[Trade] Flames aquire Knight from FLA (Report: to sign 2 year deal)

[flambers]

Originally Posted by madmike

It's possible they'll be moved, but let's not forget there's a cap floor. The Flames can't have a team full of rookies.

Nor can they have Veteran players who don't want to be a part of a rebuilding club... Those type of players (i.e. my guess Tanguay fits that description) will have to be moved asap.

Flames will need to continue adding quality prospects to their system which is badly needed.....

[FlameZilla]

As things stand this is my roster, with Knight slotting straight into our 3rd line.

Cammalleri Stajan Stempniak
-Sniper + almost passable NHL centre + streaky hardworking winger
Glenncross Backlund Baertschi
-Glenncross's size, speed & wrist shot will be fed by 2 creative offensive forwards
Hudler Knight Horak
-Horak & Hudler have proven chemistry, plus Horak is arguably our most consistently solid defensive forward. What better pair to slot the rookie in between
Reinhart Jones McJackmattan
-Reinhart or Bouma are the last 2 standing for the final forward slot, in my opinion. I'd like to see McGrattan signed & he and Jackman swap pressbox duty

Giordano (Captain) Wideman
-The default first pairing. On a solid team this would be a good 2nd pairing, but what can ya do?
Brodie Sarich
-Proved a good tandem last year. Sarich is a good calming presence for young D men and I hope he stays
Butler Breen
-Not a huge Butler fan, but as a 3rd pairing guy he is ok. Good value on the contract. I like Breen and the size he brings to the table. I like combining a big bruiser with a puck-mover
Cundari
-I see Cundari displacing Smith as the 7th D man in camp and then steadily rising up the depth chart. I saw a lot of good qualities in him when he joined us & I think his potential is undeniable

Biggest question mark is in goal as 2 of our potential starters are unknown quantities in my eyes. Ramo and Berra will have a great opportunity if and when Kipper packs it in. Interesting and scary.

Notes: Did not include Tanguay as I see no reason for him to stick around. He'll get a half-decent return at the draft I imagine. Possibly included in a deal to move up.

I know we bang on and on about #1 C being the biggest weakness, but to be honest we could use a #1 all-round defender as well. Rumours about Myers are exciting, but I wonder if Feaster actually moves up to #2 in the draft and drafts Seth Jones? If the statements Sakic made are true then he may be available at that slot...

[FlameZilla]

Originally Posted by madmike

It's possible they'll be moved, but let's not forget there's a cap floor. The Flames can't have a team full of rookies.

Plenty of bad UFA contracts will be offered by Feaster this offseason... We won't be at the cap floor for long.

[kyuss275]

Originally Posted by madmike

It's possible they'll be moved, but let's not forget there's a cap floor. The Flames can't have a team full of rookies.

I get that posters would like picks for players that might be traded, but there is a good chance that contract players would be coming back in trade. Especially when talking about Cammi and Tanguay.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by FlameZilla

As things stand this is my roster, with Knight slotting straight into our 3rd line.

Cammalleri Stajan Stempniak
-Sniper + almost passable NHL centre + streaky hardworking winger
Glenncross Backlund Baertschi
-Glenncross's size, speed & wrist shot will be fed by 2 creative offensive forwards
Hudler Knight Horak
-Horak & Hudler have proven chemistry, plus Horak is arguably our most consistently solid defensive forward. What better pair to slot the rookie in between
Reinhart Jones McJackmattan
-Reinhart or Bouma are the last 2 standing for the final forward slot, in my opinion. I'd like to see McGrattan signed & he and Jackman swap pressbox duty

Giordano (Captain) Wideman
-The default first pairing. On a solid team this would be a good 2nd pairing, but what can ya do?
Brodie Sarich
-Proved a good tandem last year. Sarich is a good calming presence for young D men and I hope he stays
Butler Breen
-Not a huge Butler fan, but as a 3rd pairing guy he is ok. Good value on the contract. I like Breen and the size he brings to the table. I like combining a big bruiser with a puck-mover
Cundari
-I see Cundari displacing Smith as the 7th D man in camp and then steadily rising up the depth chart. I saw a lot of good qualities in him when he joined us & I think his potential is undeniable

Biggest question mark is in goal as 2 of our potential starters are unknown quantities in my eyes. Ramo and Berra will have a great opportunity if and when Kipper packs it in. Interesting and scary.

Notes: Did not include Tanguay as I see no reason for him to stick around. He'll get a half-decent return at the draft I imagine. Possibly included in a deal to move up.

I know we bang on and on about #1 C being the biggest weakness, but to be honest we could use a #1 all-round defender as well. Rumours about Myers are exciting, but I wonder if Feaster actually moves up to #2 in the draft and drafts Seth Jones? If the statements Sakic made are true then he may be available at that slot...

