[Caged Great]

In my opinion, he should not be traded under any circumstance for the time being. The problem with guys like Backlund and Baertschi is that they were the only shiny prospects at the time before the rebuild, so the expectations of their potential were heightened. Backlund was probably the best forward we had taken in the first round since Stillman, which in of itself is pathetic but that's another story.

Backlund as he is right now is a very good quality defensive forward that isn't completely lost in the offensive zone. The Flames will need guys like that on the lower end of the depth chart. Not everyone can be the next star player.

A championship calibre team needs good players on every line, and players that are well suited to the roles they are placed in. Backlund is capable of putting up 30 points or so while providing very good PK efforts and defensive play. He could emerge as our version of Alex Steen (prior to this season's awesomeness), someone that just makes smart defensive plays and can capitalize on other team's mistakes.

With Knight coming up, that's actually a good thing. Shift Backlund to the wing as Knight is better with the faceoffs and you have 2/3rds of a shut down 3rd line that can chip in offensively from time to time. Plus if Knight gets waived on an important faceoff, you have Backlund there who isn't terrible in his own right.