Flyers 2023-24 Player Grades: Garnet Hathaway

The move proved to be a success, as Hathaway scored seven goals and 10 assists for 17 points in 82 contests as a physical depth forward. He was a somewhat valuable piece to the Flyers’ penalty kill, playing 122 minutes in total and being on the ice for four goals in the Flyers’ favor to just nine goals against them.

At even strength, Hathaway was solely a bottom-six forward for the Flyers, but he was a completely different player in the first half of the season versus the second half. His impact wasn’t immediately recognized, and that was due to him being misused a bit as a grinder next to Nicolas Deslauriers and usually one of Scott Laughton or Ryan Poehling. He had a decent expected goals against per 60 (xGA/60) of 2.44 during that time, but a relatively poor 47.1 expected goals percentage (xGF%) at even strength. That all changed once he was given a more prominent role.

In his last 41 games of the season, Hathaway rocked an elite 1.94 xGA/60 and a 61.1 xGF%. Among the 185 forwards who played in at least 500 minutes at even strength during the second half of their team’s season, he was fourth and fifth in these categories respectively. He didn’t play against opposing teams’ top lines all that often, but there were times when his line with Noah Cates and Poehling was used as a shutdown trio. Hathaway largely exceeded expectations.

Hathaway wasn’t always the most effective player with the puck in a high-danger spot in the offensive zone, letting quite a few big moments lead to nothing, but that wasn’t really what he was signed for. He was acquired by general manager (GM) Danny Briere to be a two-way asset and that’s exactly what he provided. He did his part and much more.

During February and March, Hathaway was actually one of the main contributors of offense for the Flyers. He wasn’t good offensively in the sense that he was scoring a ton, but his line got a lot of scoring chances. He worked pretty hard on a nightly basis.

What Could a Hathaway Trade Look Like?

Now that Hathaway has just one season left on his contract, it’s time to discuss what his trade value looks like. Entering his age-33 campaign in 2024-25, there is no reason for him to sign an extension with the Orange and Black. In all likelihood, he will either be dealt at the trade deadline or kept for a potential playoff run if it’s justified.

Assuming the Flyers aren’t good enough to be hanging onto expiring veterans, he could get them a nice return. It most definitely wouldn’t be a first-round pick due to his lack of offensive upside, but he could be a bottom-six fit for virtually any playoff team in the NHL. If that team is more skilled, he could slot on the fourth line. If they want more grit, he can be a third-line player. Athletes like Hathaway aren’t exactly cheap when the deadline comes around.

If Hathaway can match his success in 2023-24, Briere could easily fetch the Flyers a third-round pick or an equivalent prospect. It seems to be what players of his caliber are going for nowadays, and even that seems like a low bar – he has the chance to return a second if a team is willing to overpay. That would be a pretty good outcome for Philadelphia.

Hathaway’s Final Grade

Hathaway should be happy for what he did with the Orange and Black. While it wasn’t high-end work, he did the best he possibly could with the talent he had. For this, he deserves a B-minus grade. He did everything he was asked, but he still only averaged 12:29 of ice time so it wouldn’t be fair to the top-six forwards to grade him much higher than that.