What to do with Zadorov?

[N-E-B]

There's speculation that he could be hurt right now and they're just not saying anything. Not sure I believe it, but it's possible.

[Purpdust]

I was thinking the same thing

[Toonage]

Why keep a Zadorov injury quiet? That doesn't make any sense.

[Textcritic]

I think he legitimately had a minor injury when he was first taken out of the lineup, but at this point it just has not made any sense to reinsert him yet.

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[GioforPM]

Yeah, the answer is what Darryl said. They wanted to play 8 guys. Stone hadn't played yet.

[CSharp]

As long as the Flames win, stay status quo. I'm sure Tre will hopefully make the right trade at the right time. I'm just hoping there's a trade that involves Eichel coming to the Flames (dream is fading but still keeping that faint hope).

[Jiri Hrdina]

I didn't expect him to be great, but he was really awful. So one hope's he isn't healthy.
The answer though is nothing. Maybe he's hurt. Maybe you move him at the DL. If not - you cut and run at end of season.
Advantage of a 1 year deal.

[BigRed]

Flames need 8 D who can play at the NHL level, for sure.

But do they need one of the bottom 3/4 in the rotation to be making $4 mln? I would say no.

Injured or not, Zadorov has been bad, pre-season and in his limited use since the season began. Bad fit with Tanev (how is that possible?) and no clear sense of where else he might go.

His $4 mln is also standing in the way of acquiring the middle 6 winger this team seems to badly need, with Lewis and Ritchie playing far too much. (as for Eichel, would be nice but not holding my breath).

That's why I'd waive him. And have Mackey going up and down as needed, being waiver exempt as he is.

[btimbit]

Think I heard on the radio, and reading between the lines a bit, I think that he was taken out of the lineup because of a minor injury and hasn't made it back in yet because the team has been playing well.

No need to rush into doing something, it's just depth right now and he's barely even played, I'm not writing him off yet

[marsplasticeraser]

A guy like Zadorov is great to have in the playoffs, where games tighten up, whistles go away, and a big punishing body on our back-end will pay dividends.

I don't care how often he plays now, but think he will play a bigger role then we imagine if we go on a playoff run.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by BigRed

Flames need 8 D who can play at the NHL level, for sure.

But do they need one of the bottom 3/4 in the rotation to be making $4 mln? I would say no.

It is a sunk-cost at this point, and is not actually hurting the team right now. That could change, but for now there really isn't an issue.

[I]His $4 mln is also standing in the way of acquiring the middle 6 winger this team seems to badly need, with Lewis and Ritchie playing far too much. (as for Eichel, would be nice but not holding my breath).

That's why I'd waive him. And have Mackey going up and down as needed, being waiver exempt as he is.

A middle-six winger like who? This is only a problem if Zadorov's cap hit is actually preventing the team from acquiring another player. So far, this doesn't seem to be the case.


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[Drunk Uncle]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Zadorov is fine. People were writing off Gudbrandon on as many games, even just preseason ones.

Nothing needs to be done about him. He’ll get another opportunity to earn a spot down the line and let’s hope he does something with it. The nice part is that, if he doesn’t, he’s a UFA. No harm, no foul.

Fully agree that he will get another shot and it will be up to him to take back his spot. You don't need to waive him, trade him or even worry about him being on the roster. I also don't think he's a bad defender.

The biggest challenge with Zadorov is finding a partner he fits with. He was awful... and I mean awful with Andersson in the pre-season. I doubt they ever try that again and I think that's why we saw Stone in the lineup yesterday.

Kylington looks better with Tanev than Zadorov did and with how Kylington has simplified his game (especially in the last couple), I'm thinking bad Kylington will look better with Tanev than Zadorov.

They never tried Gudbranson, Stone or Valimaki with Zadorov in the pre-season and on paper those don't look to be fits either.

Add it all up and I think Zadorov is going to have a lot of challenges sticking as a regular in the line-up. He'll get his shots for sure to prove all of this wrong, and I hope he does but, at this point it's hard to see how he'll stick.

[sureLoss]

If Zadorov is unable to get consistent top 6 minutes he is going to want out. It is a contract year for him and he is going to want opportunities to max out his earning potential next season.

At that point Flames will probably have to explore trades. It will be money in money out and probably for other players who are underperforming their cap hits. For example Zadorov for two depth pieces that would make roughly the same cap hit.

If the problem can be delayed until the deadline maybe you can recoup a pick for him.

[GranteedEV]

Zadorov - Kinnvall is what to do about Zadorov.

Easy. A stay at home guy with a mobile, skilled puckmover.

Hockey is a lot simpler than the likes of Gulutzan and Ward have made it seem over the years.

You pair a guy who can defend and separate puck from man with a guy who can really move it.

It's why Kylington-Tanev works. It's why Gio-Brodie worked. Elsewhere it's why Methot-Karlsson worked. It's why Sutter abandoned Zadorov-Tanev and never really gave Zadorov-Gudbranson a shot.

Get Zadorov a primary puckmoving partner. Whether Valimaki or Kylington or Kinnvall or Hanifin. And remember, we might lose a guy like Oliver or Valimaki in an Eichel trade, so the top 6 as it stands now may not be the top 6 in two months.

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

If Zadorov is unable to get consistent top 6 minutes he is going to want out. It is a contract year for him and he is going to want opportunities to max out his earning potential next season.

At that point Flames will probably have to explore trades. It will be money in money out and probably for other players who are underperforming their cap hits. For example Zadorov for two depth pieces that would make roughly the same cap hit.

Yep. He's going to start making noise. It's a big year for him. I said this a few days ago and posters said he should just be quiet and keep cashing his cheques. It doesn't work that way. Aside from the pride issue, it's a matter of money and being a healthy scratch is going to cost him a boat load of money next off season.

Personally I'm hoping he's a cap dump in an Eichel trade but it's more likely to be what you say here.

Him sitting is a great thing though, especially with the team winning. It means they are winning with the younger LHD playing important minutes and they are making Zadarov expendable.

[Goriders]

It’s good to have depth. We’ll have injuries eventually.

L.A. Is looking for D though

[ben voyonsdonc]

I think they knew they needed help on D and there weren't any options other than Zadorov and so they pulled the trigger. It's why they ended up on a one year deal. If they really wanted him, I'm sure they'd have worked out a longer term deal. I think they see him as a one year rental project and were possibly hoping to flip him at the deadline to recoup the pick they gave up for him.

Unless something really changes, they'll let him walk at the end of the season.

[Macman]

Originally Posted by Lanny_McDonald

Do nothing. We need the depth on the blueline. Unless the team believes that Mackey is ready for prime time, they need Zadorov.

And that's pretty much what Darryl Sutter said in his post game presser last night, that they'll be going with 8 D all year when asked about Noah Hanifin who was a scratch last night, I'm not sure if he's hurt. It's a long season.

[Locke]

Well in the wake of CERB and COVID the 'Dome might need concession workers or custodial staff?

[Geeoff]

He's on an expiring deal, so it's not really a problem IMO even if he never plays and walks to UFA. I guess the biggest thing is the 3rd round pick. But overall, if this is the price we pay for Kylington taking a huge step, it's pretty good