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Report: Flames have considered adding Patrik Laine, but want to look at their youngsters first

Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images

By Ryan Pike

Oct 7, 2026, 08:00 EDTUpdated: Oct 7, 2026, 00:44 EDT

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Through three games of the 2026-27 regular season, the Calgary Flames have scored three goals. After struggling to score goals in 2025-26, the Flames… have continued to struggle to score goals this season.

So you could understand why the Flames may be interested in looking around to add offence. Part of that plan involves bringing up some players from the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers, but they’re also looking externally.

During Tuesday’s edition of TSN’s Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun discussed the unclear future of veteran forward Patrik Laine, and the possibility of him joining the Flames.

Here’s LeBrun:

There have been multiple teams calling at multiple times. But no one has been willing to say, ‘okay we’re going to bite now’. It is strange. This guy is only 28-years old, and yeah, he was hurt most of last year, but that’s exactly the reason why he’s almost a financial loophole. He can sign a performance bonus laden deal, so the only guaranteed money is his base salary. Think about it this way. For about $150,000 a month, you can get a seven-time 20-goal scorer.
The Calgary Flames have kicked it around internally, but the Flames want to look at their young guys first for awhile. So, whether or not they call back, we’ll see. Detroit has talked about it but so far Laine is skating in Florida, waiting for that phone to ring for good.

A Finnish product, Laine is a 28-year-old right shot winger, and was the second overall selection way back in the 2016 NHL Draft. He was limited to five games last season with Montreal due to a core muscle injury. But the season prior, 2024-25, he had 20 goals and 33 points over 52 games with the Habs. He posted a plus/minus of minus-14, but he had 15 goals and 19 points on Montreal’s power play.

He has not been a “plus” player since 2019-20, as injuries have limited his five-on-five effectiveness. He’s admittedly a bit of a one-dimensional player nowadays, but he’s very good at that dimension, and could be an asset to a team’s power play. You could understand why a team like the Flames would consider adding his skill-set, especially if he could be had for a scant $850,000 cap hit, plus whatever performance bonuses he could hit.

But our question is whether the Flames would benefit more from giving Laine’s hypothetical power play reps to someone like Aydar Suniev, Rory Kerins or Alex Nylander, who are all currently with the Wranglers and have had offensive success in the AHL over the years. Or Yegor Sharangovich, who’s been relegated to the second unit for awhile and is likely hoping to return to his 30-goal form.

For the time being, based on LeBrun’s intel, it doesn’t sound like a Laine move is imminent for the Flames. But if they continue to struggle offensively, time will tell if it’s an avenue they explore.

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