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Flyers Trade Garnet Hathaway and a 6th Round Pick to the Florida Panthers For a 5th and a 4th
By Matt Schultz
Published:
Here’s the official trade announcement from the team:
FLYERS ACQUIRE TWO DRAFT PICKS FROM FLORIDA IN EXCHANGE FOR FORWARD GARNET HATHAWAY AND 2026 SIXTH-ROUND PICK
Philadelphia receives 2026 fifth-round pick and 2027 fourth-round pick; sends 2026 sixth-round pick to Panthers
The Philadelphia Flyers announced today that the team has acquired a fifth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft in exchange for forward Garnet Hathaway and a sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, according to General Manager Daniel Briere.
Philadelphia’s new selections in the 2026 NHL Draft are as follows:
- Round 1 (21st overall)
- Round 2 (53rd overall)
- Round 5 (136th overall)
- Round 7 (213th overall)
Hathaway spent three seasons with the Flyers from 2023-26 and recorded 18 goals, 23 assists, and 41 points in 215 games with the club. The Naples, Florida native has played 11 NHL seasons with Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, and Calgary, accumulating 163 points (76g-87a) in 672 NHL games.
Hathaway is a gritty player and was a favorite among the Broad Street Bully traditionalist contingent of the fanbase, but as the Flyers continue their rebuild, it’s clear that Danny Briere is choosing to prioritize youth, picks, and skill upside over imposing physicality, and I can’t blame him. As much as we all loved watching Hathaway do stuff like this –
– he’s 34, a fourth-liner, had 3 points in 66 regular season games last year (woof), and only has one year left on his contract. He was never going to be part of this team’s long-term core. It makes sense that Danny would rather see what he’s got with some younger guys – Alex Bump, Denver Barkey, Nikita Grebenkin, and Jett Luchanko will all be fighting for ice time heading into next season — and give Hathaway’s vacant roster spot to whoever stands out. Here’s to hoping Danny hits on one or more of these picks/young guys and the Flyers can (finally) start developing some actual homegrown skill players.
And good luck to Hathaway. Seems like a cool guy who enjoyed his time here. Godspeed. Enjoy playing for Stanley Cups. That must be cool. One day the Flyers will know the feeling… Please…
Matt Schultz is a comedy and sports writer from Philadelphia. He’s written extensively for ClickHole, The Onion, and Conan O’Brien’s Team Coco. His work has been featured in Vulture, Deadspin, The A.V. Club, Paste Magazine, and other publications. Much of his sports journalism can be found on college basketball websites that don’t exist anymore (PhilaHoops Heads rise up…) email: M.Schultz@sportradar.com