Calgary Flames Trade Down In 2020 Draft
The Calgary Flames have traded down in the first round, sending the 19th overall pick to the New York Rangers in exchange for the 22nd and 72nd overall selections. With that 19th pick, the Rangers have decided to select Braden Schneider, the last remaining top-end defenseman available.
Schneider, who played for the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, was ranked ninth among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. The Rangers had obviously already taken Alexis Lafreniere at the top of the draft and now add a defenseman to go with him. Notably, New York moved just ahead of the New Jersey Devils who had already taken two forwards in the first round and could have potentially nabbed Schneider with their third selection.
The big, mobile defenseman is known for his incredible competitiveness and should move quickly through the Rangers system thanks to a polished game in his own end. He has already played three full seasons in the WHL and scored 42 points in 60 games last season, though the offensive end of the rink isn’t where his eventual game is expected to land. Instead, his physicality and strong defensive stick will be a good counterpoint to young puck-movers like Adam Fox in the New York organization.
Calgary meanwhile then moved down again, trading the 22nd pick to the Washington Capitals for picks 24 and 80. With that 22nd pick, the Capitals ended up taking Hendrix Lapierre, one of the most interesting prospects in the entire draft.
Lapierre was once seen as a potential candidate to challenge for one of the very top picks in this draft. In 2018, he was the first pick in the QMJHL Entry Draft and scored 45 points in his first 48 junior games. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with multiple concussions quickly afterward and played just 19 games last season. Earlier this year, Lapierre’s concussions were actually rediagnosed as a neck injury and he has recently been given a clean bill of health. He’s back playing in the QMJHL already, scoring five points in two games for Chicoutimi. He’ll need some time to re-establish himself as a top prospect, but the Capitals clearly felt as though they couldn’t wait.
By the time the Flames actually picked, they ended up taking Connor Zary with the 24th selection. Zary has spent the last three seasons playing for the Kamloops Blazers, scoring 86 points in 57 games last season. The WHL forward was ranked 15th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting and could have easily found his way into the top-20 picks, but Calgary found a way to trade down and still get their man. Armed with an incredible shot, Zary fired 38 missiles past junior goaltenders in 2019-20 and could be a candidate for the Canadian World Junior team this winter.
Flames Have Not Yet Made An Offer To Cam Talbot
- The Flames have yet to present an offer to pending UFA Cam Talbot, the goalie revealed to Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson. The 33-year-old has indicated an interest to remain with Calgary, as long as he’s not in a backup position. This past season, that was his role as he made just 22 starts while David Rittich made the other 48 despite Talbot having the better numbers. The tables flipped in the playoffs, however, as Talbot made all 10 starts and played well, posting a 2.42 GAA with a .924 SV%. A full-fledged starting job may be hard to come by but a platoon position is certainly attainable if he gets to the open market.
Goalie Notes: Lundqvist, Calgary, Knight
The King has hit the court after today’s buyout of Henrik Lundqvist, adding yet another name to the overflowing free agent goaltender market. Of course, there is no guarantee that the former New York Rangers netminder will continue his career in the NHL, given his age and career so far. Lundqvist has only ever played for the Rangers, suiting up more than 1,000 times for the team over 15 years.
His agent Don Meehan told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic that Lundqvist’s desire to play elsewhere is “to be determined” while Craig Custance was told by an NHL source that they had been told the veteran goaltender would be playing “unless the market isn’t there for him.” The 38-year-old will collect $1.5MM in buyout salary from the Rangers each of the next two years.
- There are a lot of goaltenders available this year and the Calgary Flames have checked in on all of them, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. That includes speaking with the Columbus Blue Jackets who have two young goaltenders under contract in the NHL and several more interesting prospects on the way. The Flames have David Rittich under contract for the 2020-21 season at $2.75MM but could use an upgrade at the position if they hope to contend for the Stanley Cup. Not only does Rittich’s .907 save percentage this season not inspire a ton of confidence he’s the answer, but the Flames also may be thinking about the effects of a condensed schedule on the position. Rittich started 48 games in 2019-20, the most of his career, and had an .893 save percentage after Christmas.
