PHILADELPHIA — Kevin Hayes said in his exit interviews at the end of last season that while he wanted to stay in Philadelphia, he was picking up the message about what part he’d play in the Flyers’ rebuild. On Tuesday, after several days of reports and increased speculation, it was confirmed that he’d play no further role, as the Flyers traded their second-highest-paid player and No. 2 scorer to the St. Louis Blues for a 2024 sixth-round pick.
The Flyers will retain 50% of his salary, totaling $10.71 million spread over three years ($3.57 million average annual value). This is Danny Brière’s second trade in a matter of weeks as general manager of the Flyers as he leads them into what the team has branded a “new era of orange.”
The writing seemed to be on the wall for Hayes’ exit this summer. He appeared to fall out of favor with coach John Tortorella — he was demoted from center to wing, scratched on Dec. 17, and saw his ice time and role massively decrease as the season wore on. In addition to his age (31), Hayes was limiting the Flyers’ chances to build their future with his hefty contract and potentially blocking younger players from ice time.
The rumors that started swirling in December after he was scratched picked up in the last week. It was reported Saturday that a trade with the Blues involving Hayes was in the works. There was talk of another Flyer, Travis Sanheim, being included, as well as a veteran Blues player. ESPN reported that one of the Blues’ three first-round picks could be on the table as well. However, Sportsnet later reported that the Blues player, veteran defenseman Torey Krug, had not waived his no-trade clause, and things ground to a halt. In the end, it turned into a one-for-one deal, Hayes for a draft pick.
The Flyers, under previous general manager Chuck Fletcher, signed Hayes to a seven-year contract with an AAV of $7.142 million on June 18, 2019. Hayes just completed the fourth year of that deal and accounted for 8.7% of the Flyers’ salary-cap space last season.
The nine-year NHL veteran signed with the Flyers as a free agent after playing for the New York Rangers for five years and the Winnipeg Jets for 20 games. The move reunited him with his former coach Alain Vigneault, who took the team to the playoffs when he was in New York. In 253 career games with the Flyers, Hayes tallied 63 goals and 94 assists for 157 points.
Hayes became a popular teammate during his time in Philadelphia, and last season had his best offensive season and was an All-Star despite what he called a “weird year.” He posted 15 goals and 45 points in 50 games before the All-Star break, but managed only three goals and nine points the rest of the way as Tortorella cut significantly into his ice time.
Hayes shared some of his discontent with how the season went in his exit interview, which turned out to be his last time talking to the media as a Flyer.
“I had almost a career year and was an All-Star,” Hayes said. “I never really felt like it through the whole season.”
