BY DEREK CARSON – FAN FUEL BLOGGER
To get a sense of what teams will or will not be doing today, we here at Fan Fuel will analyze the current status of each Canadian team so that you can have a clearer picture of what to expect at this year’s Trade Deadline.
Let’s take a look at the Calgary Flames to see what kind of strategy they should implement at the deadline.
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The Flames are in the hunt for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference. The competition is pretty fierce as five other teams also have a chance at claiming the eighth seed.
Calgary made a big splash earlier in the year when, on January 12, they traded Rene Bourque, prospect Patrick Holland and a second round pick in 2013 to the Montreal Canadiens to essentially reacquire fan favourite Michael Cammalleri (along with prospect Karri Ramo and a fifth round pick in 2012) who they had to let go to free agency in 2009 for financial reasons.
This trade immediately boosted Flames’ offence, which was definitely needed, but it did nothing to solve the Flames’ defensive woes, an area that is sorely lacking this year. Without Miikka Kiprusoff, the Flames would probably be completely out of the playoff hunt.
So with one big trade already under general manager Jay Feaster’s belt, should he do another one to shore up that defence or should he stay put and not risk mortgaging the future for what could turn out to be a ninth place finish?
The Flames have very little cap space. To do a trade they’d have to send money back the other way, which means they’d be trading a roster player. I don’t think it’s worth it.
Calgary’s young guys have a lot of years left on their contracts as they are a part of the future. The veterans, meanwhile, are needed for the playoff push and for the experience they bring if and when they get there.
Injuries piled up on the Flames this year but bodies are starting to come back for the home stretch. The Flames are good enough on paper to make the playoffs, they just have to put it all together.
Calgary fans may have gotten their trade deadline deal a little early this year with the return of Cammalleri. Now Flames fans will just have to wait and see if Cammy is enough to push the Flames past the rest of the competition for a chance at the Stanley Cup.
Related read:
More Trade Deadline Day: Trading for a Stanley Cup