The Los Angeles Kings acquired forward Vincent Lecavalier and defenseman Luke Schenn from the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday in exchange for forward Jordan Weal and a third-round pick in the June draft.
The Flyers will retain half the money owed to Lecavalier and Schenn to help the cap-challenged Kings make the deal work, Los Angeles general manager Dean Lombardi confirmed on a conference call.
"Yes, that's the only way it works," Lombardi said.
Lecavalier's agent, Kent Hughes, told ESPN.com after the trade was announced that his client would retire at the end of the season, forgoing the final two years of his contract, which would have paid him $3 million in salary each season.
"The player made it pretty clear to us that that was his intention," Lombardi said of Lecavalier retiring. "And obviously going forward, given the players we have to sign, that was imperative."
Lecavalier's All-Star days are behind him, but at 35, he was hoping for a fresh start after playing in just seven games this season for the Flyers.
"We felt like the flexibility we gained from the move cap-wise," Flyers GM Ron Hextall said. "We had eight defensemen. It wasn't fair to any of them, and quite honestly, it wasn't good for our team, and Vinny was sitting out. We just felt like this made sense for where we are as an organization and where we're going."
Lecavalier also fills a need for the Kings.
"We had identified even in training camp certain areas we wanted to upgrade this year," Lombardi said. "One of the issues was strength down the middle. ... Vinny, at this stage of his career, as was made clear to us, it's all about getting one last chance to win it all. I think he's hungry. And given his mindset and his fit on this team, it's potentially a great fit in his role. And that's the key."
The Kings will be getting a motivated player in Lecavalier.
"I still believe in what I can do and what I can bring," he told ESPN.com on Tuesday when discussing his hope for a trade out of Philadelphia. "I can bring leadership, whatever role a team would want me to do. I can play solid both ways. It's just a matter of having the chance to have some type of role. Whatever role that is, I'd be ready to fill it and help that team win. That's the most important thing at my age and where I've been, the last few years have been really tough, I just really want to win and help be part of that puzzle to help a team win."