2025/2026 Season Trade Rumours and Speculation Thread

[TOfan]

Originally Posted by Monahammer

No, I'm happy to talk about this. So, you believe the oilers brain trust is the most well positioned to build a winning franchise because of their overwhelming number of cup victories between them? That's Tier 1 fan talk!!

See, here you go with your best guesses again.

I didn’t say that. Go right ahead and look for it though.

[Monahammer]

Originally Posted by TOfan

See, here you go with your best guesses again.

I didn’t say that. Go right ahead and look for it though.

Tell me what you are trying to say clearly then. Presumably you are capable of this. You are trying to say that Kadri is more valuable than Miller because he won a cup. So I am saying that you must believe Cup-winning conveys some type of advantage or value. Naturally, that must be a linear relationship in your mind?

Contextually (for you) we picked up the 3rd or 4th most important player on a cup winner, who prior to that one season had a reputation as... frankly... a loser. That's why he was run out of Toronto.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Monahammer

So all of that griping and moaning was about a single, partial line in the post that is aside from the central point?

OK dude. Fill your boots. You can also go back and complain that I aggrandized the word catastrophe as your esteemed colleague did.

Who is griping and moaning?

I just pointed out the fact that you misremembered what the sentiment was like “even at the time,” including your own. I wasn’t aware that was going to be so offensive and cue another one of your “reactions,” as they can be quite hard to predict.

My bad bud.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by Monahammer

Contextually (for you) we picked up the 3rd or 4th most important player on a cup winner, who prior to that one season had a reputation as... frankly... a loser. That's why he was run out of Toronto.

Colorado and Toronto both regret getting rid of him. Colorado paid premium assets to replace him with a worse player in Nelson.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Directed at me?

I like teams that do more than expected. I like good dressing rooms and players that play for each other.

I'm not unaware of standings or prospect pools or team building, but I don't generally watch hockey games thinking DRAFT POSITION when the puck drops.

Part of it is age.

I may have 30 NHL seasons left.

I'm not going to wish them away in hopes of a 7 year rebuild.

I also enjoyed last season but I’m also pretty convinced we saw a dead cat bounce and they are headed for a bottom ten finish this season.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Bonded

I also enjoyed last season but I’m also pretty convinced we saw a dead cat bounce and they are headed for a bottom ten finish this season.

And while I'm not cheering for losses, I will find joy in that too. Including because I think this draft is above average to excellent.

The season before last year was fun because of all the trades, and then the Flames moving down the standings into a position to get a cornerstone piece.

Most years I'm able to find the fun stuff.

Top of mind there are 4 years that as a Flames fan I struggled to find any joy:
- The Gilmour year, when an excellent team just couldn't find its footing and then compounded the issue with a god-awful trade
- The year Sutter went nuts with a bunch of weird trades like acquiring Kotalik.
- The final year with Sutter as a coach, where he turned into a complete dick and then the team disengaged
- And then for some reason the Brian Elliot year I didn't enjoy. That may have been because of other things in my life though. Not sure.

The Mike Keenan years were weird. But kinda fun at times. But always weird.

[HighLifeMan]

The Monahan trade was objectively terrible not only because we actively made decisions that significantly tanked the players value we then proceeded to trade him at the lowest of lows. It was the very definition of poor asset management.

He should have clearly been shut down for the 21-22 season but instead of doing so Sutter demoted him in the lineup and deployed him in a role his skill set simply wasn't ever suited for.

To add salt to the wound we elected to dump Monahan over Lucic which is just complete lunacy.

[jmac98]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

The Mike Keenan years were weird. But kinda fun at times. But always weird.

Was it Keenan who refused to work on the PP in practice? Or did I just make that up.

[Heavy Jack]

I mean if Kadri had chosen a different team in UFA I think there might be a chance he’d be closer to the production Monahammer outlined for Miller; the Flames plummeted after Tkachuk/Johnny/Mony departed more than anyone could have predicted but hindsight being 20/20 also makes the picture seem clearer when looking back. I’d have preferred the Flames didn’t chase either of Miller or Kadri at the time; allowed Monahan a season to recover on LTIR and waited on the Weegar/Huby extensions, i feel we’d be further along in the rebuild and might have a top 5 pick in there as well but hey, that doesn’t mean I can’t look at the current status and not be happy with aspects of it. I really think too Kadri has ‘Marchand like’ blood in him and will continue to play at a high level into his late 30s, I don’t see any reason yet that would suggest he’s valueless on the trade front. I know, I know, hindsight and such lol. We’ll see I guess but ultimately I’m pleased by how GM CC has operated thus far and have full confidence in the direction of the Flames, it’s been markedly different than Tre, Feaster and Sutter, so much so it’s not even close.

[CF84]

Originally Posted by jmac98

Was it Keenan who refused to work on the PP in practice? Or did I just make that up.

Maybe he did it as well, but the most recent coach who refused to work on the PP in practice was Darryl Sutter...when the PP was horrible too.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by HighLifeMan

To add salt to the wound we elected to dump Monahan over Lucic which is just complete lunacy.

Nope. They wanted to move Lucic. He blocked it.

[TOfan]

Originally Posted by Monahammer

Tell me what you are trying to say clearly then. Presumably you are capable of this. You are trying to say that Kadri is more valuable than Miller because he won a cup. So I am saying that you must believe Cup-winning conveys some type of advantage or value. Naturally, that must be a linear relationship in your mind?

