Pretty aggressive trade pitch rejected before NHL Draft!

Draft weekend begins in a few hours, however, some teams across the National Hockey League have attempted and are still trying to make some moves before they make it onto the draft floor.

According to Pierre LeBrun, the Philadelphia Flyers are looking to be big movers before they make their pick in the first round later tonight as the team reportedly attempted to pull a significant trade before their selection. This is what LeBrun revealed on last night’s Insider Trading on TSN:

“It’s always an interesting time of year leading right into the first round of the draft on Friday. What we’re being told is that the Flyers made a pretty aggressive pitch to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday, offering a swap of first-round picks, a roster player, and perhaps next year’s first-round pick as part of a package to try and get the fourth overall pick. I believe the answer was no but it doesn’t mean they can’t try again.”

This is the draft order, as of now, for tonight’s First Round:

1. San Jose Sharks
2. Chicago Blackhawks
3. Anaheim Ducks
4. Columbus Blue Jackets
5. Montreal Canadiens
6. Utah Hockey Club
7. Ottawa Senators
8. Seattle Kraken
9. Calgary Flames
10. New Jersey Devils
11. Buffalo Sabres
12. Philadelphia Flyers
13. Minnesota Wild
14. San Jose Sharks (from Penguins)
15. Detroit Red Wings
16. St. Louis Blues
17. Washington Capitals
18. Chicago Blackhawks (from Islanders)
19. Vegas Golden Knights
20. New York Islanders (from Lightning via Blackhawks)
21. Los Angeles Kings
22. Nashville Predators
23. Toronto Maple Leafs
24. Colorado Avalanche
25. Boston Bruins
26. Montreal Canadiens (from Jets)
27. Carolina Hurricanes
28. Calgary Flames (from Canucks)
29. Dallas Stars
30. New York Rangers
31. Anaheim Ducks (from Oilers)
32. Philadelphia Flyers (from Panthers)

This could however change throughout the day or even tonight once the draft gets underway as NHL commissioner Gary Bettman could say his famous line on the podium:

“We have a trade to announce.”