Strickland: Cam Talbot will be signing with Flames

In the ongoing saga of the Calgary Flames trying to find a second goaltender to play alongside David Rittich, FOX Sports analyst Andy Strickland has thrown another log on the fire. LeBrun has joined the chorus linking the Flames to pending unrestricted free agent Cam Talbot and went a bit further, reporting a pending signing).

Pending UFAs aren’t able to officially sign deals until midnight ET on July 1.

Talbot made 35 appearances in 2018-19, split between the Edmonton Oilers and Philadelphia Flyers. He posted a combined 11-17-3 record with a 3.40 goals against average and .892 save percentage. That said, he played behind a pretty porous defense in Edmonton and in both Edmonton and Philadelphia at times he played in rougher situations, allowing Mikko Koskinen (in Edmonton) and Carter Hart (in Philadelphia) to get their starters in situations more suited to success.

Once thought of as one of the best backups in the entire NHL from his time acting as Henrik Lundqvist’s caddie with the New York Rangers, Talbot was used a ton during his first three seasons in Edmonton – playing 56, 73 and 67 games in 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18. He was strong early on, finishing fourth in Vezina Trophy voting in 2016-17 and leading the NHL in most goaltending categories. While he was very not good last season, the thought is likely that he can be rehabilitated with proper use behind a strong defensive group in Calgary.

If he does sign with the Flames, Talbot would join Fred Brathwaite, Curtis Joseph, Dwayne Roloson, and Hockey Hall of Famer Grant Fuhr as goaltenders who suited up for both the Flames and Oilers, and would be the 11th different goaltender to play for the Flames since Brad Treliving became general manager in 2014.