Back in 2021, tensions were high in the city of Buffalo.
Former 2nd overall pick and superstar centre Jack Eichel found himself engaged in a tense standoff with Kevyn Adams and Buffalo Sabres management.
It all started after Eichel suffered a herniated cervical disc in March 2021. The Sabres urged Eichel to have a traditional spinal fusion procedure. This procedure would greatly limit the mobility of Eichel’s neck.
A second option was discussed: to have artificial disc surgery. It was an operation that had never been performed on an NHL player before.
Eichel opted to have the artificial disc surgery; the Sabres said no. Management stripped Eichel of his captaincy, and he was officially being shopped around.
The trade that almost was
Almost every GM picked up the phone and tried to swing their best offer. However, Eichel confirmed in a 2023 interview that the two finalists were Vegas and Calgary.
According to Kevin Weekes, the Flames’ offer for Eichel was this:
The Flames would receive Jack Eichel and likely another player to make the money work.
The Sabres reportedly wanted Matthew Tkachuk, a 1st round pick, a former 1st round pick (or, if rumours are to be believed, to be Andrew Mangiapane) and two prospects.
Brad Treliving wasn’t willing to go there. In hindsight, Tkachuk left the following summer, and Mangiapane turned into a bottom-six winger. It’s disappointing.
According to Elliotte Friedman, the wheels fell off a potential deal after this.
I’ve said this many times: I think Calgary was in this the whole way. There have been some reports that they were close. I don’t like to say I’m any smarter or better than anybody else. I’m just saying what I’ve heard. I don’t know that they were ever close. As a matter of fact, I was told that they weren’t close, but they were always there, and they were always trying to find a way to make it work.
I think they were willing to deal some of their top prospects. I think they were willing to deal upcoming first-round picks. I think they were looking to deal maybe a player or two off their roster. But they didn’t have anyone that Buffalo liked as much as Krebs and they didn’t have anyone that Buffalo thought would be as excited to go there as Tuch, and that’s what I heard were the two big strikes against Calgary.
The other thing too is I think Buffalo asked about Tkachuk, and I think they asked about Mangiapane, and Calgary just wasn’t willing to go there. And I know it got out… I don’t like shooting down other people’s reports. I’ve had that done to me; I don’t like it. The internet was set afire by the whole Tkachuk thing the night before the trade was made. I really think by that time, everybody knew he was going to Vegas.
The Butterfly Effect
Let’s say Buffalo and Calgary made the deal.
A line of Gaudreau-Eichel-Lindholm leading the way for an already dominant Flames team would surely have been a contender. Could they have taken down the monster 2022 Cup champ Avalanche? Probably not.
But this deal would have changed the trajectory of the Flames organization entirely. With Gaudreau and Tkachuk gone by the summer of 2022, Eichel would have been the new face of the franchise. The “Battle of Alberta” featuring Connor McDavid for the Oilers and Jack Eichel for the Flames would have been electric.
A return to the playoffs in 2023 and a subsequent “BOA” rematch from 2022 would have been pure cinema. Both Alberta clubs would be the top dogs in the Pacific, leading to some entertaining hockey for the next few years.
The butterfly effect goes deeper than that. If Eichel was a Flame, the ongoing Flames rebuild wouldn’t have happened. Behind the scenes, Eichel’s close friend and former Calgary Flame, Noah Hanifin, could have extended in Calgary.
With a one-two punch of Eichel and Lindholm down the middle, would Nazem Kadri have signed in Calgary?
Would Brad Treliving have remained Flames GM if the team remained competitive?
Would Darryl Sutter still be behind the bench?
Obviously, the Tkachuk-Huberdeau trade would have never transpired, and that’s arguably the biggest ripple effect of this trade.
Jonathan Huberdeau may have remained a dominant force in the NHL. Matthew Tkachuk made the Panthers a competitor. If he’s wearing a Sabres jersey, does Florida even make three straight Cup Final appearances? If Matthew Tkachuk had ended up a Buffalo Sabre, would the Oilers win back-to-back Stanley Cups and reignite the dynasty from the 1980’s?
The possibilities are endless.
Vegas wouldn’t be the powerhouse they are today, and their 2023 Cup win may have never come to fruition. Eichel going to Calgary instead of Vegas would have changed the NHL as we see it today. We could be sitting here talking about the Flames Cup dynasty.
But we aren’t. And this may remain one of the biggest “what ifs” in Calgary Flames history.
