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A quick look at the pieces coming back in the Nazem Kadri trade
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Photo credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 6, 2026, 20:15 ESTUpdated: Mar 6, 2026, 19:49 EST
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The Calgary Flames were able to trade one of their veterans.
Shortly after the passing of Friday’s trade deadline, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Flames have traded Nazem Kadri to the Colorado Avalanche. In return, the Flames received Victor Olofsson, prospect Max Curran, a conditional 2028 first, and a conditional 2027 second. Additionally, the Flames will retain 20% of Kadri’s remaining salary, which equates to a cap hit of $1.4 million.
Kadri returns to the team where he won a Stanley Cup, scoring some key goals with the Avalanche in 2022. That playoff run, he potted seven goals and 15 points in 16 games, before turning that into the seven-year deal he is currently on. It hasn’t been a great season for Kadri, scoring just 12 goals and 41 points, but he’s just a year removed from a career-best 35 goals, as well as 67 points.
His addition, along with Nicolas Roy, gives the Avalanche a ton of depth down the middle, and they’re the team to beat when the playoffs kick off in about six weeks. What’s important now for the Flames is rebuilding so that they can eventually return to the playoffs. This move helps that progress.
Olofsson, selected in the seventh round of the 2014 draft by the Buffalo Sabres, comes back to the Flames to make the money work. The 30-year-old hasn’t had a bad season by any means, scoring 11 goals and 25 points in 60 games, coming off a season where he had 15 goals and 29 points in 56 games. Olofsson has had three 20+ goal seasons, including 28 goals during the 2022-23 season.
Unlike the additions of Ryan Strome, Olli Määttä, or Zach Whitecloud, the Flames won’t be potentially able to flip Olofsson as his contract is set to expire after the 2025-26 season. That said, this is an audition for the winger for a contract next season, whether it be with the Flames or another team.
Getting to the meat and potatoes of the trade, Curran is a prospect that the Flames have in the Western Hockey League. Playing with the Edmonton Oil Kings, the 19-year-old has 14 goals and 41 points in 31 games with the team up Highway 2. Drafted 161st overall in 2024, Curran is from Czechia and stands 6’3”, 187 lbs. He’s committed to UMass for the 2026-27 season.
This rebuild is going to make the Flames a wagon. Why? Because of the picks they’ve acquired over the past few years. In this trade, they’ve received a 2028 conditional first rounder, their second pick for that draft. They also received a conditional 2027 second, their second pick in that round in the 2027 draft. 
Over the next three years, the Flames have six first round picks, three of their own, two that belong to the Vegas Golden Knights, and the Avalanche first. They also have four second rounders in the 2026 draft (thanks to the MacKenzie Weegar trade), the Avalanche’s second, and a second that belongs to the Golden Knights.
If the Flames continue to pick well as they have the past few drafts, this will be a rather fast and successful rebuild.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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