- One team that will hang up if Calgary calls? The Florida Panthers, who have shut down multiple teams asking about top goaltending prospect Spencer Knight. Custance reports that the Panthers have absolutely no desire to move Knight, who they picked 13th overall in 2019 despite the presence of Sergei Bobrovsky (and his long-term contract). Knight, 19, put up a .931 save percentage as a freshman for Boston College and will likely be USA Hockey’s starter once again at this year’s World Juniors.
Calgary Flames Loan Juuso Valimaki To Ilves
While many players and prospects have been loaned overseas ahead of the unknown start date of the 2020-21 NHL season, few need the the head start as much as the Calgary Flames’ Juuso Valimaki. The promising young defenseman missed the entire 2019-20 season and postseason after suffering a torn ACL last fall. Yet, with five veteran defensemen about to hit the free agent market, the Flames are trusting that Valimaki can return to form and take on a top role on the blue line right away next season. After so much time away from the game, it will take more than just training camp to get Valimaki up to speed ahead of the new year.
Cue Tampereen Ilves of the Finnish Liiga. Calgary announced that they have loaned Valimaki to Ilves to get him game action before he returns to North America. Valimaki is familiar with the club, having played in their youth system, including a year with the U20 team in the top Finnish junior league, before making the jump to the WHL and eventually the NHL.
With Ilves, Valimaki will be able to get used to playing the major minutes that the Flames may expect of him this coming season. A relatively young team, Ilves has just a handful of players that are considerably older than 21-year-old Valimaki. They have also not received anyone on loan from the NHL prior to Valimaki outside of a trio of prospects – Lassi Thomson, Arrtu Ruotsalainen, and Lukas Dostal – who were on loan all of last season as well. Valimaki will have a chance to take on a key role for the team and should be ready to go once he is recalled by Calgary.
Calgary Flames Loan Dmitry Zavgorodniy To SKA St. Petersburg
The Calgary Flames have played a trick on hockey writers everywhere, loaning Dmitry Zavgorodniy to SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL. The announcement does not indicate whether the young forward will be returning to North America when camp opens, but Ryan Pike of FlamesNation notes that the team will be able to recall him at that time.
Zavgorodniy, 20, is coming off three seasons with the Rimouski Oceanic of the QMJHL, including an outstanding 2019-20 that saw him register 29 goals and 67 points in just 40 games. A seventh-round pick in 2018, he stands just 5’9″ but has shown enough to earn the entry-level contract he signed in 2019.
Like so many other teams around the league, the Flames will use overseas loans as a way to keep their prospects playing and developing while the AHL figures out how and when to stage a 2020-21 season. Zavgorodniy is joining a strong team in SKA, one that he’ll have to battle for playing time on.
Calgary Flames Re-Sign Justin Kirkland
The Calgary Flames have brought back minor league forward Justin Kirkland for another year, re-signing the pending restricted free agent to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will carry an NHL salary of $700K.
Kirkland, 24, was selected 62nd overall in 2014 but has yet to make it to the NHL. Four seasons in the minor leagues have resulted in consistent if underwhelming point totals, with the 6’3″ winger recording 28 in 53 games this season. While he doesn’t offer a ton of scoring upside, Kirkland still represents a depth option for the Flames that they could use in a bottom-six role if necessary.
Seven more restricted free agents remain unsigned for 2020-21, including Andrew Mangiapane who broke out as a full-time NHL player this season. Not everyone on that list is guaranteed a new deal, but Kirkland will be able to stay put and try to reach another level of play with the Stockton Heat.
Free Agent Focus: Calgary Flames
With free agency now less than a month away, many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign. While the Calgary Flames have one or two key restricted free agents to deal with, they may have quite a few questions that will need answering among their unrestricted free-agent defensemen.
Key Restricted Free Agents
F Andrew Mangiapane – Throughout his career, Mangiapane has done everything right and only continues to get better. A former sixth-round pick in 2015, he worked his way into permanent role in 2018-19 and solidified himself as a top-six forward this year and it showed, posting career highs in his second full season, scoring 17 goals and 32 points. He added another three goals in 10 playoff games this year. The 24-year-old is likely to get a raise after making $800K on his now-expiring entry-level deal. He has proven his value as a key future forward on this team.
