As the calendar flips over into Canada Day, the free agency courting period turns into the free agency signing period players are beginning to make decisions. The Calgary Flames have reportedly come to terms with two forwards this evening. Per Sportsnet‘s Elliotte Friedman, the Flames have inked center Derek Ryan to a three-year contract and winger Austin Czarnik to a two-year contract.
Cap hits for the two deals aren’t currently available, which makes it a bit of a challenge to judge the moves as of yet.
Word is CAL closing in on Derek Ryan (three-year deal) and Austin Czarnik (two-year deal)
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 1, 2018
In terms of fit, though, it’s hard to argue against either move.
Ryan, 31, broke into the NHL in Carolina under Bill Peters and it’s hard to argue against the fit. He’s a right shot center, something the Flames do not have, and effectively replaces Nick Shore (who replaced Matt Stajan briefly) as the fourth line pivot. A three-year deal brings him until he’s 34. Bob Stauffer tweeted that the cap hit is north of $3 million, but TSN’s Frank Seravalli noted that Ryan left money on the table – it’s a very thin free agent class at center.
Czarnik, 25, is a right-shot winger who broke into the NHL with the Boston Bruins but hasn’t really cemented himself as a regular yet. He had 17 points in 59 NHL games, but at the very least has established himself as a very good AHLer with 155 points over 157 AHL games. We don’t even have idle media speculation about cap hits for him yet.
Update: Cap hits!
Hearing Ryan deal is approx 3×3.125 and Czarnik 2×1.25 in CAL; word out of VAN is Beagle is 4×3 and Roussel 4×3.25
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 1, 2018
The Flames needed right-shot forward options. Lads and ladies, Brad Treliving has seemingly found right-shot forward options.
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I like the right handed shots but 3 years for Derek Ryan north of $3million for a 4th line C seems like an overpayment. Older than Shore younger than Stajan but provide much more offense. I’m more intrigued by 25 year old Czarnik. Austin scored 25 goals in 69 games with Providence. Maybe he didn’t enough of an opportunity in Beantown.
He’s not going to be a fourth liner. Either a 3rd line center of 3rd line RW with that kind of money…
Tell that to Brouwer .
Nothing official yet. He may not be north of 3 mill
God I hope he isn’t north of 3 at 3 years.
31 teams all got 4 mil extra to slosh around. Thats 124 million extra. All todays contracts will be inflated. Thankfully Calgary is not “in on” guys like Van Reimsdyk or Neal. Those will be silly deals but teams like the Islanders will need to overpay just to get to the floor if they loose Tavares.
This. Fans have to stop expecting to get quality bottom 6 players for cheap 1M AAV. Those days are gone, and you really do get what you pay for. Every one was complaining about lack of quality players in the bottom 6, and now that the team got them, every one is complaining about the cap hit. You can’t have it both ways.
Yessum. Treliving knows how to manage a cap, he’s getting good at it. Except for one tiny, massive, hiccup. Not talking Troy Brouwer either.
You can get good bottom six players for cheap by drafting them and develop them yourself.
Austin Czarnik.
5 foot 9.
160.
Must be the Reaves backup plan….
WW
Happy we didn’t go for him. Mcphee saved us from ourselves. 2.8 million for a guy who doesn’t produce anything point wise and has a “physical presence”. NHL is moving away from that anyway, and we don’t need anymore plugs in our lineup anyway.
George McPhee must be some kinda stoopid. What’s he ever done recently?? An 11-1 cheers/trash ratio. You guys slay me sometimes.
Seven points made in your post, disagree with all of them. Not being combative, others seem to agree with you. In the box thinking is a beautiful thing.
Fleury wasn’t bigger and would have taken Reaves … and gone for a victory slide.
Lomberg would fight Reaves just to tell his grandkids one day. He’d be smiling during the fight, and smiling retelling the story.
Or the Phillips development plan.
Ryan Reaves would have help out swimmingly in year 2 of his contract if Phillips ever makes the show.
#couldahadreaves
Training camp fodder
RH shots, jeez auto correct
Treliving is officially an idiot
Tre is doing what good Managers do. They hire qualified people and let them put together their own team. This is BPs team and Tre is helping him assemble it.
That is a bad strategy. Coaches have way too many petty biases. But I am okay ith Ryan.
It’s ok. You’re the best spelling pizzaman I know.
That second for Lazar is looming large right now.
