Friedman: Gaudreau not expected to comment on contract status

[Heavy Jack]

Brutal for Treliving not to make this a priority and get it done. If we end up losing yet another superstar for little to no assets… well I guess there’s nothing as fans that we can do but man will it be a dejecting feeling.

Iggy - net zero return
Gio - net zero return
Kipper - net zero return
Regehr - we gave Byron away for free who was the only redeeming asset
Brodie - net zero return
Gaudreau - ???
Tkachuk - ???


Brutal asset management on some of the biggest flames the past 10 years… to have no rolling assets whatsoever from those players is an embarrassment. I mean WE gave up the 2nd round pick in the Regehr trade to get Butler and Byron… I guess we got to jettison Kotalik but still that 2nd ended up being Jake McCabe and Reggie got flipped for 2 more 2nd rounders and went on to win 2 cups… bafrickenrutal.

[Erick Estrada]

I fully admit I am shocked that the Flames let it get to this. I don't buy that a contract is done or even close. It's clear they couldn't come to an agreement over the summer as there's no way the team or the player would want this carrying over into the season. The team is now dealing from a position of weakness as Gaudreau can only be traded to five teams and those five teams know that they can wait until July to get him without giving up an asset. It's really hard to put a positive spin on this situation.

[Rutuu]

Originally Posted by Heavy Jack

Brutal for Treliving not to make this a priority and get it done. If we end up losing yet another superstar for little to no assets… well I guess there’s nothing as fans that we can do but man will it be a dejecting feeling.

Iggy - net zero return
Gio - net zero return
Kipper - net zero return
Regehr - we gave Byron away for free who was the only redeeming asset
Brodie - net zero return
Gaudreau - ???
Tkachuk - ???


Brutal asset management on some of the biggest flames the past 10 years… to have no rolling assets whatsoever from those players is an embarrassment. I mean WE gave up the 2nd round pick in the Regehr trade to get Butler and Byron… I guess we got to jettison Kotalik but still that 2nd ended up being Jake McCabe and Reggie got flipped for 2 more 2nd rounders and went on to win 2 cups… bafrickenrutal.

Sometimes it just really hits home. Sigh...

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by Knightslayer

Points aren't the only thing that matters. Do I really need to explain that? 32 teams would rather have the 2 way stud defensive center.

Nobody saying Gaudreau isn't a great player but he isn't on Brayden Points level. Not even close.

forget Point. he's not the only comparable.

let's try another one. Do you feel Kaprizov is on a higher level?
he got 9M.
if you're Gaudreau, know how much Calgary needs you and see contracts like that, why wouldn't you also be seeking 9M per year?

I have no idea about the negotiations, but it's not an unreasonable expectation.

[flambers]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Is it though? I’m not sure if this is true to be honest.

It's a distraction for sure..

Media, Radio will carry the story all season

[Moneyhands23]

Great... still have no idea why he isn't signed if he wants to be here.

[VilleN]

I'd be fine with a deal like the Kaprizov one - 5 year x 9M - takes him to 33 years old. Definitely prefer that to an 8 year deal at a slightly lower cap hit.

[2ArmBands]

Will be stunned if he stays. Ofcourse he is saying he wants to stay. Would be foolish to say anything else. He gone

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by jayswin

It's the standard "I'm going to free agency" comment. It was so important to get a contract in place in place before this season or a trade. We didn't manage either, which is kind of how I thought it would go.

I guess if a team on his 5 team trade list agrees then we can still salvage something at the deadline.

No it isn't, this is common for every player and team to say in this situation regardless of the players intentions. Lots of teams and players say this and end up re-signing.

[Knightslayer]

Originally Posted by GordonBlue

forget Point. he's not the only comparable.

let's try another one. Do you feel Kaprizov is on a higher level?
he got 9M.
if you're Gaudreau, know how much Calgary needs you and see contracts like that, why wouldn't you also be seeking 9M per year?

I have no idea about the negotiations, but it's not an unreasonable expectation.

My whole point was about Point so Kaprizov is irrelevant. Point got $30 million more than Kaprizov as well.

You think Gaudreau should get $76 million guaranteed? And just because Wild overpaid Kaprizov because of an KHL threat doesn't make it comparable to Gaudreau.

