This series features players the Calgary Flames drafted and—regrettably—moved on from too soon. Be prepared for pain, frustration, and anger as we delve into what could have been! Up next is the second honourable mention, Marc Savard.
The series will consist of 10 players and five honourable mentions. The criteria for the players selected for this list were that they had a career of at least 500 NHL games, the Flames moved on from the players in their mid-20s, and the players had a noteworthy career after leaving Calgary.
Why is Savard an honourable mention?
The Flames did not draft Savard; the New York Rangers drafted him in the fourth round—91st overall–of the 1995 NHL Entry Draft. The Flames acquired Savard from the Rangers on June 26, 1999, along with a first-round pick in the 1999 draft (ninth overall) in exchange for their 1999 first-round pick (11th overall), 1999 third-round pick (90th overall), and Jan Hlavac.
After being drafted, Savard played 98 games across parts of two seasons for the Rangers. He scored 10 goals and 51 points to go along with a plus-minus rating of -11. Averaging 18:42 time on ice a night, Savard had a meager 6.8 shooting percentage on 148 shots. On the other hand, Hlavac—a second-round pick by the New York Islanders in the 1995 draft—was coming off a 33-goal season in the Czech Extraliga.
Clearly, the Rangers thought more highly of the Czech prospect and made the deal with the Flames just before Savard’s 22nd birthday.
Savard spent parts of the next four seasons with the Flames. Averaging 17:37 TOI over 221 games, he scored 60 goals and added 94 helpers for 154 points to go with a plus-minus of -35. Just over 33% of Savard’s points (52, to be precise) came on the power play. He also became a more well-rounded offensive player, recording 542 shots on goal and an 11.1 shooting % for the Flames.
Savard’s best seasons for the Flames came in 2000–01 when he scored 23 goals and 65 points in 77 games. Coincidentally, his 19:13 TOI that season was the highest of his Flames career by nearly two minutes. Maybe that’s not a coincidence.
Early in the 2002–03 season, the Flames were hovering around the 0.500 mark. With Savard averaging 14:41 TOI and having only a goal and three points through 10 games, the team sent him packing.
What did the Flames have to show for Savard?
On November 15, 2002, the Flames shipped Savard off to the Atlanta Thrashers for Russian forward Ruslan Zaynullin, a second-round pick by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2000 draft.
There’s not much to say here. Zaynullin opted to stay in Russia, playing his entire career overseas, and the Flames never flipped his rights. Ultimately, the Flames received nothing for their budding star centreman.
Summarizing how costly the Flames’ mistake was
Let’s ignore the picks involved in the trade to acquire Savard. Essentially, the Flames gave the Rangers a third-rounder to move up from 11th to ninth. That’s not unreasonable, and we see similar trades all the time. So the Flames gave up a promising prospect in Hlavac—who developed into a middle-six forward—to acquire Savard.
Savard was an effective offensive weapon for the Flames in a middle-six role himself. Now, I can justify moving a player who’s never been a point-per-game and has always been in the minuses. You’d expect a decent return, such as a second-round pick and a prospect, maybe. But, as I said, the Flames effectively gave Savard away.
Savard quickly developed into Atlanta’s number one centre. In his second season, he averaged over a point per game, with 52 in 45 games. In his third and final season as a Thrasher, he scored a career-best 28 goals and 97 points, along with 100 penalties in minutes. A whopping 50 points came with the man advantage, and Savard finished with a positive plus-minus for the first time in his career (+7).
All in all, Savard played 184 games for the Thrashers, averaging 20:44 TOI. He scored 63 goals and 196 points while recording 262 PIM and a 13.3 shooting % on 472 shots. A clear improvement on his time in Calgary, although playing with the likes of Ilya Kovalchuk, Dany Heatley, and Marian Hossa certainly helps.
Savard signed with the Boston Bruins following the 2005–06 season, where he played out the rest of his career. Over 304 games as a Bruin—averaging 19:31 TOI—Savard scored 74 goals and 305 points, 131 of which came on the power play. He added 275 PIM and a 9.6 shooting percentage on 770 shots on goal.
Sadly, Savard’s playing career was cut short at age 33 due to a pair of concussions suffered 10 months apart in 2010 and 2011. The Bruins won the Stanley Cup without Savard in 2011; Savard did not play the requisite number of games to have his name engraved on the Cup. However, the Bruins successfully petitioned to have his name on it, as the missed games were due to injury.
The Flames sorely lacked a true top centre to help Jarome Iginla during the mid-to-late 2000s, and Savard could have filled that void. Trading a player of Savard’s pedigree and having nothing to show for it is a massive loss for the Flames. What if Iginla had Savard as his setup man throughout his prime? We’ll never know.
On the bright side, the Flames eventually brought Savard back, hiring him as an assistant coach ahead of the 2023–24 season. Unfortunately, the reunion was brief, and Savard has already moved on to the Toronto Maple Leafs (too soon?).
Do you agree with our assessment of the Flames’ handling of Savard? Let us know your thoughts!
Check out all of The Win Column’s posts from this series:
Main list: #10 Jonas Hoglund | #9 Robert Svehla | #8 Travis Moen | #7 Steve Begin | #6 Sam Bennett | #5 Dion Phaneuf | #4 Derek Morris | #3 Jarret Stoll | #2 Craig Anderson | #1 Cory Stillman
Honourable mentions: #5 Michael Nylander | #4 Jean-Sebastien Giguere | #3 Sean Monahan | #2 Marc Savard | #1 Martin St. Louis
