VOORHEES, N.J. -- Everyone knew there was a good chance the Flyers would try to move Mark Streit at the trade deadline.
What no one expected, however, was that they would trade him to Tampa Bay for a player who is coming back with a salary nearly identical to the one they are losing and has another year left on his contract.
That's what transpired late Wednesday at the deadline when Streit left to the Lightning in exchange for longtime 32-year-old versatile forward Valtteri Filppula, who will make $5 million next season. He turns 33 later this month.
After acquiring Streit, the Lightning immediately turned around and traded the veteran to the Penguins for a 2018 fourth-round pick.
Streit, whose contract ends this summer, was making $5.25 million. Since Filppula, who spent eight years in the Detroit Red Wings organization, had a no-movement clause, he has to be protected this summer in the NHL expansion draft.
The Flyers will retain 4.7 percent of Streit's salary, according to LeBrun.
The Flyers also received a fouth-round pick and conditional seventh-round pick.
NHL
Filppula will add scoring on the wing, but he has had declining numbers since joining Tampa in 2013-14 when he posted a career-high 25 goals and career-high 58 points.
Streit had a no-movement clause in his contract, but also had 10 clubs he could be traded to and this was one of them. Flyers general manager Ron Hextall has had a working relationship with Tampa GM Steve Yzerman in the past with the Braydon Coburn trade that brought them Radko Gudas.
Weal to the Phantoms
The Flyers have loaned Jordan Weal to the Phantoms to make him available for the AHL playoffs.