VOORHEES, N.J. — Erik Johnson will get another shot with the Avalanche.
The Flyers traded the veteran defenseman to Colorado, where he won the 2022 Stanley Cup. In return, the Flyers acquired winger Givani Smith. The 27-year-old will report to AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley.
Johnson, who turns 37 this month, played parts of 13 seasons with the Avalanche. He was once a teammate of Flyers general manager Danny Briere in Colorado.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
"We had a really good relationship in Colorado," Johnson said last season. "He was only there the one year and I was in my mid-20s. I remember really looking up to him and respecting him a ton, and still did."
Moving Johnson to the Avalanche was Briere's third trade before Friday's 3 p.m. ET deadline. The GM also sent Scott Laughton to the Maple Leafs and Andrei Kuzmenko to the Kings.
The Flyers acquired Johnson from the Sabres at last season's trade deadline for depth on the back end. They liked his influence on the locker room and ability to give them minutes when needed, so they re-signed him in the offseason to a one-year, $1 million contract.
Philadelphia Flyers
Find the latest Philadelphia Flyers news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Philadelphia.
En route to reaching his 1,000th career NHL game, Johnson left an impact on the Flyers' 2024 first-round pick Jett Luchanko. When the 18-year-old center defied the odds and made the Flyers' roster, Johnson invited the prospect to come live with him.
"It's funny, because there were some guys around the room who had been chatting about Jett and what should possibly be happening," Travis Konecny said in November. "It just speaks to E.J.'s experience and his veteran presence that he was 10 steps ahead of us and [Luchanko] was already moved into his house."
As the Flyers' seventh defenseman, Johnson had played just seven games since the start of December. The Flyers now have a roster spot open for Emil Andrae, a young defenseman they want to see play down the stretch.
And Johnson gets an opportunity at another playoff run in Colorado.
"It's more of a favor to him," Briere said Friday, "to give him a chance to chase a Cup in a place that he played a lot of years and still has lots of friends."
Smith, who will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer, has played 13 games this season between the Avalanche and Sharks. The 6-foot-2, 214-pounder competes with a physical style and is not scared to drop the gloves. He has nine goals and 13 assists in 168 career NHL games.