Great pick ups.
And we have first rounders floundering in Stockton. You win some and lose some. If Lazar ends up as an extra forward that’s ok. Most 2nd rounders never make it that far.
Happy Canada Day to my friends in the great white north! The Flames clearly needed a shake up and Tre has informally said he questioned the character on the team, so the changes were necessary. I’m looking forward to seeing a quicker, higher skilled, albeit smaller team.
Thanks MontanaMan.
Agree with what you wrote about the team as well.
Stajan becomes Ryan? I’ll take it!!
And I know I don’t like raiding an old coach’s team for players but dammit… it looks all right this time.
(Don’t get hyped, don’t get hyped, remember what happened last year…)
Yup; last year we had a horrendous coach…..
WW
Jury is still out on Peters.
Peters will get consideration for coach of the year.
I’d want Ryan as 3RW
Benett-Janko-Ryan is pretty decent
I think Bennett gets bumped up to the 2nd line and Frolik to the third. Otherwise, totally agree with you here.
who’s the 4c?
I’d still go after Shore tbh
Dube/Lazar, with Hathaway and Klimchuk/Mangiapanne
Well, this id the guy a lot of us wanted (Ryan). $3.125 X 3 is a bit more than we wanted to spend, but it’s July 1…it is absolutely no shock that the dollars and term are just a little more than hoped for. Congrats to Ryan, you’ve set up a financial future for your family.
How about that JVR contract with Philadelphia? $7million X 5. That one is going to hurt. Comparing that to Ryan…Tre did pretty good.
Free agents get more money than they are worth that is just the way it is at least it doesn’t cost assets.
JVR had one less goal than Tavares last season there is some value there. Over 3 million for a guy that turns 32 and is at best a third liner, this is a lot like the Brouwer contract. Not sure raiding players from a losing organization is the way to go.
Tell me how paying JVR a second overall pick who has had 3 20 goal seasons and 2 30 goal seasons at $7 million is going to hurt a team when he’s 28 years old?
Frankly that’s only $3.5 more than what we got Ryan and mr 5.9 for. And frankly trade Stone and it pays for itself.
JVR is maybe $1 million a year over paid but getting him for nothing more than justifies that.
JVR played what, 3rd line in TO? That plus PP.
$7 million is first line dollars in CGY.
I believe that Philadelphia will soon regret this signing.
You believe otherwise.
Time will tell.
Czarnik is here to compete in the same way Foo is. Both RHS who did well in the AHL but have not proven yet to NHL players. If neither of them make the big club then SF should be happy. This still leaves us needing another C for the big club and another top 9 winger IMO. I would not be surprised if they circle around and sign Shore as a 5th center.
Czarnik has a longer history of being much better at the AHL level than Foo does.
True and therefore should be more likely to win the job at camp. I think there are deals still to be made but if BT put his phone away for the rest of the day he may avoid making a costly mistake; I still think there will some more big paydays like JvR signed today.
Agreed and I think Foo can push for that spot (with Czarnik).I like his signing, because Foo showed great things in the second half, but I would like to see that continue before anointing him a spot with the big club. I don’t like the third year for Ryan, but the club wanted him and did what they could to get him. I see him 3rd rw (keeping Janks at c) that can take draws when needed. Peters loves having that and now he has it on the 1st and 3rd lines. I agree that Shore can still be signed then to be the 4th c. I would have liked to see Bennett in the top 6, but this looks like it keeps him in the 3 lw.
Jonny Monny Lindholm
Byng Backlund FRolik
Bennett Janks Ryan
Mang – Shore/Lazar – Brouwer/Hathaway/Czarnik/Lazar
Or…
Jonny Monny Byng
Bennett Backs Lindholm
Frolik Janks Ryan
Mangi – Shore/Lazar – Czarnik/Hathaway/Brouwer/Lazar
I see Foo pushing on that right side by the 20 game mark. Also, I’d MUCH rather have Shore in that 4c spot than Lazar.
These are 2 decent moves. Low cost,low term on players that will push the young guys.
There was no magical signing of James Neil at 3 years $5 mil per that was going to happen.
I prefered Shore over Ryan and believe 3 years is 1 year too many, but not nearly as bad as other years and Ryan does seem like a right shot Stajan so not muvh to really complain about. The Czarnik signing seems to be a great bet and a good signing.