F Mark Jankowski – There was a lot of hope for Jankowski, the team’s first-round pick from 2012, but his third season in the NHL was a bit disappointing. In fact, after his rookie campaign in 2017-18 in which the 26-year-old tallied 17 goals, he has seen a continual decline, posting 15 goals in 2018-19 and followed that up with just five goals this year and has seen his playing time continue to drop as he played just 11:06 of ATOI. And at 6-foot-4 and a bottom-line player, he doesn’t play much of a physical game with just 80 recorded hits over three full seasons. However, the team has to decide whether he is worth the $1.75MM qualifying offer to retain his rights.
Other RFAs: F Justin Kirkland, D Oliver Kylington, D Andrew Nielsen, G Tyler Parsons.
10.2(c) Players: F Glenn Gawdin, G Nick Schneider (ineligible for arbitration or an offer sheet)
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
D Travis Hamonic – The Flames gave up quite a bit to bring in the defensive-minded Hamonic back in 2017. While not particularly much of an offensive player, the 30-year-old blueliner is quite a defensive player and was second on the team in ATOI this season at 21:11. Of course, the team was without his services in the playoffs as he opted out due to COVID-19 and family concerns. His daughter has had a significant battle with a life-threatening respiratory virus in the past while Hamonic has a new baby boy as well. However, the blueliner also was dealing with an upper-body injury for a large chunk of the regular season as well. Will the team bring him back? He was quite an affordable commodity at $3.86MM for the last few years, but undoubtedly will be looking for a raise and how many years is Calgary willing to offer to someone who is already 30 years old? With a team as cash-strapped as Calgary, Hamonic may be too pricey to keep.
D Erik Gustafsson – With five unrestricted free-agent defensemen, the team is likely to have to make some tough decisions in the near future. The Flames picked up Gustafsson for just a third-round pick at the trade deadline, which looked like a steal when Hamonic opted out of the playoffs. The team was expecting to lean on the once-high scoring defenseman. Instead, Gustafsson got just third-pairing minutes and wasn’t a big contributor down the stretch, suggesting the team may move on from him. While the 28-year-old’s price tag likely has dropped since posting a 17-goal, 60-point season back in 2018-19 and then following that up with a six-goal, 29-point season this year, a reunion would seem less likely considering the team has limited means as it is.
D T.J. Brodie – A constant trade-rumor candidate last summer, Brodie has found a way to remain with the team and produce quality minutes and may be the best option for Calgary if they were able to re-sign just one starter in the offseason. While his minutes have declined significantly since 2014-15, he still can put of solid defensive numbers and potentially provide solid play for less than the cost of either Hamonic or Gustafsson. He is capable of playing either side of the ice and plays a game that might suggest he could play deeper into his career than other defensemen.
G Cam Talbot – The Calgary Flames added Talbot to their roster as a veteran backup for young David Rittich and instead, Talbot walked away with the starting job, playing in all 10 of the team’s playoff games with Rittich getting just 16:35 of ice time in the final game before they were eliminated by Dallas (he gave up three goals on six shots). Talbot, who posted solid numbers this year, with a 2.63 GAA and a .919 save percentage in 26 regular season games, put up even better numbers in those 10 playoff games, including a 2.42 GAA and a .924 save percentage. The 33-year-old UFA made it clear he is looking for a starting job, but is Calgary willing to give up on Rittich just yet? And are they willing to pay up to keep Talbot, who could have quite a few suitors after his impressive season?
Other UFAs: F Austin Czarnik, D Derek Forbort, F Byron Froese, G Jon Gillies, F Ryan Lomberg, F Alan Quine, F Tobias Rieder, F Zac Rinaldo, F Buddy Robinson, D Michael Stone, D Rinat Valiev.
