[Nelson]

(1) I felt underwhelmed by the return. However, it was important for me to remember the reasonable expectation for this trade. First, Seravalli, who everyone hates but who has been correct in all his takes about the Flames this deadline, initially said the Hampus Lindholm return was a reasonable expectation. That was a 1 + 2*2nd + a 2022 1st round pick. However, Seravalli revised himself after word came out about Tampa. He said the return would be less than the Hampus Lindholm return. Second, the Hronek trade return for a slightly worse but RFA defenceman, was similar. Third, the Chiarot trade return for a much worse defenceman heading into UFA, was slightly worse. So, I still don’t feel excited about the return, but I think Conroy was in the ballpark of reasonable expectations, from an insider and three trades.

(2) I am very happy that Conroy has managed to re-sign or get valuable futures for the team’s 2024 UFAs, except Kylington. But Kylington’s public comments and circumstances point towards an easy re-sign. Conroy has followed through with his plan of not losing anyone for nothing, good asset management, and that is a positive.

(3) In the aftermath of this trade, the Flames need to go into the off-season with a plan of moving Zary to center next season. Honzek has played most of the season at LW. So, Zary is the only young player/prospect in the organization, with pedigree, who is a center. This is the glaring weakness of the re-something currently.