2025/2026 Season Trade Rumours and Speculation Thread

[Rhett44]

Originally Posted by jayswin

Oh we know, because you constantly derided him and pointed to his aggressive, sometimes suspendable play as a major flaw the minute he was traded from Calgary. And STILL chastised Bennett AND Tkachuk with "seee???!!!" after they lost in the finals....before winning the cup twice, lol.

Just from a quick search of Stanley Cup finals with the Panthers, here's your opinion on Bennett.

Oh, wow reading this was crazy.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Rhett44

Oh, wow reading this was crazy.

How crazy was it to read?

[Royle9]

I cant believe how poorly some people think of Kadri or his contract.

The AVS had Kadri as their #1 target @ the deadline this year, including significant calls to CGY about his availability. I can assure you that the value they traded to the NYI would have been equal or greater to Calgary for Kadri.

With that said, CGY did not make Kadri available, at no point did Craig ask Kadri to waive anything for a trade.
This because Kadri has been very adamant that he wants to WIN with Calgary and bringing a cup here is his #1 priority.
He loves the city, the team, the "rebuilding" or "retool" whatever label you want to put on it he wants to be here for it.

He was our best forward for most of the year
He plays with that edge that every team wants both all year long and in the playoffs
Plays a position we greatly need

Yet some want to trade him for magic beans or unproven prospects?

This team needs guy whos give a #### and want to be here.
We got a guy dedicated to this teams success and his attitude fits exactly what Craig is looking for to push the young guys and yet some hope to trade him because his contract sucks?

Id wager half the teams in the league would take Kadri today @ his full CAP and slot him in as #2C for instant success, he's great at what he does and has only been better with age.

Some really hot takes in here...yikes.

[SuperMatt18]

Kadri has been great but Kadri is 34 and you're not winning a cup here in the next 3 seasons.

This team needs younger players and top end propsects.

The only excuse to not taking that package from Colorado is "Kadri wouldn't waive" ... that's the only acceptable reason for not getting a top prospect like Ritchie and a 1st for a guy that's 34 years old.

[Toonage]

Agreed. Happy to have him for as long as he's here and he's been a great player for the Flames. Also happy that he wants to be here. But whats the end game with him? As SuperMatt notes, he isn't likely to win a cup here. if he wants to play out his deal with this team retooling thats fine but perhaps a bit unfortunate in the long run.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Toonage

Agreed. Happy to have him for as long as he's here and he's been a great player for the Flames. Also happy that he wants to be here. But whats the end game with him? As SuperMatt notes, he isn't likely to win a cup here. if he wants to play out his deal with this team retooling thats fine but perhaps a bit unfortunate in the long run.

I think over time it will sort itself out.
His NTC switches to a MNTC next off-season. Still quite a bit of control (13 team list) but opens up more options.
And if the team takes a step back this year (which I think they could) then perhaps both he and the team are more open to a change.

And I don't think his play will drop off this year.

[mile]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1956357762566566191

[SuperMatt18]

I think you can still get an okay return for Kadri, but to me that Colorado spot was probably the best return you were going to be able to get and that's because the Avalanche were desperate.

Now if the actual reason is "Kadri wouldn't waive" then that's fine, because that was within Kadri's rights and you have to respect that.

But if the reason is "Conroy didn't even consider it" then that's a problem IMO, because it means the organization isn't being honest with where they are in this re-tool.

Kadri is great, he's a good leader, and a good example for the youngsters. But he's 34, isn't part of the solution for when this team will be looking to contend, and his value likely just diminishes as time passes.

Getting a great trade return for him outweighs whatever perceived leadership qualities he has, especially in a locker room with enough veterans to carry that load still.

[dammage79]

Lock Wolf up for 8 years please. No beating around the bush with this guy.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Royle has basically said what the reason was. Kadria has a NTC and has been very clear he doesn't want to go.
Conroy isn't going to spend a lot of time considering scenarios that aren't possible.

[dammage79]

That Brock Nelson package checked every single box "I" believed the Flames were scouring the earth for. I imagine it was tough to pass that up despite it being completely out of management's hands. Definitely made them sit down and have a conversation between Conroy and his management team.

[ResAlien]

This is a neat merry go round. Everyone who knows anything about the situation has said time and time again "Kadri wants to be here, loves it here, will not waive" and we keep having this galaxy brain talk about "why isn't the team asking him to waive?"

Lord forbid the best player on the team wants to actually be on the team. Better to have another star telling us he won't sign so trade him now or get left at the altar in UFA right? You'd think that the fans of a team on most NTCs and not a premier destination would embrace a guy who really really wants to be in Calgary.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by Royle9

I cant believe how poorly some people think of Kadri or his contract.

The AVS had Kadri as their #1 target @ the deadline this year, including significant calls to CGY about his availability. I can assure you that the value they traded to the NYI would have been equal or greater to Calgary for Kadri.

With that said, CGY did not make Kadri available, at no point did Craig ask Kadri to waive anything for a trade.
This because Kadri has been very adamant that he wants to WIN with Calgary and bringing a cup here is his #1 priority.
He loves the city, the team, the "rebuilding" or "retool" whatever label you want to put on it he wants to be here for it.

He was our best forward for most of the year
He plays with that edge that every team wants both all year long and in the playoffs
Plays a position we greatly need

Yet some want to trade him for magic beans or unproven prospects?