Projected Cap Space
The Flames only have about $16MM in available cap space and plenty of players they need to sign, including at least one or two defensemen and a starting/tandem goaltender. That doesn’t leave much money left for the team to spend on potential free agents unless the Flames find a way to move out some salary or some key players. Of course, with several rumors spreading about the availability of Johnny Gaudreau, it could be an interesting offseason for the Calgary Flames.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Coyotes Listening To Offers For Oliver Ekman-Larsson
With the NHL off-season right around the corner and several notable trades having already occurred in recent weeks, the trade winds are blowing around the league. One of the more intriguing players who may be available is Arizona Coyotes captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that there is interest in the star defenseman, naming the Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, and Edmonton Oilers as three teams that have checked in. However, he adds that there are undoubtedly more interested teams.
Ekman-Larsson, who comes in at No. 2 on The Athletic’s list of top trade targets, has been an elite defenseman in the NHL since he broke into the league full-time in 2011-12. A true two-way blue liner who is good for 40+ points and 150+ hits nearly every year, Ekman-Larsson plays big minutes and in every situation. He would be an asset to any team in the NHL.
However, Ekman-Larsson also comes with the price tag of an $8.25MM cap hit over seven more years. For that reason, The Athletic accurately states that there is some substantial risk in acquiring the Swedish star. TSN’s Travis Yost also warns that most defensemen begin to decline after the age of 27 and Ekman-Larsson, 29, has already shown some signs of slipping.
With that said, any team interested in Ekman-Larsson also knows that they hold all the leverage in trade talks. While the Coyotes don’t necessarily have to trade Ekman-Larsson, they need to move a player, or likely several, this off-season. Arizona is in the worst salary cap position in the league with only about $1MM in cap space and only 17 regulars signed. While the team can get $5.275MM in relief from placing Marian Hossa on the injured reserve, they are still only left with about $6.5MM and six roster spots to fill, including three key restricted free agents to sign. If the ‘Yotes choose to move Ekman-Larsson, it would do wonders for their salary cap situation. Yet, they also stand very little chance of getting fair value back for him due to their desperate situation. For that reason, new GM Bill Armstrong may not want his first major move to be dealing away a franchise icon for pennies on the dollar.
For now, it seems teams are only kicking the tires and the Coyotes have not made a decision on whether Ekman-Larsson is actually available. However, in the difficult flat-cap environment facing many teams this off-season, there is no way of knowing what could happen. Ekman-Larsson could very well start next season on a new team and it might not even take a blockbuster to get him.
Offseason Keys: Calgary Flames
As teams are eliminated from the playoffs, it means that the offseason has arrived for several more squads. Having covered the teams that weren’t a part of the NHL’s return and the ones ousted in the Qualifying Round, we shift our focus to the ones that were eliminated in the official first round. Next up is a look at Calgary.
It has certainly been a disappointing last year and a half for the Flames. After a quick exit at the hands of Colorado in the 2019 playoffs, GM Brad Treliving didn’t shake things up too much and instead just tweaked a few veteran players. Things weren’t much better this season. Bill Peters resigned following reports of abusive behaviour in the past and the team played a bit better when assistant Geoff Ward took over in an interim role (and was promoted to the full-time spot just yesterday). However, it didn’t yield much in the way of playoff success; although they beat Winnipeg in the Qualifying Round, they were taken out by Dallas soon after. This time around, bigger changes are expected meaning there is a lot at stake for Calgary this offseason.
Determine The Size Of The Forward Shakeup
When a team bows out quicker than expected once, it’s understandable if a GM decides to give that core group another chance if he believes that they can turn it around. When it happens a second time in as many years as is the case here, patience isn’t going to be as justifiable. The decision to give Ward the permanent head coaching position takes one of Treliving’s potential cards out of play which means the changes are going to have to come from their personnel.
Two of their top offensive players in center Sean Monahan and winger Johnny Gaudreau are coming off of quiet regular seasons. After putting up 99 points a year ago, Gaudreau’s output dropped to just 58 while Monahan went from 82 to 48. Yes, missing the final dozen games due to the pandemic skews the numbers a little but it was still a big letdown nonetheless. Things weren’t much better in the playoffs either. Gaudreau had seven points in 10 games but all but one came with the man advantage. The ratio was only slightly better for Monahan who had five of his eight points on the power play. Gaudreau has two years left and Monahan has three. Treliving will need to decide if he’s willing to shake up the core with one of them potentially being moved or if he’ll dip a little deeper into his roster.
