This offseason, the Calgary Flames finally committed to a direction for the future of the franchise. It was an eventful offseason, to say the least, and Conroy was very busy. During free agency, the Flames’ notable signings included Anothny Mantha, Devin Cooley, Jake Bean and Ryan Lomberg. They also drafted Zayne Parekh, Matvei Gridin, Jacob Battaglia, Henry Mews, and Andrew Basha among others.
However, this offseason they lost some notable players as well. Oliver Kylington signed a deal with the Colorado Avalanche, Jacob Markstrom was traded to the New Jersey Devils, and Andrew Mangiapane was traded to the Washington Capitals. Lastly, the Flames re-signed Yegor Sharangovich to a five-year, $5.75M deal. So, with all that considered, how would you rank the Flames’ offseason? We asked, you answered.
Evaluating the Flames’ offseason performance
We sent the below poll to our readers.
Grade: A
About a third of the voters would give Conroy an A grade for his work this offseason. I would think a lot of this grade would come from Conroy selling on players like Markstrom and Mangiapane, but also the incredible draft that the Flames had. Zayne Parekh is the Flames’ most talented prospect since they drafted Matthew Tkachuk, but on top of that, picking up Andrew Basha and Jacob Battaglia in the second round were very valuable selections. Henry Mews was selected in the third round, and with that selection, the Flames now have three members who are a part of the top 10 of scoring among defencemen in the OHL. Sure, the Flames didn’t get to draft a generational talent, but a draft like this helps the rebuild in a big way.
Grade: B
Most readers believe that Conroy should be given a B. Again, readers were likely happy with how the draft went, and how certain players were sold. However, the drop from A to B may be due to the returns that the Flames received. Markstrom fetched the Flames Kevin Bahl and a 2025 first-round pick. A decent return, but there were reports that the Flames were looking at getting Alexander Holtz. Whether that was actually ever on the table or not is a whole other discussion, but there is no doubt some fans may have been a little let down with the return that the former Vezina finalist brought back.
Grade: C and D
Not many readers selected the C and D grades, as those responses only made up 12.5% of responses. It’s clear that, overall, the Flames fans are very happy with the offseason that the club had, and this is reflected in the lack of responses to these options.
Great start for Conroy
Conroy showed this summer that he has a plan and is not afraid to follow it. It will lead to some more losses this year, and maybe even next year, but Conroy has a plan for the long-term success of the franchise, and once the cupboards are stocked up again if all comes to fruition, Conroy should have himself a team competing for a Stanley Cup.
