Flyers trade Zac Rinaldo; Chris Pronger elected to Hall of Fame
After a draft in which he was praised, Flyers general manager Ron Hextall made his second deal in three days Monday, sending feisty left winger Zac Rinaldo to Boston for a third-round pick in the 2017 draft.
Almost immediately, the Twitter hashtag #InHexyWeTrust began trending in Philadelphia.
Rinaldo, 25, supplied energy but lots of ill-advised (read: knuckleheaded) penalties during his five-year stint with the Flyers. He had a goal, six points, five fights, and 102 penalty minutes in 58 games last season.
Rinaldo, who made his Flyers debut during the 2011 playoffs, was a sixth-round pick in 2008. He has two years left on his deal with an annual salary-cap hit of $850,000.
The Flyers have $7.25 million in cap space. They are likely to re-sign unrestricted free agents Ryan White and Chris VandeVelde.
In 223 career games with the Flyers, Rinaldo had eight goals, 24 points, 572 penalty minutes, and three suspensions. He was fined twice. Rinaldo was suspended for eight games last season for charging and boarding Pittsburgh's Kris Letang.
New Bruins general manager Don Sweeney is hearing criticism in Boston for his draft selections and for failing to get enough when he dealt defenseman Dougie Hamilton to Calgary. But he traded a fairly early 2017 draft pick for Rinaldo.
Gagner decision
The Flyers will make a decision Tuesday on whether to retain recently acquired center Sam Gagner or buy out the last year of his contract. Teams have until 5 p.m. Tuesday to buy out a contract.
The Flyers may decide to buy out Vinny Lecavalier's contract.
Richards gone
Los Angeles terminated the contract of ex-Flyer Mike Richards for a "material breach" of his pact. Richards, 30, has five years and $22 million remaining on a 12-year contract.
He began his $69 million deal with the Flyers in 2008.
The Kings said they were "not prepared" to provide any details. The NHL players association is reviewing the situation, a spokesman said.
Richards' off-ice issues were believed to be a major reason the Flyers traded him to the Kings in 2011 for Wayne Simmonds, Brayden Schenn and a second-round pick that they dealt for Nick Grossmann.
Last season, Richards scored a career-low five goals in 53 games and spent part of the year in the minors. He is free to sign with another team.