WWYDW: How to spend the Flames cap space?
By Ryan Pike
4 years agoFor basically the entire first half of the season, the Calgary Flames have had either a teeny, tiny amount of cap space or functionally no actual cap space. That all changed when they sent Michael Frolik to the Buffalo Sabres last week.
Suddenly, general manager Brad Treliving has money to spend. This week for What Would You Do Wednesday we ask: how would you spend the Flames’ cap space?
Depending on whether Juuso Valimaki stays on the long-term injury reserve or not, the Flames can add either $4.79 million in cap hits at the trade deadline or $3.896 million. Either way, it’s a far cry from the $19,000 they had to work with prior to the Frolik swap.
The big question is what to spend it on, particularly since there’s no way Treliving would’ve gone to all the trouble to make a trade if he had no intention of using the cap space. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman noted on Headlines over the weekend that the Flames’ decision seemingly hinges on whether Elias Lindholm is considered a center or a winger going forward.
Presuming that Valimaki will be back eventually and the team’s looking for right shot forwards with a bit of term, they have some options:
- Toronto’s Kasperi Kapanen, potentially the odd man out in Toronto as they try to revamp their blueline this summer. (If you close your eyes, you can almost imagine a “hockey trade” that sends someone like TJ Brodie to the Leafs.) He’s signed for two more seasons with a $3.2 million cap hit.
- New Jersey’s Kyle Palmieri has a season left on his deal that pays him $4.65 million per season. If the Flames send an NHL body to the Devils, the cap part of the swap would be a wash.
- Anaheim’s Rickard Rakell ($3.789 million) or, cheaper, Ondrej Kase ($2.2 million). Both have some term left, but the Flames would likely need to pay the “in-division premium” to get them out of Orange County.
- Buffalo’s Evan Rodrigues is a pending restricted free agent who has requested a trade. He’s on a $2 million deal and could do a bit more with a change in scenery.
In terms of pure rentals, perhaps Ottawa’s Jean-Gabriel Pageau (a Flames target last season), the Rangers’ Chris Kreider (a former college teammate of Johnny Gaudreau’s), or Los Angeles’ Tyler Toffoli could be smart targets.
What should the Flames do? What would be the best use of their newfound cap space? Should they go for a forward or go completely nuts and aim for a defender instead? Sound off in the comments!
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