It has been one week since the Calgary Flames acquired Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee from the Philadelphia Flyers. Even with Frost helping to shore up the Flames’ depth down the middle, the team is expected to continue its search for another young centre.

Dylan Cozens and Elias Pettersson have been the main names discussed, though the latter now seems less likely after the Vancouver Canucks traded J.T. Miller. A trade for Cozens is still possible. However, on Wednesday Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli mentioned that the Flames could be a team to keep an eye on when it comes to Casey Mittelstadt.

Casey Mittelstadt is a 26-year-old left-shot centre. After spending seven years in the Buffalo Sabres organization, he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche at last year’s trade deadline. Mittelstadt currently has two years remaining on a three-year extension he signed, which carries a $5.7-million cap hit.

Could this young playmaking centre be a viable fit for the Flames? Let’s weigh the pros and cons.

The Flames are in dire need of offence. They simply cannot continue to rely solely on Dustin Wolf to win them games. While the former eighth-overall pick in 2017 took a few years to truly find his offensive game in the NHL, he has posted 59 and 57 points in his last two seasons—very respectable numbers.

Mittelstadt is a solid playmaker who controls the puck well and has the ability to create offence. Scoring goals himself isn’t necessarily his bread and butter, but he excels at setting up his linemates. He would also provide a boost to the power play.

The Flames have plenty of cap space, so taking on his contract wouldn’t be too big of a hurdle. Plus, Mittelstadt’s versatility—being able to play both centre and wing—offers flexibility if Calgary continues adding pieces to its lineup.

With two years remaining on his contract, the Flames would have cost certainty as well as a reasonable timeframe to evaluate if Mittelstadt fits into their long-term plans.

At 26, Mittelstadt is on the older side of the age range the Flames are looking to add. Additionally, as a left-shot centre, he doesn’t necessarily fit Calgary’s search for a right-shot option.

Mittelstadt falls into the category of a mid-tier, second-line centre who can be expected to produce around 40 to 50 points per season. But isn’t that essentially what the Flames just acquired in Morgan Frost? This team doesn’t need more players looking for fresh starts or who aren’t playing up to their potential. Calgary needs a long-term, game-changing forward who can be consistently relied on to generate offence. In his eight NHL seasons, Mittelstadt hasn’t shown signs of being that player.

His skill set is also quite specific—playmaking and puck control. He isn’t regarded as a strong defensive forward, so he wouldn’t be a natural fit as a future replacement for Mikael Backlund. And he certainly isn’t the type of player Nazem Kadri is. That makes it difficult to envision exactly where Mittelstadt would slot into the lineup.

Before acquiring Morgan Frost, the Flames might have had more reason to consider this move. But Frost is essentially a comparable player—only younger and with arguably more upside.

Craig Conroy would likely be better off using his resources to find an elite forward to round out Calgary’s lineup. Mittelstadt just doesn’t seem to fit the mould of what the Flames need right now.