(Kate Frese/ Sports Talk Philly)
By Kevin Fortier, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 
The NHL trade deadline is fast approaching. The Flyers have been on the bubble in terms of making the playoffs all season. That has made it difficult to determine what Flyers GM Ron Hextall’s plans might be in terms of being a seller or a buyer at the deadline.
The deadline is Wednesday. Philadelphia only has two games remaining prior to that March 1 deadline. Hextall will have to make up his mind with only two more opportunities for the team to show him if they could be a playoff team or if he should look to unload pending free agents or other players if the right opportunity arises.
Hextall is not one to mortgage future draft picks or prospects for a rental player. If a deal for someone who could be integral to the Flyers future comes along, he has expressed he may make that deal. But he is not going to do a short-term, rental-type of deal.
The most likely candidates for possible deals are certainly on the defensive side of the ledger. There seems to be legitimate interest being rumored regarding 39-year-old blueliner Mark Streit. He has 20 points in 47 games this season. He can still be an effective puck mover and can be an asset on a team’s second power play unit. He is also a veteran leader and strong presence in the locker room.
The Flyers may have to absorb a substantial share of his $5.25 million salary, but should be able to land a second-round pick for the veteran defenseman. If they have to maintain 30-40 percent of his salary, so be it.
Two defensemen have already been moved this week – Ron Hainsey from the Carolina Hurricanes and Michael Stone from Arizona. Given what was paid for them, a second-round pick is not unrealistic for Streit. Behind the Blues Kevin Shattenkirk, Streit is probably the most sought after deadline defenseman.
The other Flyer with a the potential of being moved would be Michael Del Zotto. The oft-moved offensive defenseman found his game when he came to the Flyers, and was arguably the Flyers best blue liner over the last two seasons. However, injuries have set his game back and he has regressed this season, becoming a regular healthy scratch since returning from surgery in the offseason.
He could still provide depth to a playoff team as a capable puck mover and could return a mid-round draft pick. His $3.875 million salary should not be an issue and the Flyers would be unlikely to have to absorb any of his salary if moved.
The remaining pending free-agent defenseman is Nick Schultz. His low cap hit of $2.25 million could be attractive to a team looking to add a seventh defenseman for the playoffs. His return would not be much, likely a late-round selection.
There is not much probability of any of the free agent forwards on the roster being moved. Unless a playoff bound team suffers an injury and needs to add a bottom-six puck possession player like Matt Read or a fourth-line shutdown center like Pierre-Edouard Bellemare. Any return for these forwards could also be minimal, mid-to-late round picks at best.
Read could be a little more interesting. He has another year on his contract and still has value as a bottom-six forward with good puck possession and defensive abilities. His offensive contributions are minimal, but he can be a solid checking-line player.
Hextall also needs to decide which direction he wants to go in net also. Both current goaltenders are unrestricted free agents and one of them will certainly not be returning. It is possible both could be let go after the season. It would be nice if the Flyers could send whichever one they are not going to re-sign to another team for some kind of return, but that decision may need more time and might not happen until after the conclusion of the season.
There are a lot of decisions to be made regarding the future of the roster. With so many free agents, the Flyers may not want to let so many players walk without any form of return. The Flyers are already very deep with picks for the upcoming draft. Despite that, adding a few more picks for players who will not be returning would be an ideal situation.
This offseason will clean up several contracts and cap space for Hextall to make moves for the future of the team. One or two of the Flyers highly-praised blue-line prospects could also make the jump to the NHL, but that remains to be seen.
There will be space with as many as three current defensemen not returning next season. That gives Hextall room and flexibility to add youth and possibly a veteran defenseman to help the core young players as they grow into NHL defensemen. But as the deadline approaches, it's time for decisions to start being made.
