Speculation: Armchair GM 2024-25 Season, Craig Conroy's Can Do Calgary Flames

[Tkachuk Norris]

I say trade Rasmus now. And Kadri. Keep Weegar because he can play either side.

Ras should get us something juicy (Ritchie or Helenius for example). The playoffs should be looked at as a bonus, not a mandate. This roster still isn’t good enough to compete and abandoning a rebuild this early just puts us back into perpetual mediocrity.

 

[Darth Vladar]

If you’re trading Ras you do it now not as a UFA. What’s another late first and a meh prospect going to do if you move him next deadline

Again fine with keeping him. The odds that all 3 of Parekh/Bru/Mews become impact NHLers is slim to none. Weegar prefers playing the left anyway but is elite on both sides, you need NHL defenders on the roster with where the team is at now

Look at the d-core today and tell yourself that all of Parekh/Bru/Mews are at least two years away and you’re going to need vets to shelter them when they arrive

You can’t always guarantee that the deal will be there even if you do make the guy available. Maybe there’s interest, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be something that makes sense for the team. You don’t just make the deal for the sake of making it. You never know what a desperate team might be willing to pay, but the market will ultimately dictate if and when you move him.

The main reason I want to deal Raz is to secure another 1st in the ‘26 draft (which would give us two deadlines to take a crack at moving him) that we could use to improve in other areas, but our D is so thin after he, Weegar, Bahl, and Pachal that I almost wouldn’t want to deal Raz now until they gut and rebuild the entire corps, even though the one year left on his deal could add value in a trade. In any case, it seems like Conny isn’t too keen on the idea of moving him anyway, but if we do intend to keep him then fire everybody into the sun now except those four I mentioned and build from there.

 

[Rubi]

With Andersson, Kadri, and Weegar off the market, I gotta think Conroy has now run out of good chips that will result in an impactful trade.
So who have we got left?

• Huberdeau? Chances are slim to none with that contract.
• Coleman? Great workhorse but realistically worth maybe a 3rd rnd pick?
• Backlund? Great guy but nobody is going to overpay to get him
• Vladar? Will be lucky to get a 5th rnd pick for him
• Rooney? A dime a dozen player
• Barrie? Worthless on the trade market

Hello mediocrity. I've missed you over these past few months.
Maybe I should change my avatar back to the burning plane crash? Sigh. These past few months I've had such high hopes. I shoulda known better. Never change Flames... never change. Squeeking into the playoffs with a first round exit will always trump a top 5 draft pick.

 

[Darth Vladar]

With Andersson, Kadri, and Weegar off the market, I gotta think Conroy has now run out of good chips that will result in an impactful trade.
So who have we got left?

• Huberdeau? Chances are slim to none with that contract.
• Coleman? Great workhorse but realistically worth maybe a 3rd rnd pick?
• Backlund? Great guy but nobody is going to overpay to get him
• Vladar? Will be lucky to get a 5th rnd pick for him
• Rooney? A dime a dozen player
• Barrie? Worthless on the trade market

Hello mediocrity. I've missed you over these past few months.
Maybe I should change my avatar back to the burning plane crash? Sigh. These past few months I've had such high hopes. I shoulda known better. Never change Flames... never change. Squeeking into the playoffs with a first round exit will always trump a top 5 draft pick.

 

[Sparky93]

The teams over achieving, mostly off the back of Wolf. Backs and Kadri are poised to fall off a cliff, as our two top centers. The bottom out will come naturally, soon enough.
No need to move Ras this year. He's a quality defender, but quite honestly teams will be looking to add him to a defensive core, that already has better. There is a limit to the return, and I don't think it's much better than a mid-late 1st, with some degree of middling prospect. Usually accompanied by a cap dump, with years remaining on the contract. Waiting for him to be a rental won't significantly effect his value.

 

[Rubi]

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Spot on. When I was writing my post that exact song was running through my head. Its like you read my mind.