I respectfully disagree with the notion that we should trade Backlund at next year's deadline or the year afterwards if Backs wants to stick around.
Unless he directly asks to be traded to a contender to try and win a cup, I think there's something to be said about having a player begin and end his career with us, even if we think that he's blocking the progression of a younger player in a year or two or simply because we're not poised to win anything any time soon.
Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but AFAIK we've had zero players who have played their entire career with us. None of our greatest players played their entire careers here. I think it would be really f'ing cool if Backlund could be the first to do that and IMO that's more valuable than the 2nd or 3rd round pick we'd likely get for him at the trade deadline at the end of his career.
Backs has earned it and deserves to be the first lifelong Flame and all-time GP leader if he decides he wants that more than a Stanley Cup. If that's how he wants to go out, we should honor that.
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