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As the clock inches closer to the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo, the Philadelphia Flyers made their second trade of the offseason.
They dealt veteran winger Garnet Hathaway, along with a 2026 sixth round pick (pick #181) to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 2026 fifth round pick (pick #135) and a 2027 fourth round pick.
As a part of the trade, the Flyers will retain 50 percent of Hathaway’ $2.4 million cap hit ($1.2 million) this upcoming season.
Hathaway, 34, played in 66 games with the Flyers this past season. He led the team in hits with 252, which ranked him ninth among all NHL skaters last season. He was also the team’s nominee for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy.
Additionally, he spent three seasons with the Flyers from 2023-26. scoring 18 goals, 23 assists, and 41 points in 215 games. The Naples, Florida native has played 11 NHL seasons with Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, and Calgary, accumulating 163 points (76g-87a) in 672 NHL games.
He had a roller coaster 2025-26 regular season, as he only produced three points in the regular season. He had the lows of a three game healthy scratch in December. But his level of play rebounded down the stretch and he produced two points (1-1-2) over eight Stanley Cup Playoff contests.
How Florida Benefits
The Panthers were looking for a veteran replacement for winger A.J. Greer who is headed for free agency on July 1st. They found one in Hathaway, who will serve in a similar role for them.
“Garnet is a physical and highly competitive player who will complement our group well,” Panthers general manager Bill Zito said in a press release. “We’re excited to add his veteran presence to our group for the upcoming season.”
He knows how to affect the game and his agitating penalty drawling style should be a useful tool for head coach Paul Maurice when he deploys him. However, there is genuine concern that Hathaway’s effectiveness is waning and that if he is unable to offensively produce, he’ll be hard pressed to stay in their lineup.
Why The Flyers Traded Hathaway
Conversely, the Flyers are giving up a respected presence in their lineup and a player who always backed his teammates in a fracas. He also was a key penalty killer, as well.
That stated, the door now opens for the Flyers in a few areas. One is the possibility of the team bringing back Luke Glendening, a waiver wire pickup who proved to be a highly versatile lineup piece, playing all three forward positions.
It also potentially frees up more ice time for some of their younger forwards such as Denver Barkey, Alex Bump, and possibly Jett Luchanko.
At the same time, Philadelphia enters this weekend’s draft with the same number of draft picks as they had prior to the trade. They have picks in Round One (21st overall), Two (53rd overall), Five (136th overall), and Seven (213th overall). They add an additional pick in 2027, where they could have as many as ten draft picks.
Even with the salary retention, the Flyers still have over $35 million in salary cap space per Cap Wages.
We’ll see if general manager Daniel Briere makes any more trades up to and including this weekend in Buffalo.
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