Ex-Flyer Nic Deslauriers returns to Philly with love in his heart but the Stanley Cup on his mind: ‘I’m on the other side now’

When the Carolina Hurricanes hopped on their plane on the eve of Thursday’s Game 3 against the Flyers in the Eastern Conference’s second round, at least one person on board was excited to head to Philly. The only problem was that Nic Deslauriers really wasn’t sure how much he’d actually see of his family.

Deslauriers was traded to the Hurricanes on March 6, with several of his then-Flyers teammates finding out from reporters. With it being toward the end of the season, his wife, Joanie, and four kids stayed back in New Jersey due to school and sports commitments.

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Although the family has visited Raleigh, N.C., in the weeks since the trade, the kids’ schedules are packed right now as dad makes a business trip back north. Nine-year-old son Jaxon is playing on the Union Juniors, part of the Major League Soccer squad’s pre-academy, and his oldest child, 12-year-old daughter Madison-Rose, is away in Florida with his wife to compete in a cheerleading competition. (Yes, Deslauriers is a cheer dad.)

“We love it there. It’s hard now not seeing them, but I think everything, the city [of Philadelphia],” Deslauriers said this past Saturday about his favorite memories. “I had some great years, even if this year and last year wasn’t a lot of [time] on ice. … I only have high praise for that city and that team.”

Signed to a four-year, $7 million contract as a free agent by former general manager Chuck Fletcher on July 13, 2022, Deslauriers is a bit of a throwback as a tough, grinding forward who is feared across the league for his fists. Across four seasons, he played in 195 games for the Orange and Black, collecting 20 points and 273 penalty minutes, including 33 fighting majors — his most famous one came against the New York Rangers’ Matt Rempe in what many called the “Fight of the Year” two seasons ago.

This season, as the team shifted to a younger roster, the 35-year-old fourth-liner found himself often on the outside. He played in just 24 of the team’s first 61 games but told The Inquirer in late February that he felt he had “maybe another year or two in me” and “I still think I have some in the gas tank.”

However, Deslauriers also felt the trade was brewing for some time. Because he was not suiting up much, he had a long talk with general manager Danny Brière and relayed that if a team were to be interested, he would like the opportunity to play elsewhere. Still, getting traded came as a shock.

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“I think in the morning on March 6, [Brière] came up to me and said, ‘I don’t think something’s going to happen. And right after practice, I got pulled in. So that’s how it happened,” he recalled of the trade that saw the Flyers get a conditional 2027 seventh-round draft pick.

“I never wanted to leave, but at the same time, for my career, I needed to focus on something, trying to prove myself to play in this league again,” he added. “Give credit to the Philly organization, and you guys are building something good, too, with all the young guys. So it was time for me to departure off of that.”

“I think he still has gas in the tank, too,” former linemate Garnet Hathaway told The Inquirer in March after learning of the trade. “I see it every day. I see the work ethic, I see how much he cares, and I see the teammate he is. So Carolina has got a great player [and a] great guy.”

Deslauriers now chuckles when the irony of the situation is raised — being traded to a contender like the Hurricanes but now facing his buddies on the Flyers, who have a chance of stopping him from his dream of winning a Stanley Cup.

When he packed his bags, the Flyers were six points and several teams back of the wild card and eight points out of the third spot in the Metropolitan Division, which is where they eventually landed. As he said, “they’re playing with mojo now,” and Deslauriers got an up-close view of that, skating for Carolina in the Flyers’ 3-2 shootout win to clinch a playoff spot on April 13.

“Since the Olympic break, I think the Flyers were the hottest team,” he said. “Even when I was there, just after the Olympic break, you can see that something was changing. If I remember, right after that trade deadline, [they] went out west and won everything. I think that brings you back in the playoff push. And it’s been nice to see.”

He played in seven regular-season games for Carolina, snagging one assist and dropping the gloves with Mathieu Olivier of the Columbus Blue Jackets. Deslauriers also played in the Hurricanes’ series-clincher against the Ottawa Senators in the first round, and will be ready if his number is called against his former teammates.

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“It’s nothing that I didn’t already know,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said of Deslauriers. “We knew what kind of player he was. You watch him, you see what kind of impact he has on a game. We knew every team he’s ever been on, the positive nature of which everyone talks about [him]. We knew that, and it’s certainly been the case.”

Deslauriers has a familiar face with him in Carolina. He used to play with defenseman Sean Walker in Philly. And he has kept an eye on the Flyers by watching games and texting with the trainers, “but I’m on the other side now,” he added. And he still talks to the Flyers’ GM.

“I’d like to say I had the respect everywhere I played. I think my first [trade] from LA to Buffalo, that was a little tough. I didn’t know until almost that night. The other ones, I’ve always had good relationships, but this one was really different with Danny,” he said.

“He knew what I was asking for, and at the same time, it was better for both ways. We stayed in touch. Danny texted me right after the first game I played, and we still keep in touch.”