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by 2ArmBands

Will be stunned if he stays. Ofcourse he is saying he wants to stay. Would be foolish to say anything else. He gone

Thanks Eric Francis. Contract negotiations run into training camp and here comes the slew of negativity posts. We know nothing of the sort, let's wait and see before screaming the sky is falling.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by 2ArmBands

Will be stunned if he stays. Ofcourse he is saying he wants to stay. Would be foolish to say anything else. He gone

Agreed.

If he wanted to stay, he would be signed and home by now.....in fact it would have been done before the draft.

Pretty clear he is either wanting far more than the team is willing to go to on dollars and/or term, or he wants to at least see what is out there as a UFA regardless of the current offer.

It doesn't preclude him from returning if it's not to his liking on the open market, but its obvious to anyone not wearing flames goggles he at least is considering other options.

[bubbsy]

Gaudreau/tkachuk situations will definitely be a major story all season. Could be right off the bat if the flames have a slow start, which they are notorious for.

As a 'gotta rebuild' guy, this year is basically setup to be a success in mind regardless of whether they are good or struggle.

[2ArmBands]

Originally Posted by dissentowner

Thanks Eric Francis. Contract negotiations run into training camp and here comes the slew of negativity posts. We know nothing of the sort, let's wait and see before screaming the sky is falling.

Just giving my opinion. I don’t like it either. I hope he stays obviously.

I give him full credit on how he has handled things so far. Has said all the right things and I don’t question his dedication to the team. But let’s be honest with ourselves. Our rebuild likely failed, we are in one of the least desirable markets in the league, he is extremely tight with his family out east.

I don’t know … I just don’t like our chances

[Vinny01]

Originally Posted by bubbsy

Gaudreau/tkachuk situations will definitely be a major story all season. Could be right off the bat if the flames have a slow start, which they are notorious for.

As a 'gotta rebuild' guy, this year is basically setup to be a success in mind regardless of whether they are good or struggle.

It is a strange spot as this team is clearly all in on the win now with Markstrom signed for money and term and Sutter coming out of retirement to take care of “unfinished business”

They have no choice at the moment in my opinion but to basically give Gaudreau what he wants because there is no way they build a better win now team by trading him.

I do think this is Tkachuk’s last season on the team but he is going to be able to be flipped in a hockey deal I think so the team can remain on their win now path with him gone but with Johnny’s situation they have no choice but to pay him. If he walks it is a forced rebuild and I don’t think the team has any plans to do that.

2 years ago for a few months it looked like we actually had a top team loaded with skill that was going to contend but now we must settle for the bubble team who hopes a HOF coach and top 10 goalie can drag this team to an underdog cup win

[ComixZone]

I feel like the Flames haven’t made a decision as to where they’re going and they seem to want to see how this season plays out before doing so…and that indecisiveness is probably enough reason for an elite player like Johnny to explore free agency.

Players like to be prioritized.

[DJones]

Just trade him before the deadline. Don't want to end up like the Islanders.

[kyuss275]

I was always of the opinion they should have traded Johnny before his NMC kicked in. Leverage is certainly in Johnny’s side and he has no reason to sign for anything less than he thinks he’s worth. Flames taking 3rd spot in a weak division is not to bad. I don’t think for a second they would trade Johnny at deadline if in a playoff spot. Tre has said on more than one occasion that losing a player for nothing but gaining his full cap space is an asset within itself. Think that is the wrong route to go. Even though i thought they should trade him before , I think they have no choice but to re-sign him for what he wants and deal with the fall out , if there is any, in years to come .

[direwolf]

Well this development certainly doesn't give me any confidence that he'll stay. It would really suck to lose him. As mentioned earlier, this guy has the kind of elite skill set that doesn't come around often. Tre should have had this done before training camp started, since it'll no doubt be a massive distraction going forward.

[InternationalVillager]

Let’s be realistic here. I bet Gaudreau sees what has happened to the team this offseason with no major change. The team has gotten worse on paper. Why would he commit to the Flames by signing a long term deal? It’s a two way street and he has all the leverage. Flames are pretty much at his mercy now.