As a collective, I think everyone can agree that Craig Conroy has done a fine job since becoming the GM of the Calgary Flames. He has made some nice moves, some okay ones, and a few that are mind-numbing. Most recently standing pat at the trade deadline instead of cashing in on the seller’s market, but with the Flames battling for a playoff spot, I can somewhat understand his thinking.
Conroy’s first and obvious miss as GM occurred on July 1st, 2024 when he extended Yegor Sharangovich to a 5-year contract extension with an AAV of $5.75 million per year. At the time, the number was egregious and we all thought he would not live up to the expectation of that contract after scoring 31 goals a season ago. Were we ever right about that one, as Sharangovich has been downright awful this season and the contract hasn’t even kicked in yet.
With the Flames needing to pay some of their younger players like Matt Coronato, Connor Zary and Dustin Wolf in the next year or two, cap space will need to be made and the Flames cannot have any passengers with a big ticket. A way to get out of it: buying out Sharangovich this off-season.
The brutal year Sharangovich has had
It’s safe to say that Sharangovich has been the Flames’ most disappointing player this season. On a night-to-night basis, he has been one of the Flames’ worst skaters since coming back from injury at the beginning of the season. He is not assertive, not shooting the puck, not playing with the speed he did a season ago, and he has been a turnover machine, an example being the game against the Dallas Stars last week.
He has been a far cry from the player he was a season ago. The biggest issue I think has been is that almost every game, you just don’t notice Sharangovich at all. He floats around, flubs a scoring opportunity and then that is it, you don’t notice him for the rest of the game aside from when he is making mistakes.
I am shocked that he’s only been a healthy scratch once this year with how poor his play has been. New Jersey Devils fans probably know this all too well as he went from being a guy who scored 24 goals one year to being a healthy scratch in the playoffs the next. If the Flames find a way to get into the dance, I don’t think it would shock anyone if he sat some games. He just doesn’t seem like a player built for the playoffs, too soft and not impactful enough. Sometimes I really wish the Flames had held off on this extension until this season came to a close.
Why it would make sense to buy out Sharangovich this summer
Now, I know this is not going to happen because the team loves Sharangovich, but it could make a lot of sense to cut ties with him via a buyout this summer. As I mentioned above, the Flames have some very key players that will need new contracts in the near future. While the Flames have lots of cap room and with the cap going up in the next few years, they shouldn’t have an issue with cap space.
However, we know the Flames love to spend on free agents and it wouldn’t shock me if they decided to spend some money this summer. There is a log jam on the wings which is not being freed up anytime soon, and the Flames have to be diligent with their spending despite the cap space.
A buy out this summer for Sharangovich would look like this over the next decade;
| Buyout Years | Cash | Savings | Cap Hit |
| 2025-26 | $791,667 | $2,958,333 | $2,791,667 |
| 2026-27 | $791,667 | $3,958,333 | $1,791,667 |
| 2027-28 | $791,667 | $3,958,333 | $1,791,667 |
| 2028-29 | $791,667 | $3,958,333 | $1,791,667 |
| 2029-30 | $791,667 | $4,958,333 | $791,667 |
| 2030-31 | $791,667 | $-791,667 | $791,667 |
| 2031-32 | $791,667 | $-791,667 | $791,667 |
| 2032-33 | $791,667 | $-791,667 | $791,667 |
| 2033-34 | $791,667 | $-791,667 | $791,667 |
| 2034-35 | $791,667 | $-791,667 | $791,667 |
The Flames would have to pay Sharangovich for the next decade for him to not play for them. However, it would be incredibly team-friendly as the biggest hit it would take on the cap would be $2.7 million. A buyout would save the Flames a ton of money on the cap and they would free up a roster spot for a better player.
As I already mentioned, I know in reality the Flames would never do this, but when you look at the numbers and how much it would actually cost them, it makes a lot of sense. The Flames would be able to start fresh without the anchor of almost $6 million a year on the roster when that money could be allocated elsewhere.
Will Sharangovich turn it around?
Am I overreacting here? Yeah probably. I have been bullish on Sharangovich since the moment they traded for him. I always thought he was a one trick pony and if he wasn’t scoring then he’s more of a negative asset then anything.
He proved people wrong a season ago while riding an incredibly high and unsustainable shooting percentage and was rewarded a big ticket deal that rivals James Neal of being one of the worst contracts the Flames offered in the last decade or so. I was a believer that the Flames should have sold high on Sharangovich last summer knowing he probably wouldn’t be a 30-goal scorer again, instead, the Flames chose the opposite.
Sharangovich could turn it around, maybe, but I wouldn’t count on him returning to the form he was in 2023-24 as he was a very lucky player. If he becomes more assertive and starts doing the things that made him successful a season ago, we could see things become more positive. Only time will tell if he can break the curse.