If he opts for the latter, Mark Jankowski is a likely trade candidate following a dreadful seven points in 56 games while Derek Ryan could be expendable in his walk year. But moving those two players isn’t going to move the needle very much. How much confidence does Treliving have in his forward group? We’re going to find out soon enough.
Find A Starting Goalie
With David Rittich coming off of a nice rookie season, the decision to go out and add Cam Talbot in free agency made sense for Calgary. Talbot was someone that was coming off of a tough year but had shown himself to be capable of playing more than a typical backup. He’d bring a bit of upside while being an insurance policy for the inexperienced Rittich.
The results were mixed. Talbot played a bit less than expected but put up his best numbers in several years. That was the good news. The bad news was that Rittich took a big step back. It was telling that Talbot made every postseason start as well.
Talbot now hits the open market as one of the more intriguing goalies out there. There aren’t going to be many starting opportunities available but he is well-positioned to land at least a stronger platoon role than what he had this year. Rittich, meanwhile, is signed for another year at $2.75MM before being eligible for unrestricted free agency himself in 2021.
At this point, it’s hard to envision either of the two goalies being considered for the starting spot next season. These next few weeks figure to feature a lot of movement between the pipes between trades and free agency. With their prospects not being ready for prime time duty just yet, the Flames need to add a more proven starter ahead of Rittich if they want to head into next season feeling more confident about their chances.
Reshape The Defense
The back end has been a staple of the Flames for a while now but changes are on the horizon. No fewer than five veteran defenders are set to hit the open market next month in T.J. Brodie, Travis Hamonic, Derek Forbort, Erik Gustafsson, and Michael Stone. With more than $64MM in commitments already for next season to just 14 players, it’s unlikely that they’ll be able to bring back more than one of Brodie or Hamonic while Forbort and Gustafsson will likely find bigger roles if they go elsewhere.
As things stand, just three veterans are under contract for next season in Mark Giordano, Noah Hanifin, and Rasmus Andersson (whose six-year extension is set to come into effect). Juuso Valimaki is also signed and on his entry-level deal but he missed all of this season after tearing his ACL last summer while training. He’s likely going to be on the team but counting on him to have a big role would be risky considering how much time he missed. Oliver Kylington is a restricted free agent and should be back as well but he is more of a depth option at this point as is Alexander Yelesin who enters the final year of his deal. College free agency signing Connor Mackey is worth keeping an eye on but it’s unlikely he’d step into an impact role right away either.
This presents an opportunity for the Flames to reshape things a bit. It wouldn’t be surprising to see them try to funnel a bit of their previous spending either into adding a more prominent goalie or some more firepower up front. If they can’t bring back one of Brodie or Hamonic, they’ll likely have to try to add a new rearguard or two. Depth defenders are available in free agency but if they want a top-four option, they’ll likely have to turn to the trade market and if it’s an impact defenseman that they want to add, it’ll take more than a depth forward or two to get one. Changes appear to be on the way for Calgary’s defensive group.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Geoff Ward Named Calgary Flames Head Coach
The Calgary Flames have decided to remove the interim tag from Geoff Ward‘s position, officially naming him the 20th head coach in franchise history. Ward took over behind the bench when Bill Peters resigned earlier this season, moving from his previous position of associate coach.
Ward, 58, commanded the Flames to a 24-15-3 record in the regular season, landing them in the postseason tournament and defeating the Winnipeg Jets in the qualification round. The team wasn’t able to change their disappointing recent playoff history though, bowing out timidly to the Dallas Stars in the first round. Still, Ward will get a chance to really impose his style and leadership on the team moving forward. He certainly got more out of the team than Peters early on, as the Flames were 12-12-4 when the switch was made.
A longtime NHL assistant, Ward has had stops with the Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, and New Jersey Devils before coming to Calgary in 2018. Interestingly, his coaching career has also taken him overseas several times as a head coach in Germany, most recently with Adler Mannheim of the DEL (where he won the league title and Coach of the Year). That experience was enough to get him a role with the German national team, where he served as an assistant at four World Championships and some Olympic qualifying matches.
Ward has signed a new two-year contract with the Flames, according to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic.