[News] Cammalleri has NOT been traded. Upd: Cammalleri likely heading to free agency

[Bill Bumface]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

$6 million dollars should be worth about a 1st round pick.

Show me how you exchange $6 million dollars for a 1st round pick this offseason and I'll buy it.

[FeyWest]

Originally Posted by flambers

I doubt the Flames will have any problems adding cap to reach the salary cap floor.

However, personally I would hope the Flames don't sign him to a contract valued at $6m per season.

As he is going to want a multi year deal.

For sure I'm not too worried about us reaching the Cap Floor either, I just think Cammy is a more viable solution for 2-3 years than what is available in FA this year.

I'm only considering FA as at least it's only money and a potential roster spot we give up rather than trading away assets. I stay away from suggesting trades as it's such a debatable topic with fan's different valuations of players and harder to project.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Actually I don't think it's exact value (I'll lube you up for that one), but I do think it's a reflection of his general value. No team wanted to pony up to get him because they knew it just wasn't worth it for a guy like Cammy. Even if he's had a decent playoff history with the Habs. Had Cammy scored 80 points rather than 45, he might not have stayed. It's just not worth it for a guy who had a subpar season.

And I can certainly tell you that the trade deadline is not a reflection of actual value, as it is more of a short-term feeding frenzy than long-term strategy session. Trading for Gaustad for that much was a mistake and a stupid move.

I think that is skewed because of a number of factors.

1. He was obviously worth more than that to Calgary.
2. Contenders were already tight against the cap.
3. Big fish like Vanek were still available so there was no leverage.

This years trade deadline was a complete anomaly.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by FeyWest

@Ozy_Flame

In the end if you are going to suggest not signing Cammy back who do you get instead given the FA market, we have to fill his spot somehow and I don't think it should be Hudler or Glenny on the 1st line nor a young prospect.

To me the reason I'd be willing to bring Cammy back is I can't see any better easy additions, he's good to have since he'd shelter our young prospects for at least a year or two, and we know (or at least by all accounts I've seen) how he is in the locker room and knows the systems Hartley plays making a transition into next year next to nothing.

is he worth $6M? Maybe not and that's debatable but if he's testing the market and $6M is a rumored number Treliving offered then that means there's a chance other teams are willing to pay more.

I just can't see it being that much of an issue if we're using him to bridge us through the rebuild. I mean we could go after Olli Jokinen (please no...) if you'd like but to the extent of FA I can't see any upgrades to Cammy. Just how I feel.

And I don't see how it's considered a reward if you're giving him a $1M paycut??

Why do we have to give $ 6 million to Cammy when our left side is relatively strong? Why do we have to reward Cammy with a contract just to meet the cap floor?

Let's take care of our RFA's first. We have Colborne, Byron, Bouma and possibly Galiardi to re-sign first. This doesn't include Ortio, Hanowski, Billins and Cundari. Let's assume they all get re-signed. They all get slight pay raises, let's lop off $2 million of floor space right there.

Re-sign Butler and Breen for defense foot soldiers. That's another $2 million right there.

Then, let's sign Vrbata or Gionta to shore up the RW where we need help. $3-5 million for one of those two should be fine for a short-term gap until Poirier can step in. I didn't say Callahan either since he's likely to be earning in the $7 mil range because of horrible price inflation on July 1st.

Next, let's get outselves a decent backup. Jonas Hillier anyone? I'm not convinced Ramo can carry a team for 65+ games. Him and Ramo can split 1A/1B duties. That will be $4-5 million right there. Heck, even try and pull Cam Ward instead for a reliable backup that can fill salary. Both could improve our goaltending tandem quite well.


That right there is about in the $10-14 million range.

I'm just not sure that Cammy fits what we really need for a short-term solution.

[Calgary4LIfe]

Cammalleri at this stage is not someone the Flames should be offering term to.

I would much rather prefer that the Flames go out and obtain high-priced expiring contracts from other teams (i.e. Havlat) for an incentive - even if that incentive is minor. Flames hit the cap floor, get 'something' for taking a bad contract on, and still have the possibility of flipping that contract at the TD for something better.

I like Cammalleri and all, but he is yet another small forward, and his best years are more than likely behind him. With that being said, I wouldn't mind him back on a 3 year or less term. More than that and you run the risk of carrying an over-paid contract at a time where the Flames will at least be having to re-sign their higher end prospects, and Cammalleri's contract may throw salary structure off. Flames may be competing at year 3 or 4, and that runs the risk of being a bit of an anchor.

Cammalleri fits in short-term quite nicely, but I don't think he fits long-term at all.

[kyuss275]

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

I think that is skewed because of a number of factors.

1. He was obviously worth more than that to Calgary.
2. Contenders were already tight against the cap.
3. Big fish like Vanek were still available so there was no leverage.

This years trade deadline was a complete anomaly.

I agree with all points and would add that I believe Burke said Kessel from Vancouver being on the market was the biggest hangup .

I'm not sure if this years deadline was an anomaly or sign of things to come. Really sounds like GMs might rather get players with at least a years term rather than a complete rental. Granted with what LA got out of Gaborik as a rental it might go back to the way it was.

[FeyWest]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

~Condensed for space~

Fair enough I can definitely get on board with you're saying, wasn't trying to imply we were handcuffed by any means, but I guess I'm not as concerned about Cammy as others are which is fine.