My lines would be quite different.

Using the current players I would have:

Sven Baertschi • Mikael Backlund • Mike Cammalleri
- Backlund provides the two-way presence while Baertschi tries setting up Cammalleri

Alex Tanguay • Matt Stajan • Jiri Hudler
- Stajan has shown chemistry with both players and they are all about the same speed on the ice. And like the "First" line you have Stajan as a two-way presence and Tanguay feeding Hudler.

Curtis Glencross • Corban Knight • Lee Stempniak
- I want Knight to learn from a couple veterans that produce offensively, play a solid two-way game and can play physically when called upon.

Lance Bouma/Roman Horak • Max Reinhart • Tim Jackman
- Ideally Reinhart will be in the AHL and a UFA center will be brought in and McGrattan will be retained to split time with Jackman. Horak would move up the lineup as needed as injuries show their ugly head.

TJ Brodie • Mark Giordano
- I want to acquire a RH shutdown defenseman to pair with Giordano so Brodie can move down to the second pairing where he is better suited to play right now.
Chris Butler • Dennis Wideman
- Butler is ideally on the third pairing but he is better in the top 4 than the other options we currently have.
Chris Breen/Mark Cundari • Cory Sarich/Derek Smith
- A rotation of these 4 would not shock me in the slightest. But I would prefer Sarich gets traded or retires and Smith gets sent to the minors. And another defenseman is brought in.

Karri Ramo • Joey MacDonald • Reto Berra
- I think we see a 3 headed goaltender dragon at least to start the year. When all is said and done I could see Ramo getting 50% of the starts with Berra and Mac each getting 25%.

[3 Justin 3]

Originally Posted by FlameZilla

Giordano (Captain) Wideman
-The default first pairing. On a solid team this would be a good 2nd pairing, but what can ya do?
Brodie Sarich
-Proved a good tandem last year. Sarich is a good calming presence for young D men and I hope he stays
Butler Breen
-Not a huge Butler fan, but as a 3rd pairing guy he is ok. Good value on the contract. I like Breen and the size he brings to the table. I like combining a big bruiser with a puck-mover
Cundari
-I see Cundari displacing Smith as the 7th D man in camp and then steadily rising up the depth chart. I saw a lot of good qualities in him when he joined us & I think his potential is undeniable

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

TJ Brodie • Mark Giordano
- I want to acquire a RH shutdown defenseman to pair with Giordano so Brodie can move down to the second pairing where he is better suited to play right now.
Chris Butler • Dennis Wideman
- Butler is ideally on the third pairing but he is better in the top 4 than the other options we currently have.
Chris Breen/Mark Cundari • Cory Sarich/Derek Smith
- A rotation of these 4 would not shock me in the slightest. But I would prefer Sarich gets traded or retires and Smith gets sent to the minors. And another defenseman is brought in.

Karri Ramo • Joey MacDonald • Reto Berra
- I think we see a 3 headed goaltender dragon at least to start the year. When all is said and done I could see Ramo getting 50% of the starts with Berra and Mac each getting 25%.

I hope the hockey world doesn't think it's Christmas when the Flames play, because we're going to get lit up like a Christmas tree game in and game out next year.

[FlameZilla]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

I hope the hockey world doesn't think it's Christmas when the Flames play, because we're going to get lit up like a Christmas tree game in and game out next year.

It certainly won't strike fear in the hearts of our opposing forwards.

As I said, we all harp on and on about needing 1st-line forward talent, but the most worrying thing to me is that our D-corps is exceptionally weak on the defensive & physical side of things – especially without Sarich.

[Ezio]

I guess myself ballot stuffing for Knight did work in Flames fans favor after all.

Excellent signing by Feaster. Immediately propels as a top 3 organizational prospect.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

I hope the hockey world doesn't think it's Christmas when the Flames play, because we're going to get lit up like a Christmas tree game in and game out next year.

you never know, all it takes is Ramo being ready to take over starting reigns and a couple UFA signings and a couple surprises from our current group an you just never know. Look at Florida in 2011-12

[3 Justin 3]

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

you never know, all it takes is Ramo being ready to take over starting reigns and a couple UFA signings and a couple surprises from our current group an you just never know. Look at Florida in 2011-12

A) We shouldn't be trying to improve through UFA now (let the rebuild happen).
B) Unless Ramo goes Vezna he won't help us right away.
C) I highly doubt anyone of our current d-men (other than Brodie) improve and surprise us.

Yes, I'm very pessimistic, but looking at our roster doesn't help.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

A) We shouldn't be trying to improve through UFA now (let the rebuild happen).
B) Unless Ramo goes Vezna he won't help us right away.
C) I highly doubt anyone of our current d-men (other than Brodie) improve and surprise us.

