The Tyler Toffoli trade in the summer signified a path for what we may see coming forward from the Calgary Flames front office. The team didn’t give Toffoli his reported long-term extension and dealt him to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Yegor Sharangovich and a 2023 third-rounder.
At the time of the deal, Toffoli was a 31-year-old in the last year of his deal. The acquired Sharangovich was 25 years old and a restricted free agent at the time of the trade. He signed a two-year, $3.1M AAV deal a day after being acquired by the Flames. The team also used that 2023 third-rounder to select Aydar Suniev at 80th overall.
At the All-Star break, Sharangovich has 20 goals and 35 points in 49 games. On the other hand, Toffoli has 21 goals and 34 points in 47 games. That is pretty identical production from both players, and the Flames got a promising prospect in the deal as well. So, not only did the Flames save themselves from locking in another veteran to a long-term contract, but they also got a younger forward who is posting essentially equivalent production, and a draft pick.
Flames are likely to target “The Sharangovich Deal” with future trades
We can expect a large amount of change in Flames land leading up to the March 8, 2024 NHL Trade Deadline. With pending UFAs like Noah Hanifin, and Chris Tanev potentially heading elsewhere, what could the Flames get in return? They might go for strictly draft picks, or young players, or a combination of both. Given Flames ownership’s distaste of the word ‘rebuild’, we can assume they will want to target some young players already in the NHL that could benefit from a change of scenery or more playing time.
The Lindholm trade didn’t exactly do the same “going for younger” approach with Andrei Kuzmenko (who celebrated his 28th birthday by joining the Flames), but the overall package did give Calgary more shots at the future than the present.
Young NHL players the Flames could target in deals
If the Flames keep trying to trade for the future, some of the following players could be included in the trade returns for the various UFAs they are soon to deal. Others could be acquired from teams with the draft capital received back in those trades (although I’d prefer if they just kept that capital and used it to draft. The Washington Capitals did this last year when they dealt Dmitry Orlov to the Boston Bruins in a package that featured the Bruin’s 2023 first-rounder. The Capitals then flipped this first-round pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs five days later in exchange for Rasmus Sandin. So, the Capitals effectively flipped an older pending UFA in exchange for a 23-year-old defenceman under team control.
Arthur Kaliyev (22 years old, RW/LW)
The Kings have taken a massive step back over the past twenty games and now find themselves in a wild card spot. Things haven’t been going well. One of the players who might be on the outs if the Kings decide to shake things up a bit is Arthur Kaliyev. Since being drafted 33rd overall in the 2019 NHL Draft, Kaliyev has suited up for 175 games, scoring 34 goals and 70 points. Not bad production, but Kaliyev has mostly been used as a bottom-six, power play figure. Recently, he has been a consistent healthy scratch or barely playing when he does slot into the lineup.
I see Kaliyev as a similar player to Sharangovich, in that he has an elite shot, but doesn’t impact the game much beyond that. The Flames need guys that can put the puck in the net. Kaliyev could boom with more playing time, or he may be too one-dimensional and bust. Either way, it’s an interesting young player to keep an eye on. Kaliyev is in the last year of his entry-level contract and is an RFA at the conclusion of the 2023–24 season.
Adam Boqvist (23 years old, RD)
The Columbus Blue Jackets have a voluminous amount of defencemen, and well… not a very good hockey team. There are guys like David Jiricek pushing for a roster spot, but the Blue Jackets have too many defencemen to give him consistent playing time. The solution? Trading one or two of their defencemen. We’ve heard names like Adam Boqvist and Andrew Peeke thrown around since the summer.
Boqvist is an intriguing player, given the age and prime position he plays. He was drafted eighth overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2018, but hasn’t panned out to his potential yet. After two half seasons with the Blackhawks, Boqvist was included in the package sent by the Blackhawks to the Blue Jackets in exchange for Seth Jones.
Boqvist has played parts of three seasons with the Blue Jackets, but injuries have been prevalent. However, in his 194-game NHL career thus far, Boqvist does have 82 points. As a third pairing, first power play unit defenceman, he’s an interesting buy-low candidate. And if the Flames do move one or both of Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev, they’ll have some spots open on defence. Boqvist is signed through the 2024–25 season at an AAV of $2.6M.
Bowen Byram (22 years old, LD)
There was some speculation from TSN’s Chris Johnston about Bowen Byram being a piece of interest for the Flames if the Avalanche pushed for Elias Lindholm. That would have been a huge return if the Avs parted with him. However, there may be other players that Byram could be traded for.
