2025/2026 Season Trade Rumours and Speculation Thread

[Jason14h]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Here is a poll taken on September 2nd.

https://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthread.php?t=199685

60% had them missing the playoffs.
22% bottom ten pick (I was in this camp)

40% was barely miss the playoffs.

79% had barely miss or make / go far

So 80% of people thought it was - A Playoff Contending Team - Just like my post said

[Robbob]

I think people sometimes need to take a step back and put things in perspective. There was the comment that media has been parroting the they will not trade players for a few weeks. A few weeks puts us back into October where the Flames had played 11 games. I don't think it is a big reach for a team to say these sort of things even at this point of the season.

As mentioned above, and what I think will happen, is that the management narrative is going to change as the season goes along. Frankly big trades typically don't happen at this time of the season because GMs aren't in a hurry to make a change. Sure Eichel was traded in November, but I think that had more to do with him coming back from his surgery and Buffalo did not want him around.

[Strange Brew]

More people had them making the playoffs than taking a step back. Most had them treading water and barely missing.

[Buff]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

<snip>
- I think there are legitimate reasons why you can’t trade all your good players. Strictly from an asset point of view, I think they should try to trade all 3 of Kadri, Coleman and Andersson if the returns are there. Andersson is a no brainer. But I also understand the arguments that trading all those guys could create other harms. And I’m not talking about culture. I’m talking about the need to have some good players around, so that your younger players aren’t totally exposed. I think the key guys for that are probably Kadri (trading him would leave this club with Frost as the #1 center – yikes), Weegar and Coleman. That’s not to say you don’t trade them, but I think you have to factor in those considerations including to set your expected return.

I have seen this concern before about Frost not being the #1 center. Yes, yikes. However is it really a huge concern if you are rebuilding and working towards drafting top end players? This year isn't strong on centers but the Flames are sure to get a very strong player to be a part of their core of key players. I don't see them drafting a top player, even if they get McKenna, and immediately being back in the playoff picture next year. Hopefully there is a strong center in the 2027 draft that puts on a Flames jersey.


All I'm saying is that during a rebuild the team should be fine with Frost as #1 center and Kadri being gone while the team waits for re-enforcements to come up through the draft.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Buff

I have seen this concern before about Frost not being the #1 center. Yes, yikes. However is it really a huge concern if you are rebuilding and working towards drafting top end players? This year isn't strong on centers but the Flames are sure to get a very strong player to be a part of their core of key players. I don't see them drafting a top player, even if they get McKenna, and immediately being back in the playoff picture next year. Hopefully there is a strong center in the 2027 draft that puts on a Flames jersey.


All I'm saying is that during a rebuild the team should be fine with Frost as #1 center and Kadri being gone while the team waits for re-enforcements to come up through the draft.

Maybe. I was just highlighting it as a consideration. I think there is risk if you take it down so far that your young players are caved in on a nightly basis - that it can impact development.

Not saying it means you don't trade Kadri. Just saying it has to be weighed.

[Enoch Root]

People can slant the numbers any way they like.

86% said they would miss the playoffs

is also an accurate statement. And people would have read those categories in different ways. For instance, I read 'barely miss' as the category between 'make' and 'bottom 10'. In other words, 17-22.

But of course, everyone will see what they want.

[Jason14h]

I certainly wouldn’t want to go into next season with Frost as my top Center (I never wanted him on the team to start with so I certainly don’t have any faith in him !)

However I would also hope Backlund is taking the hardest assignments until next year if Kadri is moved .

I would expect the Flames to sign a veteran center was a UFA in the offseason to help hold the fort for a few years of the rebuild

[Badgers Nose]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

40% was barely miss the playoffs.

79% had barely miss or make / go far

So 80% of people thought it was - A Playoff Contending Team - Just like my post said

I just voted ‘Win the Cup’

[Buff]

Originally Posted by bdubbs

NHL Standings: NHL Flames last place
CP: You're not last enough!

I saw a quote by Seravalli saying something about the the Flames needing to bottom out so they can get a good pick in this year's draft. I don't know what the Flames are doing this year but sitting in 32nd overall for nearly the entire season so far is pretty much bottoming out.


Last place doesn't seem to be enough for the insiders either, I guess.

[Enoch Root]

Sorry, I grabbed numbers from the wrong column - should have said 62% said miss the playoffs, not 86%

[D as in David]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

I don't think this is accurate at all.

Yup, and it's just another example of people seeing (and remembering) what they want to see.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

I certainly wouldn’t want to go into next season with Frost as my top Center (I never wanted him on the team to start with so I certainly don’t have any faith in him !)

