You have to look really hard not to like this trade. Term is only 2 years, and the money is low. What's the risk here, especially given the low number of contracts?
If Czarnik really can't get the NHL, you send him down to the Heat. No loss. If he works out, then you just have a younger player with upside on your hands that fills a number of needs. Considering that the Flames didn't have a first this year (or a 2nd, or a 3rd..) this was not only the right kind of signing, but a necessary one. This fills a few holes.
If the other younger players that are poised to compete for a spot in camp have an issue with it, well, they better just shut up. Compete for your spot, or move on. If I am Foo, Mangiapane, Shinkaruk, Klimchuk, Dube, etc., and I thought I had a strong chance to make the roster out of camp, nothing has changed. I just have to work even harder this off-season and make the Flames look like idiots for trying to sign someone better than me. I want all the players - young guys or vets - to play like they can be replaced. It is a competition for everyone that starts on the first day of the off-season, and doesn't stop until the last day of the season.
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