It’s probably safe to say that the 2025-26 season hasn’t gone according to plan for the Calgary Flames. As the trade deadline approached on Mar. 6, with Rasmus Andersson’s move to Vegas a fresh memory and MacKenzie Weegar’s departure to Utah just recently consummated, fans and media alike pondered if more moves were coming.

Roughly an hour after the trade deadline, the hockey insiders broke a big move: the Flames had traded Nazem Kadri to the Colorado Avalanche, along with a fourth-round pick, in return for Victor Olofsson, Max Curran, a first-round pick and a second-round pick.

The move ended weeks of media speculation that Kadri may be traded. Speaking with the Calgary media on Tuesday afternoon in the bowels of the Saddledome, Kadri reflected on the process that ended with him returning to Denver.

“Things, you know, they pick up, they slow down, things like that throughout that whole process,” said Kadri. “But what I can say is that the front office was a pleasure to deal with. And obviously I have a tremendous amount of respect for them. And, you know, it’s mutual. So, it was very transparent in our discussions. And we knew that if an opportunity like this came to fruition, that it was something that we were definitely going to consider.”

Kadri joined the Flames during the 2022 off-season as a free agent signing, just months after hoisting the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche. He spent nearly four full seasons with the Flames – 307 games – but never made a post-season appearance. So when the possibility of returning to a pretty stacked Colorado club for a possible second run at the Cup arose, it got his attention.

“At the end of the day, I would have never wanted to leave this place,” said Kadri. “So, you know, that’s how much I enjoyed it. But obviously just, you know, where things are in the standings, it’s as a veteran player just to be given another opportunity. Some of my best memories of my career have been in the playoffs. I wanted to revisit that.”

Despite departing the organization, Kadri retains a great deal of affection for the Flames and Calgary. So while he’s focused on an upcoming playoff run with the Avalanche, he’s hoping things turn out positively for his old team as well.

“I want both teams to win the trade,” said Kadri. “And at the end of the day, I think the return was great and there’s going to be a lot of great young players coming up within this franchise in the next handful of years. But, of course, if I was to move, I wanted them to get a good package in return and they certainly did.”