However I would also hope Backlund is taking the hardest assignments until next year if Kadri is moved .

I would expect the Flames to sign a veteran center was a UFA in the offseason to help hold the fort for a few years of the rebuild

They would almost have to in order to make the cap floor. Though I will admit I haven't done the full calculations on that.

Your pending UFA Centers though are Kevin Hayes, Anders Lee, Evgeni Malkin, Nick Schmaltz (interesting name), Trevor Zegras (probably will sign in philly), Charlie Coyle, Alex Weenberg, JG Pageau.

Kinda yuck but there might be a stop gap or two in there.

Or just trade for J-Dicks. (what am I talking about, he's not a center. Oh well I got to use the name J-Dicks)

[taxbuster]

Originally Posted by Aarongavey

So nobody is interested then. If nobody makes an offer they are not that interested in buying your product, full stop.

LOL. That's not the way negotiations work in the real world.


Do you think some GM calls up Conny and says "Hey Conman...looks like you're having a bad year, so I'll help you out...I'll take Player X and Y and give you Player Z and a bag of pucks? Whatcha think?"

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by taxbuster

LOL. That's not the way negotiations work in the real world.


Do you think some GM calls up Conny and says "Hey Conman...looks like you're having a bad year, so I'll help you out...I'll take Player X and Y and give you Player Z and a bag of pucks? Whatcha think?"

100%. I think that’s pretty much how the Phaneuf trade went down

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by Aarongavey

So nobody is interested then. If nobody makes an offer they are not that interested in buying your product, full stop.

That doesn't make any sense. You can still be interested without making an offer. What do you think a quote is?

Teams likely call and inquire. Inquire = interest. An inquiry straight to an offer isn't absolute.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Originally Posted by Bonded

100%. I think that’s pretty much how the Phaneuf trade went down

You spelled Gilmour wrong.

[FlamesAddiction]

On Barn Burner the other day, Noodles was talking about a conversation he had with Brian Burke before saying how as soon as it is known that a player is on the block and the team wants to trade them, you get all kinds of ridiculous low-ball offers. I think it definitely lowers their value if it becomes known that you "want" to trade the player, or at least wastes your time. As someone else pointed out, there is a big difference between not wanting to and not doing it.

[saillias]

Lots of reasons to be optimistic about the hauls this org could get for selling. I see a nice situation playing out in the standings, lots of teams coming out of rebuilds at the same time contenders refuse to die.

That's not just my opinion, insiders are saying the only real sellers are St Louis and Calgary right now

The fanbase just has to wait until Feb/March and not expect anything to happen right now.

[dissentowner]

From what I am hearing there has been interest in a number of Flames players but nobody is making any kind of serious offers and right now the Flames are not shopping anyone, Andersson included. That does not mean Conroy won't listen or won't pull the trigger on something if it's the value he wants but there are no serious offers being presented right now. Believe that dialog right now is teams putting feelers out seeing what the price is and prices are high. At this time of year deals harder to make because both buyer and seller believe waiting will benefit them. Buyer believes prices come down as the deadline approaches and seller believes they will get the closest return to what they are asking. Andersson will almost certainly move at some point but probably closer to the deadline. Kadri won't force Flames hand on a trade at this point but understands the situation here. If a deal is made the Flames are going to send him somewhere he wants to go, not going to trade him to a team he is not interested in playing for. Could not get any confirmation that team has to be a Canadian destination. Very unlikely the team trades Blake Coleman this season, was not given a reason why that is. That's all I have right now.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by taxbuster

LOL. That's not the way negotiations work in the real world.


Do you think some GM calls up Conny and says "Hey Conman...looks like you're having a bad year, so I'll help you out...I'll take Player X and Y and give you Player Z and a bag of pucks? Whatcha think?"

Yes, 100% I think that is how it works. I suspect Conroy has a 3rd round pick and an ECHL player offer sitting on the table for Coleman. My response was tongue in cheek to the idea that Conroy is somehow saying that these guys are not available and that GM’s have actually asked but not offered up what they would give (because some seem to think that there are willing trade partners offering trade packages that make sense for the flames).

I am absolutely positive that Conroy has received incredibly ####ty trade offers when people have called asking about the vets. His saying no becomes “those guys are not available” when Friedman or another “insider” talks to the GM or member of the front office of the team whose terrible offer was not accepted.

Classic negotiating tactic is to offer a #### offer to hopefully drive down the eventual price. If someone is desperate to sell they may take it or accept a similarly ####ty offer. Have done those type of deals all the time for assets under duress for clients.