I keep forgetting about Ward and Hiller, originally was thinking maybe Brodeur as I think he's looking to retire next year. Not sure what everyone's thoughts are on the Backup position, do we want a longer 2~4 year backup tender, or a 1~2 year? I was more along the lines of the latter myself but I guess we'll see after the draft.

Defense wise I'd say the same as you but if you can pick a guy like Niskanen up wouldn't be a bad idea either. There are a lot more younger UFA D-men to pick from than the forward group which looks very aged, just glancing at CapGeek. Like I said in a previous post the I'm not too concerned with reaching the floor given how many players we can re-sign and the number of spots to fill.

[Ozy_Flame]

Great post, FeyWest.

Personally I wouldn't be against Brodeur, but he has to know he's got one year to backup Ramo and play a mentor role. That kind of experience could pay off for Ramo down the line.

I would love to pick up Niskanen too, but so will many other teams. He was a bright spot on the Penguins this year, and will be paid accordingly. I personally think we should get a decent shut-down defenseman such as Nick Schultz or Willie Mitchell, and they may come cheap.

I don't think we should be worried about meeting the floor either, I think that will just come mostly natural through resigning UFA's and RFA's. Then we just close the gap with another salary that doesn't take $6 million to do.

[oldschoolcalgary]

Originally Posted by ForeverFlameFan

There was a 10 point gap between the Flames and Oilers, 3rd and 4th... Pretty sure we wouldn't have a better pick.

Maybe not, but we'd have additional third round pick instead of nothing.

[Vinny01]

Originally Posted by oldschoolcalgary

Maybe not, but we'd have additional third round pick instead of nothing.

The reputation for getting fleeced in trades would remain firmly intact

[Bandwagon In Flames]

There's a lot of valid points being thrown around in this thread, but it seems to come back to the big picture.

Are the flames going to lose a 1st line asset for nothing? If so, will they be giving up additional assets to fill that spot, or simply over-paying for a valuable free agent?

I wouldn't see it as a loss if we don't sign Cammy and instead pay 7 mil for a younger, bigger RW free agent. However, I don't see that happening unless Treleving and Co. can make something happen in the next few weeks.

With the current flexibility contract/cap wise, this could be a really busy off-season for the flames. Just hope they don't go full ###### like our neighbors to the north.

[sureLoss]

http://m.calgarysun.com/2014/06/17/c...de-speculation

Treliving confirmed he and Mike Cammalleri are still talking, although from this vantage point, it’s clearly window dressing as neither side would benefit from an extended relationship past July 1 given the amount of money Cammalleri will be able to command on the open market.

A club official — not Treliving — confirmed the Flames are comfortable paying the pending free agent US$5 million a year for a few seasons but not much more.
The 32-year-old can and will get plenty more elsewhere after Canada Day.
When asked about a report they had essentially agreed on his price tag but were struggling with term, Treliving laughed.

“The only things we’re unable to agree on are term and price — other than that we have a deal,” chuckled the former Phoenix Coyotes assistant GM, who insists there may still be a fit with the club’s leading goal-scorer from a year ago with 26 in 63 games.
“We’re talking. I think he’s sincere he would come back but it’s got to be something that works for everybody.”

[Roof-Daddy]

Yeah, I can see Cammy back on a 4 year $20 million contract. Wouldn't be shocked at all if that happens.

[Wolven]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Why do we have to give $ 6 million to Cammy when our left side is relatively strong? Why do we have to reward Cammy with a contract just to meet the cap floor?

....

I'm just not sure that Cammy fits what we really need for a short-term solution.

Like it or not, that's the value that the guy has right now. $6m is a reasonable price for Cammi even if there were no other implications to him signing with the rebuilding Flames.

However, this is not a playoff team we are talking about here. UFAs are not going to flock to Calgary this year. At least not until every other team is full or the Flames start to overpay players to give up prime years to rebuild a team instead of chase the cup.

You also need to remember that with the cap going up the cost of players goes up. First line players will now be looking at $8m per year instead of $7.

Personally, I think Hudler and Cammi fill the same role. If we can sign Cammi to stay, trade Hudler while his value is high and set ourselves up to trade Cammi to a contender when the time is right... That would work out really well for the Flames and potentially Cammi too.

I also think it will be easier to convince Cammi to stay in Calgary than it will be to sign an imaginary big RW to a huge contract this summer. Of the few high end RW that are going to be UFA this summer, I doubt any are interested in Calgary.

[sureLoss]

According to McKenzie on That's Hockey, Cammalleri wants a 5 year deal.

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

According to McKenzie on That's Hockey, Cammalleri wants a 5 year deal.

Two years too long IMO.

[Yoho]

goodbye, farewell, auf wiedersehen to you!

[sureLoss]

According to McKenzie on That's Hockey, Cammalleri wants a 5 year deal.

[northcrunk]

Does anyone think Cammy is going to get more than $5 mil per? 26g 19a. Not sure if I would pay more than that either if I was running the flames.

[bubbsy]

if we're concerned about size of the forwards/wingers on this team, and we have a better player in hudler signed for the perfect fit (just a few years) on a pretty good deal, why is signing cammalleri a priority?

As much as i'd love the team to turn it around and improve this coming season, i'm getting more intrigued on the possibility of getting what looks to be the next generational talent available thru the draft next year.