As far as Shore is concerned I think Calgary should still sign him. Canucks army did a great article showing how he could be a hidden gem. https://canucksarmy.com/2018/06/27/analyzing-four-centres-the-canucks-could-target/
I’m not sure the rules of posting inks but it is a nation network site so I think it should be good.
Also the more I read about Czarnik the more I like the signing, could turn out to be among the best value contracts of free agency this year. I guess he is essentially a replacement for Shore so no longer need to resign hm, I think Treliving might be done as the team is looking quite full, also we the influx of right shots I have a feeling Lazar might end up down in Stockton if he makes it through waivers. Going to the AHL could be just what Lazar always needed instead of being put in the NHL before he was ready.
Looks like Brouwer won’t be bought out, but that’s not the worst decision Calgary has no cap problem this year and can afford to have his cap hit this year. I would waive him as this team is simply better without him.
I would also waive him.
A little too much on Ryan buts it’s F.A.Day
Yeah, basically we save cap space mostly to afford to pick up otherwise free assets in free agency. Cap space doesn’t do much all on its own.
Still need a top line RW. Goal is still huge ? mark also. Ryan does not help with youth movement. Like him but 3 yrs to Brouwer like. FA Day often bad in long run to all orgs.
I can live with this… Ideal scenario being that Ryan comes in at maybe 2.75M? Or is that being too hopeful? Czarnik as a lower risk addition makes sense too. Anything else the Flames might be looking at out there, other than a Stone trade?
Lindholm…
Kind of nonsense. They are working to utilize everything they have as insight, as a management team, which I like. You could just as easily infer Ward was the final insight needed on Dougie Hamilton, since he coached DH in Boston before he got traded the first time.
Ryan puts up decent points considering he plays a bottom six role but more complementary to the Flames will be his right shot and ability to win a FO on a consistent basis. Treliving probably overpayed but it’s that time of year.
Well at least we can dress Prout against the Oilers and Lucic. Both Prout and Lucic will be behind the play due to foot speed so at least we get a fight. And now Tree will demand Peters dresses Prout for Vegas. I’d bonus Prout for every punch he lands on Reaves.
I’d take Prout as an extra forward over Brouwer. At least Prout brings one skill set to the table
And one of those players makes 5 mill more
You could dress 7 defensemen in those games…
Derek Ryan- no surprise
At $3M, he left money on the table?
Czarnik wass Baalzamon’s choice, so he’ll be happy.
I don’t mind the idea of Czarnik, he was buried in Boston by their depth. He’ll be cheap, probably 2way contract.
Forwards are pretty crowded right now (11:41 PST).
This forward group is really very very really very small.
Size is not end all be all. Look at TB, the have Palat, Point, Johnson, Kuch and more. If they can play hockey, and if they play hockey well, I don’t care if theyre midgets
TB lost to a bigger, harder hitting team, one that also had talent.
And Winnipeg lost to a smaller team… point is, the game is changing. But in the end, you need a blend.
Whoa, settle down, Monahan, Jankowski, Brouwer, Bennett, Tkachuk, Lindholm, Hathaway, Lazar all over 6′ and Backlund and Frolik are 6 even. Its a couple of guys and 1 of them small guys is a top 10 scorer so the team isn’t that smal!
Looking at some of the other deals on Capfriendly these are right in line with the market. I figured Vanek would sign a 1 year deal for around $3m; I still think he would have been a good fit here for 1 year. Perron did not get paid what most people thought he would. The JvR deal is going to look really bad in year 4/5; maybe even earlier I’m glad we stayed away from that.
With $20m+ on the table BT has plenty of room to get his own business done and still add another body or two later in the summer. Happy Canada Day.
Agreed. A player who should get 2 mil and 2 years will today get 3 mil and 3 years. It’s fine and good for the 28-34 year old who scores a bonus. Sometimes it even works out well. Remember the moaning and groaning when Calgary signed Engelland for 2.9 and 3 years? Lots of fans wish we still had him. As long as you stay out of the 5-6-7 year high buck stuff today. Trade for that if you need “Star Power”.
Looks like we dodged a bullet on Roussel.
Czarnik and YeastMode seem like very comparable players.
I’m not so sure. Mangiapane is several years younger and outscored Czarnik last season.
My concern now is how small our bottom six just got. I guess Brouwer and Hathaway have pretty well defined roles. If they want to play they need to provide some grit and physical presence.