From time to time in the NHL you'll hear the term "heartbeat guy" tossed around.
It usually refers to a guy who leads by example - a true leader - a top-notch character player who does all the little things necessary to win, who plays the game the right way. A guy who reporters know to go to in order to check the pulse of the locker room, the guy who isn't afraid to speak his mind and keep other players in line.
For the Philadelphia Flyers, that player is Wayne Simmonds.
Simmonds is a big and physical power forward, as apt to drop the gloves as he is to score a goal. No, those goals won't be highlight reel material and more often than not come from the dirty work he does in the scrum in front of the net, but he's a guy who has taken his game to the next level this season for the Flyers, elevating himself from good young player with the potential to become more to legitimate offensive threat and, at times, dominant physical presence.
He's recently taken Jakub Voracek's spot on the top unit alongside captain Claude Giroux and flourished - he has five goals in the past seven games, two of which have come since coach Craig Berube made the switch, making him the Flyers goal-scoring leader - continuing his rapid NHL development.
The question remains, though - could Flyers GM Ron Hextall, looking to tear the team down and start fresh, trade him prior to the NHL's March deadline? Moving him when his value is highest for a haul of picks and prospects which would make that transition from middling contender to legitimate annual Stanley Cup threat all the more possible?
As Tom Dougherty and Tim Riday of CSN Philly note, Simmonds has scored at least 25 goals every season since the Flyers added him in the Mike Richards trade with L.A. He's developed a knack on the power play and carries a very manageable cap hit of $3.975 million.
"Simmonds will be a hot commodity for any team in need of scoring now. Trading Simmonds could serve as an opportunity for the Flyers to load up on prospects and future draft picks, if they were inclined to do so," writes Dougherty and Riday.
"It wouldn't be easy to let Simmonds go, though. He's a fan favorite and excellent presence in the locker room. But if a team panics and the Flyers can sell high, dealing the 26-year-old could bring back a substantial return. We've all seen bad deadline deals before."
It's not likely, obviously, that the Flyers actually move Simmonds, but if the return is significant enough, it would be hard for Hextall to say no.
Another player the team could consider moving is forward Brayden Schenn.
Schenn is a natural center who is forced to play on the wing for the Flyers. He's still young at 23 and very well could become the offensive maven the team projected him to be when they traded for him, also as part of the Richards deal, but his being forced to play out of position combined with his failure to raise his game could mean he's not long for Philly.
The Paul Holmgren-led Flyers refused to move Schenn in the past, citing their belief in him as a "core" player, but Hextall, looking to turn the page on many of Holmgren's past mistakes, may not feel the same type of allegiance or see the same type of NHL future for Schenn, who was recently bounced from the top unit and has only 12 goals this season.
Teams have called on him in the past and it wouldn't be surprising if they're doing so again.