Yes, I'm very pessimistic, but looking at our roster doesn't help.

You should always be trying to improve via free agency. You have to explore all avenues.

And how do you know the roster will be remotely similar on opening night, especially the blueline.

[StrykerSteve]

Originally Posted by Pierre "Monster" McGuire

Did you watch him last season?

He's 23 (right when d-men start to reach their prime) and he looked exactly like an NHLer last season. He's the Flames most NHL-ready prospect IMO.

Agreed 100%. I watched him play quite a bit, his skating is absolutely fine.

[MisterJoji]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

A) We shouldn't be trying to improve through UFA now (let the rebuild happen).
B) Unless Ramo goes Vezna he won't help us right away.
C) I highly doubt anyone of our current d-men (other than Brodie) improve and surprise us.

Yes, I'm very pessimistic, but looking at our roster doesn't help.

It's a small sample size but I liked the look of Cundari late last season and Wotherspoon and Ramage might make things interesting. Breen has also made tremendous improvements to his game the last few years. Training camp could be very interesting this year.

[ricardodw]

Originally Posted by 3 Justin 3

A) We shouldn't be trying to improve through UFA now (let the rebuild happen).
B) Unless Ramo goes Vezna he won't help us right away.
C) I highly doubt anyone of our current d-men (other than Brodie) improve and surprise us.

Yes, I'm very pessimistic, but looking at our roster doesn't help.

A) Edmonton has basically proven that staying away from UFA's will eventually make you a non-playoff team AND be spending to the cap.

B) There are only 3 candidates for Vezina a year none this year on final 4 teams. There is plenty of room between failure and being the best goalie in the League. Kipper has not been Vezina calibre for a lot of years. In 2010-11 the Flames missed the playoffs by 3 pts and Kipper had the 34th best save %.

C) Not having Bouwmeester leaves a lot of opportunity for some other D-men to step up. Already Brodie played a significantly higher level once Bouwmeester was gone. Giordano can easily get back to his normal level .... he has had only one bad season recently .... the one where he was partnered with Bouwmeester. Even last year with Sarich coming out of the stands to replace Bouwmeester the Flames D was markedly better as a group.

[Anduril]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

C) Not having Bouwmeester leaves a lot of opportunity for some other D-men to step up. Already Brodie played a significantly higher level once Bouwmeester was gone. Giordano can easily get back to his normal level .... he has had only one bad season recently .... the one where he was partnered with Bouwmeester. Even last year with Sarich coming out of the stands to replace Bouwmeester the Flames D was markedly better as a group.

If it was so easy, why has he been continually struggling this season and the latter half of last year? Even with last season and the end of this one, Gio was playing with Bouwmeester but still at a much lower level than what we came to expect of him.

As for the group playing better as a whole, it's more so a testament to how bad the group is in general that even losing a quality player (despite what many still continue to think) in Bouwmeester couldn't hurt us anymore if we tried.

[cowtown75]

Originally Posted by FlameZilla

It certainly won't strike fear in the hearts of our opposing forwards.

As I said, we all harp on and on about needing 1st-line forward talent, but the most worrying thing to me is that our D-corps is exceptionally weak on the defensive & physical side of things – especially without Sarich.

That's why I can't wait till Pat Sieloff makes it. It has been said that he hits- hard and frequently.

[Robbob]

I think between Cundari, Breen, sielof, and rammage the flames are starting to get more physical and harder to play against. If Breen can make the jump I think that makes sarich expendable. It may not all pan out for this next season but I think there are some players on the horizon that will start to help get rid of that soft label.

[foshizzle11]

Originally Posted by Robbob

I think between Cundari, Breen, sielof, and rammage the flames are starting to get more physical and harder to play against. If Breen can make the jump I think that makes sarich expendable. It may not all pan out for this next season but I think there are some players on the horizon that will start to help get rid of that soft label.

ya, I hope this is the case as well. Sounds like the right fit for us and hopefully Corban thinks this is a good opportunity. The next few years could be pretty exciting for the Flames, all depends on this draft and a couple of the top prospects in our system currently.

Knight sounds like an NHL calibre prospect and we only had to give up a 4th, sounds pretty darn good to me.

[foshizzle11]

Originally Posted by cowtown75

That's why I can't wait till Pat Sieloff makes it. It has been said that he hits- hard and frequently.

I have watched a few highlight reels of him lately and he does make some big hits. I wouldn't mind if he was similar to a Phaneuf 2.0...but better defensively.

Will be interesting to see how he develops in the NCAA.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by foshizzle11

I have watched a few highlight reels of him lately and he does make some big hits. I wouldn't mind if he was similar to a Phaneuf 2.0...but better defensively.

Will be interesting to see how he develops in the NCAA.

Sieloff is in the CHL not the NCAA.