Ellis traded to Flyers by Predators

Ryan Ellis was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers by the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

Nashville received defenseman Philippe Myers and forward Nolan Patrick, who was then traded to the Vegas Golden Knights for forward Cody Glass.
Ellis, a 30-year-old defenseman, has six seasons remaining on the eight-year, $50 million contract ($6.25 million average annual value) he signed with Nashville on Aug. 14, 2018. He scored 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 35 regular-season games and five points (one goal, four assists) in six Stanley Cup Playoff games this season.
"Pretty shocked," Ellis said. "To be honest, the trade] just happened, haven't really thought too far ahead. I don't even know what to say. Just found out an hour ago. Winning is important, that's the business we're in, so just to win.
"I spent my whole career in Nashville. You're well-aware of the payers on the [Flyers] and the talent they have. But they're in the East and [the Predators are] in the West. Don't really see them a whole lot. Everything's going to be new for me."
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Selected by the Predators in the first round (No. 11) of the 2009 NHL Draft, Ellis has scored 270 points (75 goals, 195 assists) in 562 regular-season games and 38 points (seven goals, 31 assists) in 74 playoff games.
"Ryan is an excellent all-around defenseman," Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher said. "In our opinion, he's one of the best passers in the game on the blue line. He's great in transition, he can play the power play, he's got a heavy shot, and he's a very good penalty killer. He's been part of the leadership group in Nashville for a while. He is a competitive, team-oriented type of player. We think he's a really well-rounded hockey player, a quality person and somebody that we feel very fortunate that we were able to add to our group today."
Philadelphia finished second-to-last in penalty killing percentage this season (73.1). Ellis averaged 2:32 of shorthanded ice-time per game with Nashville this season.
"There's no question our penalty kill struggled last year, and we believe Ryan will help with our penalty kill," Fletcher said. "Certainly a player that can shoot the puck and move the puck and help with our transition game, our power play, our overall offensive game. He brings a lot to the table."
Nashville was unlikely to protect Ellis from the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft presented by Upper Deck, which will be held July 21 (8 p.m. ET; ESPN2, SN1, SN NOW).
"Obviously, there's a lot going on in the next few days with the expansion and everything," Ellis said. "I've never been traded before but overall just surprised, shocked, but at the same time excited at a new challenge, new chapter."
Each NHL team can protect seven forwards, three defensemen and one goalie, or eight skaters (forwards/defensemen) and one goalie. Any player who has a no-move clause must agree to waive it to be exposed. The deadline for teams to submit protected lists was Saturday at 5 p.m. ET.
Patrick can become a restricted free agent July 28. The 22-year-old scored nine points (four goals, five assists) in 52 games with the Flyers this season. Patrick did not play in 2019-20 because of a migraine disorder.
Selected with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Patrick has scored 70 points (30 goals, 40 assists) in 197 regular-season games and two points (one goal, one assist) in six playoff games.
"I was real excited when I heard the news," Patrick said Monday. "Obviously, [it] wasn't the year I wanted to have in Philly [this] year, [but] I think a fresh start was the best thing for me.
"Coming to an organization like Vegas is extremely exciting. For my offseason training, I'm extremely motivated after the season I had. I'm looking [to have] a bounce-back year, so I'll do everything I can to get myself ready for the first game."
Myers has two seasons remaining on the three-year, $7.65 million contract ($2.55 million average annual value) he signed with Philadelphia on Dec. 8, 2020. The 24-year-old scored 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in 44 games this season.
Signed as a free agent by Philadelphia on Sept. 21, 2015, Myers has scored 29 points (six goals, 23 assists) in 115 regular-season games and four points (three goals, one assist) in 16 playoff games.
"You have to give to get," Fletcher said. "We feel we have a lot of quality young players still in our system, a lot of quality prospects still in our system and we still have all of our draft picks. We're going to need a lot of young assets to fill in, it is a flat cap era, and I think we feel comfortable with the quality and quantity of the young players that we still have as an organization. But the opportunity to add a player like Ryan was too good to pass up. He's what we need at this time."
Glass, a 22-year-old center, has one season remaining on the five-year contract he signed with the Golden Knights on July 15, 2017. He scored 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 27 games this season.
Selected by Vegas in the first round of the 2017 NHL Draft (No. 6), Glass has scored 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 66 regular-season games and no points in one playoff game.
"We felt it was time for a change to our core this offseason, and we are really excited to add an influx of youth, size and skill into the lineup with these additions," Predators GM David Poile said. "Cody Glass is a former sixth-overall pick that we think has a high ceiling as a center prospect, and Philippe Myers is a 6-foot-5 defenseman that adds an element that we do not currently have on our back end.
"At the same time, we will miss Ryan Ellis' leadership, dedication and work ethic in our locker room. We drafted Ryan in 2009, and over the last decade-plus he helped lead our franchise through its most competitive era, spending the last four seasons as Associate Captain. We wish Ryan and his family all the best in Philadelphia and thank him for all he did during his time with the Predators."
NHL.com deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman and correspondent Danny Webster contributed to this report