Quote:
Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe
That's the thing with trading for 2026 picks - unless you are making the trade early, you are generally getting late-round picks. Definitely not terrible for a team like the Flames that have been drafting well - adding another Gridin-level prospect would be fantastic, right?
However, there are so many of them that I would like. I would absolutely love a good bet. If one of Kadri or Andersson goes to Toronto, and that 2028 pick is part of the return, that would be glorious. Now, if you don't see them falling off a cliff in the next couple of years, then that's poor value having a pick that far off. However, there are restrictions on the 2027 pick, that 2028 pick could be rolled-into a 2029 unprotected pick. They will have a lot of cap space by then, but at the same time, nothing coming through the pipe. They are already a fairly shallow team. Will McDavid want to sign there, really? A bit of a gamble, but one I would love to see happen. Inserting a top 5 prospect (or higher!) into the organization just as the Flames are turning a corner would be huge.
Tough to wait that long, I know, especially if it goes sideways and Toronto (whomever the GM is at the time) finds a way to turn them around. I think they are going to fade, so if that 2028 pick is ever on the table, I would love for Conroy to snap it up. Would be so nice to reverse that Gilmour trade and have something to lord over them for once.
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This is the way to go IMO. The Flames already have a ton of prospects to sort through as they have had extra picks and had a strong 2024 draft. There are only so many prime spots on the Wranglers, only so many spot in the top 6 on the Flames. We need top end talent, less depth. We are up picks in 2026 and have a bunch of prospects. Give them time to develop and have extra down the road. A team like Toronto is so thin on prospects and picks, at some point they could tank. I would wait for that and even if that pick is 15-20 OV, having time to sort through what we have now and move out vets over time will be beneficial for Conroy.
Kuznetsov is a prime example of a player playing very well but we had him on waivers a month ago and he could have been lost for nothing.
Zary's play will improve IMO as soon as we ship someone out and get him more ice.