A little over a year and a half ago, the Calgary Flames made a trade that, at the time, was viewed as a moderately successful move, while today it appears to be a massive win for the organization, both in the short term and the long term.
In June 2024, the Flames sent Jacob Markstrom, who was their undisputed starting goaltender at the time, to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Kevin Bahl and a 2025 first-round pick. Everyone knew the trade was coming; Markstrom had wanted out for months, and the Flames were more than ready to move forward with Dustin Wolf between the pipes. It was a long and drawn-out process that looked like it was going to cross the finish line right before the trade deadline that season, but the Flames waited and came away with a package that may have set them up for a long time.
Markstrom’s time in Calgary was finished
Markstrom’s time in Calgary was certainly a mixed bag, depending on who you ask. He was signed to be the solution in the cage as the Flames had not had a real, true number one goalie since Miikka Kiprusoff was around. They had a carousel in net for years, and for the first time in a long time, they had a goalie who was a bona fide starter.
Markstrom’s tenure was up and down. He had a subpar first season as he dealt with an injury and the curse of playing behind a Geoff Ward-coached team. His second season saw him finish as the runner-up for the Vezina Trophy, and it was by far and away the best season of his career. That was followed up by probably his worst season in the NHL, as Markstrom could not stop a beach ball in the 2022–23 season, and he was the main culprit as to why the Flames missed the playoffs that season.
Then came the 2023–24 season. Expectations were not all that high in Calgary, but for them to have a chance at the playoffs, Markstrom would have to rebound to his form from 2021–22. He did just that; he was sensational that season, even though the Flames were near the bottom of the standings. Markstrom was playing as well as anyone that season, and because of that, it became a possibility that the Flames would be able to move Markstrom with Wolf waiting in the wings.
The trade to New Jersey
Trade speculation went wild, and before long, the New Jersey Devils became the frontrunners to land him, as their goaltending had been the main reason they fell off the map that season. It looked like a trade was going to get finished before the trade deadline, but the Flames’ ownership group denied the offer, and Markstrom was in Calgary for the remainder of the season.
It had become apparent, however, that Markstrom would not play another game for the Flames after that season. He made a lot of comments to the media about the noise of the rumours, and he made what should have been a weekend all about Kiprusoff and his jersey retirement about him and wanting a trade out.
He would get his wish that summer and was finally traded to the Devils. He has been underwhelming as a Devil to say the least, though. He finished last season with a .900 SV%, and this season he has been abysmal with a .874 SV% in 17 appearances. He did land a new contract extension with the Devils for another two seasons. I wonder if they regret that already.
Markstrom was a good player for the Flames, but considering they virtually could not move him after 2022–23, to then land a top-four defenceman and a first-round pick for him a year later was great work by the Flames, and they are reaping the rewards of it.
Kevin Bahl has been rock solid
Bahl was a known asset coming back in this deal. A long and rangy defenceman who was known for being a rock defensively while not providing much offence. Well, he has come just as advertised.
Bahl has been great since becoming a Flame. He has done everything that has been asked of him: be solid in his own end, and if the Flames get some offence, great; if not, oh well, it isn’t the end of the world.
Last season, we saw how effective he could be. He uses his size and long reach to break up rushes, he uses his physicality to guard the net and break up cycles, and for how big he is, he skates quite well. When he went down with an injury last season, it was really easy to see how important he was to the Flames’ blueline, and when he returned, the Flames as a whole got much better.
They were trying to find someone to replace Chris Tanev, who they had traded before the trade deadline in 2024, and it looks like they may have found their guy in Bahl with this trade. This season, it has been the standard Bahl: great defensively, not much offence, just a reliable player on the backend.
The Flames were so happy with how Bahl played last season that he was rewarded with a six-year contract extension to be an essential part of the Flames’ blueline moving forward. He is still only 25 and still has the best years of his career in front of him, and if he continues to play the way he has been, he is going to be a major piece of the team when they eventually start competing again.
The 2025 first-round pick landed the Flames a big-time player
Getting a first-round pick in return for Markstrom was key, as I mentioned above; the Flames couldn’t give Markstrom away for free after his season in 2022–23. A year later, they secured a draft pick that ended up being used on a player who looks to be a big piece of the team’s future. That being none other than Cole Reschny.
The Flames used the pick from the Devils at 18th overall at this year’s draft, and Reschny was the guy they went with. All things considered, getting a player of his calibre at 18th overall is looking like a major steal for the Flames. On draft night, it looked like a fantastic pick, and today it looks even better.
Reschny spent last season playing for the Victoria Royals in the WHL, and he was nothing short of sensational. In 62 games, he scored 26 goals and had 92 points and then added another 25 points in just 11 playoff games. He shot up the draft rankings as the year went on, and he only got better as the season progressed.
Being the main driver of the Royals, Reschny was the key piece down the middle. He made everyone around him better with his slick hands and his hockey IQ, which may be his best asset. He is not known as a pure goal scorer, and his calling card is more of a setup man, but when given the opportunity, Reschny can score. He possesses a quick and accurate release that he has shown to be able to get off in the smallest of spaces. He used all of those tools to dominate the WHL last season prior to being drafted.
Reschny has gotten even better
This season, he made the jump over to the NCAA to play for the University of North Dakota. A challenge that he was more than ready to conquer. He had a bit of a slow start to his collegiate career, but as of late, he has been the best player for UND. Reschny has two goals and 18 points in 16 games this season, which puts him second on his team in scoring. The player who has one more point than him on the season is a full five years older than Reschny. With each passing game, he has gotten better and better, which is exactly what we want to see out of him.
Now, he is going to suit up for Team Canada at the 2026 World Junior Hockey Championships, and as it stands, he will be playing centre and will start on the team’s top power play unit alongside fellow Flames prospect, Zayne Parekh. This will be a good opportunity for us Flames fans who haven’t been able to watch much of Reschny this season on the biggest stage of them all.
With how well Reschny has progressed this season, it would not shock me if the Flames sign him to an entry-level contract at the end of the season and have him playing pro hockey next season. There is still a long road ahead, but with the strides Reschny has made with his already loaded resume, we should all be excited for what he can be down the line.
A short-term sacrifice for the future
If this trade should show the Flames anything, it’s that it is more than okay to trade the veterans for future assets. Everyone was worried about the goaltending for the Flames after Markstrom was moved. Now Wolf has taken over the cage (and has been better than Markstrom), and the Flames have two players who will be key members of the team for a long time.
If the Flames can continue to make smart trades on their older players for younger assets, the Flames will put themselves in a great position moving forward to get them out of the basement.
Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire
