Speculation: another deal to come between the Canadiens and the Flames?
After seeing Johnny Gaudreau get a deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Calgary Flames could see another big name leave their organization. As we mentioned yesterday, it would not be surprising if a trade involving Matthew Tkachuk was concluded this week.
The departure of the two players will create a huge hole in the Albertan team's lineup. Without saying that the CH will be in the race to acquire Tkachuk (which would still be interesting), Kent Hughes could very well talk with his counterpart Brad Treliving to help him fill the holes.
As of this writing and according to Capfriendly, Calgary has $18.45M in salary cap space with 18 of the 23 contracts signed heading into the next campaign. While the defense appears to be complete, that is not the case for the offense as only 8 forwards are currently under contract.
In addition to Tkachuk who is out of contract and is RFA, Andrew Mangiapane will also be up for signing. If we consider that the first one will leave, there are still, at least, three positions to fill in order to reach the required 12 forwards. Treliving will definitely have to look elsewhere to fill their lineup, and that's where Kent Hughes could come in!
With the departure of two left wingers and a lot of cap space, Treliving could very well come in and pick up the CH's extras. It would not be surprising to see one of Jonathan Drouin, Mike Hoffman or Evgeni Dadonov being acquired by the Flames in order to make up for the club's big losses.
The Flames' GM could also be tempted to strengthen his center line and acquire Christian Dvorak. The latest rumors mention that the American center, who is paid $4.45M for three more seasons, would be the player sacrificed by Kent Hughes to free up space under the cap.
When you know that the relationship between the two GMs is good, if the Tyler Toffoli transaction is any indication, it would not be surprising if they did it again. Hughes is already very familiar with the Flames' prospect pool and could ask for some in return. He could also try to improve his defensive right line as Calgary has several players playing this position such as Rasmus Andersson, Christopher Tanev, Nikita Zadorov and Nicolas Meloche to name a few.
One thing is for sure, Calgary will be one to watch in the next few days!
| POLL | ||
Who do you want to see get traded? | ||
| Hoffman | 343 | 32.7 % |
| Drouin | 608 | 57.9 % |
| Dadonov | 48 | 4.6 % |
| Other | 51 | 4.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
