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Calgary Flames: Hypothetical Trade With Every Team in Metropolitan Division

By Ken MacMillan

PHILADELPHIA, PA - JANUARY 18: Travis Konecny (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - JANUARY 18: Travis Konecny (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 27: Brett Pesce (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 27: Brett Pesce (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Carolina Hurricanes

The Calgary Flames and Carolina Hurricanes have hooked up for some big deals in the past. The Dougie Hamilton, Micheal Ferland, Adam Fox for Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin was one that shook up both teams for the foreseeable future.

The Flames, after flaming out in the postseason again, may be looking to shake things up a little bit. There have been rumours here and three since the Game 6 loss to the Dallas Stars that Calgary may be looking to move out a core piece or two to try and put together a different looking team in the coming years.

One player that found his name in the rumour mill a lot has been Johnny Gaudreau. If the Flames, and it’s a big if, decide to move Gaudreau, it will be to try and bring a little more sandpaper to the lineup. More specifically, a little more grit that has the skill to play at the top end of the roster.

One of the Flames biggest needs this offseason is a top four right defenceman. If they are going to make a trade with the Hurricanes, it has to include a top four defenceman. The Canes were already deep at the position last year before they brought in Sami Vatanen and Brady Skjei. Vatanen is a free agent, but Skjei will stick around.

Could Brett Pesce be the odd many out? He isn’t the flashiest blue liner or the best guy to grab for your fantasy team, but he helps his team win games on a nightly basis. Pesce is just a terrific defender positionally and isn’t afraid to drop down and block a shot or battle for a puck along the boards. He would fit exceptionally well next to Noah Hanifin on the second pairing and would likely be the Flames leader in shorthanded ice time.

Gaudreau probably has a little more value than Pesce, though paying one of the best defensive defencemen in the league just over $4 million for the next four seasons is a pretty good bargain.

Still, the Hurricanes don’t strike me as the type of team looking to add salary when the don’t know how many tickets they’ll be allowed to sell next season. So,, they add Nino Niedereitter to the deal as well to give the Flames another top six forward.

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