I don't think the Flames are going to make the playoffs. First, as of 26 minutes ago, Dom Lusczcyszyn of the Athletic gives the Flames a 14% chance of making the playoffs, and he projects them to finish 10th. Second, the Predators are currently projected to reach 95 points as the 8th seed. To beat that, (and I'm going to assume the Predators will have the tie breakers because they have 5 more wins and only 2 OTL,) the Flames need 31 points in the last 21 games. That's the equalivent of 15-5-1, or a 73.8% points percentage. Third, you also have the reality that if the Flames start to catch the Predators or any other team, the team being chased will likely start playing desperate.
If the Flames can get a good return for Markstrom, they should just make the trade. The playoffs are a lost cause.
Holtz + 1st (in 2025) would certainly count as a good return in my books. If the Flames could get Mercer, even better.
My bet is that Conroy is simply holding out to the deadline to get the best possible return.
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