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Craig Conroy’s Flames have made 11 trades that drastically transformed their team
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Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Ryan Pike
Jul 5, 2026, 10:00 EDTUpdated: Jul 4, 2026, 10:20 EDT
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On Thursday, the Calgary Flames traded Blake Coleman to the Minnesota Wild.
In a vacuum, it’s a pretty important trade, moving a big part of the lineup – on and off the ice – to a contender for future assets. But in the larger scheme of things, it continues a pretty clear trend under general manager Craig Conroy dating back to the summer of 2023.
So as we inch further into summer, let’s examine how Coleman’s departure compares – and fits in with – the other 10 trades Conroy has made that have sent an established Flames roster player elsewhere.

11 trades, individually

June 27, 2023: The Flames trade Tyler Toffoli to New Jersey for Yegor Sharangovich and 2023 third-round pick.
In Craig Conroy’s second month as GM, he bought low on Sharangovich and added a draft pick. The pick was used on Aydar Suniev. They ended up extending Sharangovich after his first season with the Flames.
Nov. 30, 2023: The Flames trade Nikita Zadorov to Vancouver for 2024 fifth-round pick and 2026 third-round pick.
Two months into the 2023-24 season, the Flames swapped Zadorov to the Canucks. The fifth-rounder was flipped at the following trade deadline to San Jose for Nikita Okhotiuk, who subsequently left for Russia at the end of the season. The third-rounder was used to select Joe Iginla.
Jan. 31, 2024: The Flames trade Elias Lindholm to Vancouver for Andrei Kuzmenko, Joni Jurmo, Hunter Brzustewicz, 2024 first-round pick and 2024 fourth-round pick.
During the 2024 All-Star Break, Lindholm was moved to the Canucks. Kuzmenko was actually packaged and sent to Philadelphia for Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee. Jurmo was signed, briefly, but then his deal was mutually terminated. Brzustewicz is a current Flames player. The first-rounder was used to select Matvei Gridin. The fourth-rounder was traded to the Flyers for a fifth-rounder (used to take Luke Misa) and a sixth-rounder (used to select Eric Jamieson).
Feb. 28, 2024: The Flames trade Chris Tanev to Dallas for Artem Grushnikov and a 2024 second-round pick in a three-way trade also involving New Jersey. (Tanev 50% retained, a conditional 2026 third-round pick was not converted.)
About a week before the 2024 trade deadline, the Flames moved Tanev. Grushnikov was a Wrangler for a bit but didn’t receive a qualifying offer last week and left the organization. The second-round pick was used to select Jacob Battaglia, who was subsequently traded for Brennan Othmann.
Mar. 6, 2024: The Flames trade Noah Hanifin to Vegas for Daniil Miromanov, 2026 first-round pick and 2024 third-round pick in a three-way trade also involving Philadelphia. (Hanifin 50% retained.)
Hours before the 2024 trade deadline, the Flames moved Hanifin to Vegas for depth defender Miromanov, at the time thought to have some untapped upside, and a pair of picks. The first-round pick was used to select Jack Hextall. The third-round pick was used to select Kirill Zarubin. Miromanov left the organization as a free agent left week.
June 19, 2024: The Flames trade Jacob Markstrom to New Jersey for Kevin Bahl and 2025 first-round pick. (Markstrom 31.25% retained.)
A couple weeks before the 2024 NHL Draft, the Flames moved Markstrom, with a couple years left on his deal, to the Devils. The move opened up a full-time NHL spot for Dustin Wolf. Bahl signed a long-term deal with the club in 2025. The first-round pick was used to select Cole Reschny.
June 27, 2024: The Flames trade Andrew Mangiapane to Washington for 2025 second-round pick.
A few days before the 2024 NHL Draft, the Flames swapped Mangiapane, with a year left on his deal, to the Capitals. The second-round pick was used to select Theo Stockselius.
Jan. 18, 2026: The Flames trade Rasmus Andersson to Vegas for Zach Whitecloud, Abram Wiebe, 2027 first-round pick and 2028 second-round pick. (Andersson 50% retained.)
In the midst of the final year of his deal, Andersson was sent to Sin City. The Flames packaged the first-round pick in a trade with New Jersey that landed them Simon Nemec and Maxim Tsyplakov.
Mar. 4, 2026: The Flames trade MacKenzie Weegar to Utah for Olli Maatta, Jonathan Castagna and three 2026 second-round picks (Utah, Ottawa and the NY Rangers’).
With six years left on his deal, the Flames sent Weegar to Utah ahead of the 2026 trade deadline. They sent Maatta to Minnesota in a subsequent trade, packaged the Rangers’ second-rounder in the Nemec/Tsyplakov trade with New Jersey, and traded up from the Utah second-rounder to draft Tobias Trejbal. The Ottawa second-rounder was used to draft Alan Skaikhlislamov.
Mar. 6, 2026: The Flames trade Nazem Kadri to Colorado for Victor Olofsson, Max Curran, 2028 first-round pick and 2027 second-round pick. (Kadri 50% retained.)
Hours before the 2026 trade deadline, Kadri was moved, with four years left on his deal, to Colorado. Olofsson left the team as a free agent last week. The first-round pick was moved to New Jersey in the Nemec/Tsyplakov trade.
July 2, 2026: The Flames trade Blake Coleman and Olli Maatta to Minnesota for Jake Middleton, 2027 third-round pick, 2028 fourth-round pick and 2029 second-round pick. (Coleman 50% retained.)
A day after the Flames opened up salary retention slots again, and as Middleton’s no-move clause became a 15-team no-trade, the Flames made this trade.

