NHL trade roundup: Islanders & Penguins add former Flyers; Bruins land Taylor Hall

The NHL trade deadline isn’t until Monday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET, but some GMs wanted to get their trades out of the way on Sunday night. The biggest name on the board, Taylor Hall, was moved late Sunday night after a few trades had already gone down.

Chuck Fletcher has to sell after Flyers collapse ahead of trade deadline

The Philadelphia Flyers didn’t make any moves on Sunday night after losing to the Sabres. Chuck Fletcher has just hours left to sell what he can.

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There were a few trades made by East Division teams on Sunday night. The New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins both added former Flyers –– of different qualities ––, while the Boston Bruins landed the big fish in the form of Taylor Hall.

Islanders trade for Braydon Coburn

The Islanders acquired Braydon Coburn from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.

From our friends over at NYI Hockey Now:

“The left-handed defenseman has appeared in 16 games this season in Ottawa and has two points (two assists) in that span. Coburn was a member of the Stanley Cup-winning Tampa Bay Lightning last season.

The addition of Braydon Coburn gives the Islanders some added depth on the blue line without costing the team too much.”

Coburn, 36, is six years removed from his time with the Flyers. He spent five-plus seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning being traded to the Senators in the offseason.

The Flyers only play the Islanders once more this season. They host the Isles on Sunday.

Penguins trade for Jeff Carter

Our old friend Ron Hextall traded for another old friend of ours, Jeff Carter.

Carter, 36, has 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 40 games this season with the Los Angeles Kings. It almost feels like Hextall is giving it to the Flyers a bit. First, he claimed Mark Friedman off of waivers, and now this.

Carter, 36, is signed through the 2021.22 season and his contract carries an average annual value of $5,272,727. Los Angeles will retain 50% of Carter’s salary.

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) April 12, 2021

From our friends enemies over at Pittsburgh Hockey Now:

“While many assume Carter will come to Pittsburgh to be a center, the Penguins trade is for the 35-year-old Carter, not the 30-year-old version. He’s playing RW in LA for a reason.

…

So, is Carter RW insurance or a third-line center? The bet here is he is a winger. The LA Kings moved him to the wing for a reason, and that reason was not that LA had too many good centers.

Last season, Carter had 27 points (17g, 10a), largely as a center, and 27 points isn’t exactly a banner year. This year the Kings completed the full-time transformation to the wing.

The Penguins snagged an expensive veteran, but LA is holding back salary. The veteran knows how to win, offers lineup versatility and insurance against prolonged RW injuries. The Penguins gave up only two conditional draft picks.”

The Flyers play the Penguins three more times this season. They travel to Pittsburgh for a game this Thursday night, then host the Penguins for a back-to-back set on May 3rd and 4th.

Report: Bruins to acquire Taylor Hall, Curtis Lazar

The biggest trade of the night came just before midnight. Darren Dreger broke that Curtis Lazar is going to Boston, likely as a part of a bigger deal, at 11:38 p.m ET. Elliotte Friedman tweeted “Hall to BOS” 17 minutes later.

Then, just past midnight, Dreger revealed the details of the trade.

Confirming. Hall and Lazar to Boston for Bjork and 2nd round draft pick.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) April 12, 2021

Not surprisingly, but the Sabres retained 50 percent of Taylor Hall's $8 M salary/AAV to facilitate the trade

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) April 12, 2021

If that looks like a light return for Hall, it’s because it is. That’s an absolute steal by the Bruins.

Boston Hockey Now on the move:

Don Sweeney was holding firm about not trading Boston's first round pick again this season. He managed to accomplish that while getting some much needed help for the Bruins https://t.co/IdWbSuEUvo

— Joe Haggerty (@HackswithHaggs) April 12, 2021

The Bruins were blown out by the Capitals, 8-1, on Sunday night. Just hours later, Don Sweeney struck.

Boston also added defenseman Mike Reilly from the Senators on Sunday night.

The Flyers are four points behind the Bruins, who have two games in hand. Adding Hall and Lazar seems to be the final blow to the Flyers’ playoff hopes if they had any left.

Teams around the Flyers are making moves while Chuck Fletcher sits idle. He doesn’t necessarily need to make a big move, but trading away some unnecessary extra pieces –– even just Erik Gustafsson –– would be nice.

Photo: Heather Barry Images