Contextually (for you) we picked up the 3rd or 4th most important player on a cup winner, who prior to that one season had a reputation as... frankly... a loser. That's why he was run out of Toronto.

You said you advocated for the Flames to sign Strome, stating that would have been better.

I said you don’t know that.

PF then said you had at some point stated the Flames should have traded Monahan a 1st and Coronato for Miller (bad) and also stated that would have been better. You then doubled down on that with a simple point total stat comparison which, as I pointed out, excluded all context. Kadri wanted, and by many accounts, still wants to be here. Miller seems far less reliable in that aspect. If you want to argue that, go ahead. Both you and I would be speculating but the anecdotal evidence seems pretty straight forward.

I countered your simple scoring stat comparison with ‘how many cups has Miller won’ but you missed the point. That being your case is weak if all you’ve got is scoring stats comparison and a guess.

You then started to paddle on about Kevin Low and the Oilers……touché! well played.

Away back to arguing with 2-3 other posters that seem to be aligned with rebutting your arguments on revisionist history and selective memory recall while grasping at straws to solve no issue whatsoever.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by HighLifeMan

The Monahan trade was objectively terrible not only because we actively made decisions that significantly tanked the players value we then proceeded to trade him at the lowest of lows. It was the very definition of poor asset management.

He should have clearly been shut down for the 21-22 season but instead of doing so Sutter demoted him in the lineup and deployed him in a role his skill set simply wasn't ever suited for.

To add salt to the wound we elected to dump Monahan over Lucic which is just complete lunacy.

In a world where players have no agency and therefore no responsibility or accountability, sure.

He’s played over 55 games twice since 2019-20, once in 23/24, and the other in 21/22 when he apparently should have been shut down. I don’t think a GM can just unilaterally shut down a player. Monahan wanted to play, Sutter loved him and wanted him to succeed, and he was medically cleared to play after having surgery the previous season.

He’s injury-ridden, but he’s a gamer that wants to play as long as he’s physically able. I think Sutter tried to shelter him as much as possible (remember despite his spot in the bottom six he still played 1st line PP).

And trading him over Lucic wasn’t their choice. They wanted to trade Lucic but he didn’t want to move. It’s not something the team elected to do.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by traptor

Some fans are so easy to please.

I can't imagine looking back at the last few years and saying "yes more of that please"

Guess you forgot we have a new GM and has been making the right moves. Some people just think we need to take drastic measures to fall under “rebuild”

[Sandman]

Originally Posted by jmac98

Was it Keenan who refused to work on the PP in practice? Or did I just make that up.

You didn’t make that up. Absolutely true, and drove me nuts.

[Rhett44]

Originally Posted by Bingo

So the defense first shut down center is washed because he was top three on his team in play driving last season?

The guy was 43rd in the league for centers in expected goal splits on an untalented offensive team.

I don't think he was good last year. Just based on my eye test. I don't know that he's near the same player he was just a couple years ago.

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by Sandman

You didn’t make that up. Absolutely true, and drove me nuts.

Which was better? Keenan not practicing the PP or Brent sending 5 D men out on the PP because it surely counldnt have been worse than the garbage PP they trotted out all year?

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by dammage79

Yeah. If we are talking about the Flames being in a full blown rebuild right now instead of the balanced build and compete approach I think they're doing. Then yeah, a full blown rebuild would be the Flames not even remotely interested in retaining Anderssons services, moving Kadri off and potentially Backlund . That's a full blown rebuild in my eyes. In which I don't think they're doing.

I'm wondering if you misread my post again.

What you are describing has never been done by any team in NHL salary cap history. So it seems to me that possibly cannot be the definition of a rebuild since it has never been done. But that might just be me.

The Flames have moved more veterans for picks and prospects in a shorter period of time than almost any team in the salary cap era. Surely that must be some sort of proof point that they are rebuilding more than almost any team has in the salary cap era.

[kehatch]

Originally Posted by ForeverFlameFan

Guess you forgot we have a new GM and has been making the right moves. Some people just think we need to take drastic measures to fall under “rebuild”

That is true for some. But questioning a direction if fair. If we want to be competitive why are we carrying 20 mil in cap space and not improving the team. If we want to rebuild why aren't we waiting so long to trade expiring veterans and refusing to look at trading others, and in the market trying to take a big swing.

I appreciate Conroy has made future orientated moves. But it feels different, and that is acknowledged by virtually every hocky community othet then CP. Usually when a team is in a rebuild its open for business on anyone except a handful of future pieces.

I can appreciate why some like a more moderate approach. But wanting a clearer direction isn't a bad or uncommon take.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by kehatch

That is true for some. But questioning a direction if fair. If we want to be competitive why are we carrying 20 mil in cap space and not improving the team. If we want to rebuild why aren't we waiting so long to trade expiring veterans and refusing to look at trading others, and in the market trying to take a big swing.

I appreciate Conroy has made future orientated moves. But it feels different, and that is acknowledged by virtually every hocky community othet then CP. Usually when a team is in a rebuild its open for business on anyone except a handful of future pieces.

I can appreciate why some like a more moderate approach. But wanting a clearer direction isn't a bad or uncommon take.

Who are these teams that have sold all their veterans? I follow hockey pretty closely and I cannot think of a single team that has actually done that in the salary cap era.