Flint and Sudbury have made the first significant trade with the OHL trade window re-opening.

Both the Flint Firebirds and the Sudbury Wolves had seasons that they'd like to forget. Flint had another rebuilding season, getting swept in the first round by the London Knights. While Sudbury was a projected top contender and was knocked out in the second round of the playoffs.

These two teams have come together to make a move that fits both side's needs. The Firebirds are acquiring a lot of big roster pieces that will begin to form a contending team, while Sudbury acquires loads of assets.

The Flint Firebirds have acquired Evan Konyen, Nolan Collins, Matthew Mania, and the rights to Josh Colosimo, in exchange for Gavin Ewles, Daks Klinkhammer, two second round picks, two third round picks, two fourth round picks, a 5th, a 7th, and a 9th heading to Sudbury.

For the Sudbury Wolves, they are dealing away three big-time players — including two overagers — in exchange for a total of nine draft picks. 

This likely initiates a rebuilding season for the Wolves. Sudbury has had a strong roster for the past couple of seasons, but they have not been able to get over the hump in the playoffs. In 2023 they were eliminated in the first round, and this year they were eliminated in the second round.

They deal away Evan Konyen — who has been a top six contributing winger for the Wolves. Konyen was once considered a draft prospect, but has fallen off over the past couple of seasons. That being said, he still carries a lot of value as an experienced and skillful winger in this league.

Nolan Collins is the second overager that the Wolves are trading away. The strong, 6-foot-4 defender was a draft pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2022, and will provide a reliable, experienced presence on the Firebirds blue line.

Lastly, the Firebirds also acquire LA Kings prospect Matthew Mania — arguably the biggest piece in this deal. Mania had some injury issues last season, but when he is healthy, he is one of the more dominant offensive defenceman in the OHL. He oozes creativity and makes an excellent PP1 defender.

For the Firebirds, they are giving up nine draft picks and two depth skaters for these three key pieces that they can begin to build around. Flint will be looking to make it deep into the playoffs after a couple rebuilding seasons have passed.

One intriguing factor in this deal is that Flint now likely has Konyen, Collins and captain Coulson Pitre as their three overagers. This means that they will likely have to discard Simon Slavicek, Blake Smith, and Marko Stojkov.

Flint and Sudbury have opened the OHL summer trade window with a bang, and it will be interesting to see if there are any other teams who are looking to re-tool before the beginning of the season in September.