A 75 point 2C has value. No matter the age. With a rising cap, he can move down the lineup if he tails off and still be valuable. The problem is, he has the most value to a team that maybe on the cusp. He can veto a trade to anyone which makes it harder to find a dance partner. He would make a ton of sense in Buffalo or Chicago for instance. Question is would he want to go there.
This.
I don't get the sense that he's likely to be overly restrictive on his NMC given the way the team is going.... but he can be a tough fit.
Calgary's already retaining on Markstrom for 2 years -- that's a fairly easy sell. Retaining on Kadri for 5?? a much tougher pill to swallow.
At $5 to $5.5m, I think there would be a lineup of good teams parting with valuable pieces to add him. At $7m, the contract isn't HORRIBLE considering he's coming off a pretty good year, but teams will be weary of him regressing back to his first year in Calagary, or even a little below his career average which is a ~57 point pace.
I suspect the deal for Kadri is one that doesn't involve retention, and instead a guy with 2-3 years left on a bad deal, plus meaningful assets. Jack Campbell would be an interesting option and make for some really interesting storylines. Jeff Skinner, but I don't think he's going to Buffalo.