The Calgary Flames have done a tidy bit of work in advance of the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline. They have moved out Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, and Noah Hanifin, getting Daniil Miromanov, Artem Grushnikov, Andrei Kuzmenko, Joni Jurmo, Hunter Brzustewicz, two firsts, a second, two conditional thirds and a conditional fourth-round pick. Not bad for a rookie GM in Craig Conroy.
Outside of Calgary, multiple former Flames are currently in trade conversations or have been moved already prior to the trade deadline. The Montreal Canadiens traded away a former Flames centreman earlier in the season, but many more have been moved more recently. Let’s take a look:
Former Flames in trade discussions
Elias Lindholm
It has been just over a month, but things are not all sunshine and rainbows in Vancouver for Elias Lindholm. The former first-round pick has just six points in 15 games and sits at a brutal -5. Yikes!
His name has been appearing in rumours for weeks now, with the Canucks looking to move on from the former Flame. Given his sharp drop-off in production, it’s unlikely that they will be able to recoup the same value that they sent Calgary’s way. However, if he simply isn’t working in the Canucks’ dressing room and is unwilling to sign with the team long-term, it may be time to cut bait with Lindholm.
Even if he doesn’t get traded, this saga will go down as one of the biggest bag fumbles in recent NHL history. Going into the season, the contract offers on the table were rumoured to be in the high $8 million to low $9 million range for eight seasons, and after the season that he has had, it seems unlikely he will get more than $5 million on a shorter term deal. A true shame, but the Flames likely come out as the real winners in all of this.
Tyler Toffoli
Toffoli had an incredible start to the season but has cooled off substantially as the New Jersey Devils have struggled to maintain their pace in the tight Eastern Conference. Toffoli is also a pending UFA this summer, and if the Devils are shopping him right now, there is a very good chance that they don’t think he will be signing there this summer.
Toffoli is a Stanley Cup Champion already and is a massive depth upgrade for a contending team. Similar to Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman, Toffoli is attracting a ton of attention from contending teams who are looking to upgrade their depth.
Given the timing and his production this season, Toffoli is expected to return a haul to the Devils, who gave up Yegor Sharangovich and a third-round pick for him just under a season ago. If they can get a first-round pick and more, that would be excellent asset management by the Devils organization.
Trade Deadline Update: Toffoli is now a Winnipeg Jet!
Nikita Zadorov
Just like Lindholm, things have not been wonderful for Zadorov, who went to Vancouver just a few months back. Looking for more money and a larger role, Zadorov is averaging over a minute and a half less ice time per game with the Canucks than he did with the Flames.
In 37 games, the Russian blueliner has just eight points, two more than he had in 21 games with the Flames. He is a third-pairing defenceman who thinks he’s a top pairing guy. A dangerous combination.
A pending UFA, Zadorov knows that if he wants to earn the bag he thinks he deserves, he is going to need a bigger role on a team that can afford to pay him. While the trade rumours around him have quieted a little, there is still a very real chance that he will be moved before the deadline.
Derek Forbort
Forbort is probably a name that you haven’t thought about in a long time, and if you have, it probably was part of a conversation of forgettable former Flames blueliners acquired under former GM Brad Treliving. The former 15th overall pick played just seven games for the Flames in the 2019–20 regular season and ten more in the playoffs before signing in Winnipeg the following season.
Now in Boston, Forbort is out of the lineup for games tonight with an undescribed ailment. There is a very real possibility that his name is involved in a trade right now.
Already been moved this deadline
Troy Stecher
Another former Flames blueliner who was acquired under Treliving, Stetcher was picked up from Arizona last season in the Ritchie brother swap at the Trade Deadline. He played just 20 regular season games, putting up seven points for the Flames.
He has recently been moved again from Arizona to Alberta, this time to the Edmonton Oilers, in exchange for a fourth-round pick. The Oilers also receive a seventh-round pick as part of the deal.
What to expect when the NHL deadline hits
The Devils are expected to rest Toffoli for their game tonight in anticipation of a trade. However, the Canucks are reportedly reconsidering trading Lindholm due to the reputational risks of moving a player with a family this quickly.
Time will tell what happens, but expect it to be a very busy next day for the former Flames.
Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire
