I don’t even see why the Flames would trade for Risto- he didn’t fill a need, especially if they figured Gio would hang on to his abilities a little more. Where would he slot?
Trading Monahan wouldn’t have done much IMO. Now you’ve finally got the RW to play with Gaudreau and Monahan except you don’t have Monahan. So you slide Lindholm in - fine, though he’s pretty untested at C. And now Tkachuk is back with Backlund and Mangiapane? He plays OK with them but it’s not really a one two punch any more. And then you have have Bennett with Lucic and Dube - your line that’s good in the POs or in a whistle-less game.
Keep in mind too, Anderson needed a contract. He ended up with a pretty hefty one for a guy who’d topped out at 47 points, coming off a big injury, and who is already 26.
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