Flyers trade JVR
The Flyers traded forward James van Riemsdyk to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenseman Luke Schenn, the older brother of Flyers forward Brayden Schenn.
*****
The Flyers have had the Watson brothers, the Sutter brothers and, now, the Schenn brothers.
The Flyers traded forward James van Riemsdyk to Toronto on Saturday in exchange for defenseman Luke Schenn, the brother of Flyers forward Brayden Schenn.
Schenn (6-foot-2, 229 pounds) is the older of the two brothers, but he is just 22 years old. He is entering his fifth NHL season after being selected by the Maple Leafs with the fifth overall pick of the 2008 draft.
Schenn is a physical defenseman. He also fills the Flyers’ need for a right-handed defenseman. The acquisition of Schenn also may indicate that the Flyers don’t believe they can acquire either of Nashville’s star defensemen, Ryan Suter or Shea Weber, but Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said this trade does not mean the Flyers are necessarily done dealing.
To get Schenn, the Flyers had to part with van Riemsdyk, the second overall pick of the 2007 draft. Van Riemsdyk never fulfilled his potential with the Flyers. His highest point came during the 2010-11 playoffs, when he was arguably the Flyers’ best forward. But he rarely displayed that dominating form during the regular season.
Injuries plagued van Riemsdyk this past season. Even when healthy, he didn’t live up to expectations, scoring just 11 goals and assisting on 13 others.
Brayden Schenn was acquired by the Flyers almost exactly one year ago in the Mike Richards trade.
