Thompson was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens for a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft. Grant was acquired from the Anaheim Ducks for forward Kyle Criscuolo and a fourth-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. The pick going to the Ducks will be the better of the Flyers' selection or a pick previously acquired from the Nashville Predators.
RELATED: [2019-2020 NHL Trade Tracker]
"There's no doubt that they both bring different aspects to a team," Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said. "We did a lot of homework, we did a lot of checking in on different players that we felt were available. At the end of the day (general manager) Chuck Fletcher
, who has not played this season because of a migraine disorder.
Patrick has been skating but has not been cleared for contact.
"I don't think it says anything about Nolan's situation in particular," Fletcher said. "Obviously there is uncertainty. He had a good day today. I think our hope is he can continue to progress and sometime in the next couple weeks he can get to full contact and full practice and get to unrestricted practice I guess you could call it. From there, the next step is games. I still believe he will play. I am not a doctor. I am not basing it on any specific knowledge other than I have seen the improvement. I speak to him most days. I am still hopeful and expecting him to play this year. But we are not there. We have some more steps to go. There is still that uncertainty, but he would be a great add. … He could play anywhere. He is a guy I believe could play wing if he had to. He could certainly play center. He could move up and down your lineup. He has a tremendous skill set. He would be a really nice addition, and I hope that comes to pass."
Criscuolo had 24 points (eight goals, 16 assists) in 40 games with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League. The 27-year-old has nine games of NHL experience, with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017-18. He signed a one-year, two-way $700,000 contract with the Flyers on July 1 and can become an unrestricted free agent July 1.
The Flyers also loaned forwards Joel Farabee and Connor Bunnaman to Lehigh Valley.