11+ trades, summarized

We’re including trades made with assets gained in the 11 “main” trades, with additional pieces involved also reflected in Assets Out. In Assets In, we’re excluding any pieces that left the organization with no additional compensation involved, like free agency departures or contract terminations. It’s purely reflecting what the Flames have to show for the departed assets on their books as of right now, sorted by position.
Assets In
Assets Out
G Kirill Zarubin (2024 3rd-rounder)
D Kevin Bahl
D Hunter Brzustewicz
D Eric Jamieson (2024 6th-rounder)
D Jake Middleton
D Simon Nemec
D Zach Whitecloud
D Abram Wiebe
F Jonathan Castagna
F Max Curran
F Joel Farabee
F Morgan Frost
F Matvei Gridin (2024 1st-rounder)
F Jack Hextall (2026 1st-rounder)
F Joe Iginla (2026 3rd-rounder)
F Luke Misa (2024 5th-rounder)
F Brennan Othmann
F Cole Reschny (2025 1st-rounder)
F Alan Shaikhlislamov (2025 2nd-rounder)
F Yegor Sharangovich
F Theo Stockselius (2025 2nd-rounder)
F Aydar Suniev (2023 3rd-rounder)
F Maxim Tsyplakov
2027 2nd-rounder
2027 3rd-rounder
2028 2nd-rounder
2028 4th-rounder
2029 2nd-rounder
G Jacob Markstrom
D Rasmus Andersson
D Noah Hanifin
D Etienne Morin
D Chris Tanev
D MacKenzie Weegar
D Nikita Zadorov
F Blake Coleman
F Nazem Kadri
F Elias Lindholm
F Andrew Mangiapane
F Jakob Pelletier
F Tyler Toffoli
2025 2nd-rounder
2026 3rd-rounder
2028 7th-rounder
Focusing on the 11 core veteran assets, and assorted picks and prospects added into related moves, it’s 16 assets out and 28 assets in. (And again, this excludes other assets they acquired but subsequently departed.)
They moved out 11 NHL regulars, but how many future regulars did they end up acquiring in the process? So far, the list includes Bahl, Middleton, Nemec, Whitecloud, Farabee, Frost, Gridin and Sharangovich. (Tsyplakov feels close, too, but we’ll see how he looks.) But the list probably grows as younger players graduate to the NHL (and some of the older players that Conroy acquired get flipped for additional future assets).
What do you think of Conroy’s body of work when it comes to moving veteran players? Do you like the returns he’s gotten overall? Let us know in the comments!

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