we've done that with this trade.

Nic Bergfors is proving to be a point producer in the NHL, maybe not a top tallent, but a dependable scorer, and Brett Connolly is impressing not only being the #6 pick to Tampa Bay, but lighting it up in the WHL, and will be called upon to be a leader to Team Canada at the World Jrs this year.

The wild card is Nicolas Deslauriers, a point per game producer in the QJMHL, and property of the Los Angeles Kings. If he can develop well in the Kings' system, we'll be happy, but wont lose any sleep over it.

And I have to thank Joe for the talks. We're usually at eachother's throats over the span of our talks, but we always manage to walk away with a deal. I have better conversations with other GMs, and can't get either side happy. Somehow, it happens with TOR and PHI.

[Da_Chief]

Btw, I told Rob in our trade talks that I knew I was overpaying but I've never shied away from paying for a player I want and this was no difference. Thanks for the talks. In the end it helps me and helps a re-building team. Hope these guys work out for ya.