<p><em class="text-lg italic">This article is brought to you by bet365.</em></p>
<p>For a lot of Calgary Flames fans, the Salary Cap Era (2005-06 to present) has been defined by two players: Jarome Iginla and Johnny Gaudreau. And when you look at the offensive outputs during that era, both single-season and in the aggregate, that&#8217;s probably the case.</p>
<p>But during this era, there&#8217;s another player that managed to force his way into the conversation with a heck of a scoring output during his first season with the franchise: Mike Cammalleri. As we celebrate the return of Ryan Lomberg to the Flames, we&#8217;re delving into the history of other players who&#8217;ve had two stints with the club.</p>
<p>Let&#8217;s check out Cammalleri&#8217;s runs with the Flames, shall we?</p>
<h1>Arrival #1: Trade with Los Angeles</h1>
<p>An Ontario kid, Cammalleri opted for the college route, spending three seasons with the University of Michigan. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Kingsin the second round of the 2001 NHL Draft and went pro in 2002-03. He spent two seasons bouncing between the Kings and their minor-league affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs, then spent the entire 2004-05 lockout season in Manchester.</p>
<p>Post-lockout, Cammalleri grabbed a full-time gig with the Kings. He played three seasons with the Kings, including a 34-goal, 80-point breakout year in 2006-07. Looking for some additional offensive punch (and with the relationship between Cammalleri and the Kings reportedly strained after salary arbitration), the Flames acquired Cammalleri and a 2008 second-round pick during 2008 draft weekend in exchange for a 2008 first-rounder and 2009 second-rounder. (This was part of a pair of trades that sent Alex Tanguay to Montreal.)</p>
<h1>Departure #1: Left as a free agent</h1>
<p>Cammalleri spent just a single season with the Flames during his first stint, which was 2008-09. He was superb, though, scoring 39 goals and 82 points and basically emerging as the first player not named Iginla to score that frequently in years. He only had three points over six post-season games, though, and left via free agency following the season. (The Flames&#8217; cap situation was shaky and they had to make some tough decisions that summer.)</p>
<p>Cammalleri signed with Montreal as a free agent that off-season.</p>
<h1>Arrival #2: Trade with Montreal</h1>
<p>Two and a half seasons later, though, the Flames reacquired Cammalleri. This time he was infamously pulled from a game and sent to Calgary along with Russian goaltending prospect Karri Ramo and a 2021 fifth-rounder in exchange for Rene Bourque, prospect Patrick Holland and a 2013 second-rounder.</p>
<p>Cammalleri finished out 2011-12 with the Flames, then played two more seasons with the club (2012-13 and 2013-14). Unfortunately, while he produced a solid amount – particularly in the two full seasons after his return to the club – he never reached his previous highs and the Flames missed the post-season in each of the three springs he was with the team.</p>
<p>Memorably, Flames interim general manager Brian Burke decided not to trade Cammalleri as a rental prior to the 2014 trade deadline. He told media members that he didn&#8217;t like the offers he had been given, and he didn&#8217;t want to set a bad precedent by taking a bad offer for a player just to get an asset back.</p>
<h1>Departure #2: Left as a free agent</h1>
<p>Headed to free agency again as the Flames continued their rebuild in earnest, Cammalleri signed with New Jersey. He ended up playing three seasons in the NHL after leaving Calgary: two in Jersey and another split between the Kings and the Edmonton Oilers.</p>
<p>Cammalleri was listed at just 5&#8217;9&#8243; and 180 pounds throughout his career, but he managed to use his frame, mobility and great shot to create a lot of offensive havoc for his teams during his lengthy NHL career. And while the remainder of his Flames run couldn&#8217;t live up to it, his 2008-09 season stands as one of the more impressive scoring performances in recent franchise history.</p>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2109" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="328"></div>


<em class="text-lg italic">This article is brought to you by bet365.</em>

For a lot of Calgary Flames fans, the Salary Cap Era (2005-06 to present) has been defined by two players: Jarome Iginla and Johnny Gaudreau. And when you look at the offensive outputs during that era, both single-season and in the aggregate, that's probably the case.

But during this era, there's another player that managed to force his way into the conversation with a heck of a scoring output during his first season with the franchise: Mike Cammalleri. As we celebrate the return of Ryan Lomberg to the Flames, we're delving into the history of other players who've had two stints with the club.

Let's check out Cammalleri's runs with the Flames, shall we?
<h1>Arrival #1: Trade with Los Angeles</h1>
An Ontario kid, Cammalleri opted for the college route, spending three seasons with the University of Michigan. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Kingsin the second round of the 2001 NHL Draft and went pro in 2002-03. He spent two seasons bouncing between the Kings and their minor-league affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs, then spent the entire 2004-05 lockout season in Manchester.

Post-lockout, Cammalleri grabbed a full-time gig with the Kings. He played three seasons with the Kings, including a 34-goal, 80-point breakout year in 2006-07. Looking for some additional offensive punch (and with the relationship between Cammalleri and the Kings reportedly strained after salary arbitration), the Flames acquired Cammalleri and a 2008 second-round pick during 2008 draft weekend in exchange for a 2008 first-rounder and 2009 second-rounder. (This was part of a pair of trades that sent Alex Tanguay to Montreal.)
<h1>Departure #1: Left as a free agent</h1>
Cammalleri spent just a single season with the Flames during his first stint, which was 2008-09. He was superb, though, scoring 39 goals and 82 points and basically emerging as the first player not named Iginla to score that frequently in years. He only had three points over six post-season games, though, and left via free agency following the season. (The Flames' cap situation was shaky and they had to make some tough decisions that summer.)

Cammalleri signed with Montreal as a free agent that off-season.
<h1>Arrival #2: Trade with Montreal</h1>
Two and a half seasons later, though, the Flames reacquired Cammalleri. This time he was infamously pulled from a game and sent to Calgary along with Russian goaltending prospect Karri Ramo and a 2021 fifth-rounder in exchange for Rene Bourque, prospect Patrick Holland and a 2013 second-rounder.

Cammalleri finished out 2011-12 with the Flames, then played two more seasons with the club (2012-13 and 2013-14). Unfortunately, while he produced a solid amount – particularly in the two full seasons after his return to the club – he never reached his previous highs and the Flames missed the post-season in each of the three springs he was with the team.

Memorably, Flames interim general manager Brian Burke decided not to trade Cammalleri as a rental prior to the 2014 trade deadline. He told media members that he didn't like the offers he had been given, and he didn't want to set a bad precedent by taking a bad offer for a player just to get an asset back.
<h1>Departure #2: Left as a free agent</h1>
Headed to free agency again as the Flames continued their rebuild in earnest, Cammalleri signed with New Jersey. He ended up playing three seasons in the NHL after leaving Calgary: two in Jersey and another split between the Kings and the Edmonton Oilers.

Cammalleri was listed at just 5'9" and 180 pounds throughout his career, but he managed to use his frame, mobility and great shot to create a lot of offensive havoc for his teams during his lengthy NHL career. And while the remainder of his Flames run couldn't live up to it, his 2008-09 season stands as one of the more impressive scoring performances in recent franchise history.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2109" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="328"></div>

Two-time Flames: Mike Cammalleri was a small player with big offensive impacts

Recent articles from Ryan Pike

Breaking News