This team needs guy whos give a #### and want to be here.
We got a guy dedicated to this teams success and his attitude fits exactly what Craig is looking for to push the young guys and yet some hope to trade him because his contract sucks?

Id wager half the teams in the league would take Kadri today @ his full CAP and slot him in as #2C for instant success, he's great at what he does and has only been better with age.

Some really hot takes in here...yikes.

Yeah but Rhett says we should trade him

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by dammage79

Lock Wolf up for 8 years please. No beating around the bush with this guy.

Swayman / Oettinger money is the sweet spot

[Rhett44]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Kadri has been great but Kadri is 34 and you're not winning a cup here in the next 3 seasons.

This team needs younger players and top end propsects.

The only excuse to not taking that package from Colorado is "Kadri wouldn't waive" ... that's the only acceptable reason for not getting a top prospect like Ritchie and a 1st for a guy that's 34 years old.

35 actually in a couple of months. I'm not saying he isn't a good player. If we were a contender it absolutely makes sense to keep him.

We are not contenders though. And holding on to an aging asset is actively hurting us by making our draft pick worse. If he says he won't wave then ok, but it absolutely makes no sense to keep him otherwise.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

I think you can still get an okay return for Kadri, but to me that Colorado spot was probably the best return you were going to be able to get and that's because the Avalanche were desperate.

Now if the actual reason is "Kadri wouldn't waive" then that's fine, because that was within Kadri's rights and you have to respect that.

But if the reason is "Conroy didn't even consider it" then that's a problem IMO, because it means the organization isn't being honest with where they are in this re-tool.

Kadri is great, he's a good leader, and a good example for the youngsters. But he's 34, isn't part of the solution for when this team will be looking to contend, and his value likely just diminishes as time passes.

Getting a great trade return for him outweighs whatever perceived leadership qualities he has, especially in a locker room with enough veterans to carry that load still.

Or maybe Conroy didn’t consider it for other reasons, Kadri is part of the solution when the team is looking to contend, and his real leadership qualities do, in fact, outweigh his trade value, and there are no other veterans that bring whatever unique value he does. Maybe having cup-winners that play the way we want the team to play as it grows taking the young players under their wing is going to be the difference between a team that becomes a contender and one that doesn’t, maybe it’s going to going to make a much bigger difference than Calum Ritchie would have. Maybe not.

Maybe Conroy knows what he’s doing, has a plan, and is executing it in every way possible/at his disposal. Or maybe he’s an out of touch, overall poor GM who is dooming this franchise as we speak. I don’t know, I guess either are possible. Or maybe he’s in the middle and is going to make mistakes and learn from them. Maybe he’ll do things people disagree with and we’ll never know if it’s a mistake or if our approach would have been the mistake.

I think there’s a big knowledge gap between what we perceive to be true and what actually goes on in the locker room and in the offices. Managing a real NHL franchise is different than managing a fantasy or EA team. I might have traded Kadri for the Brock Nelson package, but I’m not going to sit here and say that was the smartest move before it’s even played out. How many terrible ideas have each of us individual had? Countless.

Asset management involves a lot more than just maximizing trade value. So there’s that.

[Calgary4LIfe]

I think Coleman gets traded at the deadline. He wants to win, and unless Calgary is in a good position by the deadline, I think he moves.


What will be the most interesting player this season in terms of rumours will be Kadri. This will be his last season with a full NMC, and it switches to a 13 team NTC. Dependng on when he has to hand his list in by, he can probably maximize his leverage down to 5-7 teams starting next off-season, vs picking his preferred 1-3 spots. If the Flames are at the bottom of the standings, and Kadri is having a good season, I would actual rumors will start popping up, rather than pure speculation. I do think the Flames will eventually trade him at some point, so it will be interesting to see what happens starting with this upcoming deadline. Putting myself in his shoes, I am not sure what I would prefer - another year in the destination of my choice (Calgary) with risk of being traded to a team further down my list? Or using my NMC leverage to engineer a trade to my #1 or #2 choice? Those teams being able to then trade him the following off-season is a possibility, but unlikely after they just trade for him.


Something to keep our eyes on. I won't believe any trade rumours until the Flames are looking out of it, and the deadline is a month or less out. Up until then, it will just be baseless rumours or pure speculation.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by Rhett44

We are not contenders though. And holding on to an aging asset is actively hurting us by making our draft pick worse. If he says he won't wave then ok, but it absolutely makes no sense to keep him otherwise.

What if his presence is helping to properly develop our young talent in terms of on-ice skills, confidence and leadership? Because that's likely a major thing here. That's what vets do. He also leads by example.

I know you clamour for draft picks, but having proven leaders in the dressing room guiding your kids towards their full potential is something that great teams do. Just ask Kadri and the 2022 Avalanche. Or the 2025 Panthers with Marchand.

[Freeway]

Disclaimer: I am not reporting anything, I know nothing definitively.


Buuuut I suspect after the chaos of 2023-24, the Flames probably talked to all their vets and they're probably fairly sure that the guys that are here want to be here... and are the guys they want to have around as this project moves forward.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by Rhett44

35 actually in a couple of months. I'm not saying he isn't a good player. If we were a contender it absolutely makes sense to keep him.

We are not contenders though. And holding on to an aging asset is actively hurting us by making our draft pick worse. If he says he won't wave then ok, but it absolutely makes no sense to keep him otherwise.

Go cheer for the Buffalo Sabres then.