Byran, the fourth overall pick in 2019, has played in 132 NHL games so far, notching 55 points. The potential is still incredibly high, although he has had some injury troubles. The main reason the Avalanche might eventually part with Byram is their depth on defence. The Avs have all of Cale Makar, Devon Toews, Samuel Girard, and Josh Manson signed through the 2025–26 season.
Having depth on defence isn’t a bad thing, but if the cap squeeze is tight and the Avalanche want to add to their forward core, Byram might be the guy that ultimately moves. Byram is signed through the 2024-25 season at an AAV of 3.85M, before becoming an RFA. That said, the Flames would have to look to their forward corps to facilitate a trade here as their biggest trade chips are now Hanifin and Tanev.
Ville Heinola (22 years old, LD), Logan Stanley (25 years old, LD)
The Jets possess a ton of prospects, but they also have some young players that could be of interest. One of those is young defenceman Ville Heinola, who hasn’t been able to grab a roster spot given the Jets depth on defence. The 20th overall selection in the 2019 draft is still very much a raw product. But he could be a defenceman at the NHL level if given the chance. Heinola is an RFA after the 2023–24 season.
The Jets also possess Logan Stanley, whose massive 6’6″ frame could be of interest to the Flames given the loss of Nikita Zadorov. Stanley, the 18th overall selection in the 2016 draft, has gotten into 121 NHL games with the Jets, notching 20 points. He has factored as a healthy scratch for most of the 2023–24 season, so it may be time for both sides to part ways. Stanley is an RFA after the 2023–24 season.
Morgan Frost (24 years old, C/LW)
I talked about the potential of Morgan Frost coming to Calgary earlier this season when Frost was a prevalent healthy scratch. Since then, Frost has been a feature in the Flyers lineup, scoring 22 points in 39 games. Who knows whether or not the Flyers trade Frost this season? But it would be an interesting trade candidate for the Flames to plug the future hole at centre to replace the depth lost with Lindholm traded. Frost is signed through the 2024–25 season at an AAV of $2.1M.
Alexander Holtz (22 years old, RW) / Kevin Bahl (23 years old, LD)
The New Jersey Devils and Calgary Flames seem like natural trading partners. The Devils have an obvious need for goaltending and defence, and the Flames have available assets in both categories. These teams conducted the Toffoli/Sharangovich trade in the offseason, so there is familiarity as well.
Maybe the Devils use Dougie Hamilton’s $9M LTIR money to acquire a few assets from the Flames together. Say, Markstrom and Hanifin? Tanev and Markstrom? Hanifin and Tanev? Or maybe just one. Whatever they choose, they have the young assets to entice the Flames and cap space to make things work.
One of those young assets is Alex Holtz. Since being drafted seventh overall by the Devils in the 2020 NHL Draft, Holtz has struggled to hold a consistent spot in the lineup. He’s playing around twelve minutes per game with the Devils this season. However, he’s still had a decent season offensively, potting 12 goals and 23 points in 47 games. The Flames could use a right shot player with a killer shot.
Similarly to Kaliyev, Holtz could pop if given a chance higher up in a lineup. But unlike Kaliyev, Holtz still has a very high stock given his recent draft position. So, it would be tough for the Flames to get him. Holtz has two years left on his ELC.
Another intriguing young asset is Kevin Bahl. Bahl was drafted 55th overall by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2018 NHL Draft but was flipped to the Devils in the Taylor Hall trade. The 6’6″ defenceman could add some size and tenacity to the Flames blueline. He is averaging more than seventeen minutes a game for the Devils this season at 22 years old. Bahl is signed through the 2024–25 season at an AAV of $1.05M, before becoming an RFA.
Nicholas Robertson (22 years old, LW)
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames were linked to each other during the Nikita Zadorov saga. The Leafs were reportedly trying to get both Zadorov and Tanev, but couldn’t work on a price point that worked for the Flames. The Leafs are still looking for defencemen, so Tanev could very much still be on their radar.
Toronto does have their 2024 first-rounder but lacks draft capital beyond that. Instead of using picks, maybe they use younger players to entice Calgary? The most notable would be Nicholas Robertson, who has been one of the best 5v5 scorers in the NHL this season. His smaller frame and injury history are a bit of a concern, but he could be a useful middle-six scorer at the NHL level. Robertson is an RFA after the 2023–24 season.
No shortage of players
The reality of the league is there will always be younger players available for trade. However, if the Flames are looking to go the reclamation project route like they did with Sharangovich and are doing now with Kuzmenko, they may be able to fetch some pretty good deals between now and the trade deadline.
Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire
