Nicklas Grossman Acquired By Philadelphia Flyers For Two Draft Picks

With his team in a tailpsin and falling apart defensively, GM Paul Holmgren made the first move in shoring up the Philadelphia Flyers blueline, acquiring defenseman Nicklas Grossman from the Dallas Stars for two draft picks; a 2012 second-rounder, and a 2013 third-rounder.

At 6' 4", 230 pounds, the 27-year-old Grossman will bring a much-needed large body to the club's passive defensive corps. He is the prototypical defensive-defenseman, and is one of the better shot-blockers. Grossman is in the top 33 shot-blockers in the NHL with 100.

In 52 games with Dallas this season, Grossman had five assists and 26 penalty minutes.

With Chris Pronger out for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs with the affects of a concussion, the Flyers had been able to plug gaps with rookies Marc-Andre Bourdon and Erik Gustafsson in the short-term. As of late, the unit has been porous, and it's likely that Philadelphia will make more moves to revamp the back line before the February 27 trade deadline.

The two picks Holmgren traded to the Stars were acquired in trades this past summer. The Flyers had picked up an extra second-rounder in the 2012 draft from the Los Angeles Kings in the Mike Richards trade, and a third-rounder in 2013 from the Minnesota Wild for Darroll Powe.

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