The Calgary Flames are in an odd position. After changes this summer, the expectation is that, on paper, their solid roster would bounce back, fight for a playoff spot, and even be dangerous in the postseason. That has not been the case – none of their problems have been fixed.
Goaltender Jacob Markstrom has struggled, their top players aren’t playing like it, but the team seems to finally be taking a new approach, changing what they can and looking towards the future. Despite two consecutive wins, this doesn’t change much. The Flames have already cut off contract extension talks with all of their 2024 unrestricted free agents (UFA) and have been looking at the trade market. Fortunately, there is a lot of interest in players that fall into this category of pending UFAs like Elias Lindholm, Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev, and Nikita Zadorov.
One team, in particular, is the focus here: the Edmonton Oilers. They are off to a rough start and nowhere near the expectations coming into this season, but they have started to turn things around. The Oilers aren’t giving up on their season and don’t have the same level of players coming up at the end of their contracts that the Flames do. The Oilers might be behind the Flames in the standings, but the two organizations are in very different places.
General manager Ken Holland and the Oilers have already been looking at available goaltenders, but they don’t have to stop there. The defence needs an upgrade. Of the four Flames I listed, three of them are defensemen. This brings us to who the Oilers should have on their radar, Tanev and Dan Vladar.
Oilers Need Obvious Help in Net
The Oilers’ “starter” has been sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL) and showcased his abilities by going 0-3-0 with a .819 save percentage (SV%) since being there. This should have made the organization lose all hope in him and perhaps consider a sports psychologist to help him mentally – no player loses all of his ability to perform at a high level without something else going on.
So, since one of the goalies the Oilers have gone into each of the last two seasons with is out of the picture, this leaves a void that must be filled. While many expected Calvin Pickard would come up and start a few games right away to see if he could get the Oilers a win, Stuart Skinner has instead started all three games since Campbell was demoted, and he has put up very good numbers, returning to last season’s form. While this is great news, it doesn’t seem that Pickard is going to get very many starts and relieve the pressure on Skinner. As a second-year, 25-year-old goalie who has struggled this season, Skinner does need support.
The Oilers don’t need a starter, but they would welcome a proven goalie who can step up when necessary. What has Vladar done for the Flames since joining them? Just that. Markstrom struggled last season, and early on, when the struggles were evident, Vladar stepped in and started a number of games, holding the team’s season together.
He isn’t exactly cheap with a cap hit of $2.2 million AAV, but that or some cap retention could be worked out. Vladar’s .858 SV% is less than ideal, but that is on the struggling Flames. Things could very easily come together if he’s traded. The Flames will be happy to move him, as Dustin Wolf should already be on the roster.
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It would be difficult for the Oilers to get Campbell off the books in a deal with the Flames due to the current cap restraints of Calgary. That is unless the Flames make some other deals and free up some cap space beforehand. It’s not impossible if the Flames are intent on rebuilding, though. But it seems like another retooling is in order. Vladar is most definitely a target if the Flames don’t hike up his price for the Oilers, and now is a good time to strike because of his poor numbers and the need to bring Wolf up to the NHL in a full-time role.
Is There a Defensive Fix on the Flames?
While the Oilers have looked better recently, allowing five goals in the past three games, they still need to shore up their defensive unit. I don’t think they can win the Stanley Cup with their defence without major strides forward. They have no problem scoring goals and are ranked near the top of the league, but they do have trouble defending. The days are over when the thinking “offence wins games, defence wins championships” was correct, especially after the Colorado Avalanche won the Cup with an offensively-driven team. Yes, the Vegas Golden Knights dominated defensively, so it could go either way.
The Oilers’ offence is coming around, and they are starting to score at the pace that was expected of them had the puck bounced in their favour. It wasn’t the offence that got them eliminated from the playoffs last season, either. It was an inadequate defensive group, even with the acquisition of Mattias Ekholm last season. There are problems on the right side, and Tanev is a defensive defenseman who plays on that side.
Not only could Tanev fit in very nicely alongside Darnell Nurse and allow the Oilers to split up the Nurse and Cody Ceci pairing, but Ceci could also be traded back to the Flames to make room. Tanev is a very strong defender, and he won’t come cheap. He is on an expiring contract, but the Oilers would have to work out how to fit most of a $4.5 million AAV cap hit and deal with an injury if it comes up. It usually does. The Oilers have prospects, which is what the Flames seek.
The Oilers have options, especially on a Flames team that appears to be looking to sell early in the season and change things up. The sooner the Oilers make a trade, the more it will cost because they will have them for longer. But at the same time, any new player will have more time to get comfortable in Edmonton and help out longer. A move should be coming sooner than later.