CALGARY — There might be no better man to sum up the Flames’ current disconnect than Nazem Kadri.
In November, a report surfaced from TSN’s Darren Dreger that Kadri was not interested in a rebuild, just as a report from The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun emerged that the Flames were listening to trade offers on their pending UFAs. A retool is a bit different from a rebuild, but it’s difficult to assess how long any roster reconstruction can take. Especially when you consider Kadri is 33, signed through 2029 and still intent on trying to win.
Just like many of the players before him in Friday’s sessions with the media one day after the team’s final game of the season, Kadri was asked if he saw himself with the Flames as they embarked on their retool.
“For sure,” Kadri said. “I chose to be here. There were other options for me. I chose to be in Calgary. I still feel that way. Obviously, like I mentioned, it was a frustrating season. A disappointing one. Hopefully, over the summertime, we can look to upgrade certain positions and have another crack at it next summer.”
But not too long after that, Kadri said this:
“Well, I want to make the playoffs. I don’t want to be getting another top-10 pick in the draft after this one. And I don’t think I’m the only one who feels that way. In terms of management, I feel they understand the situation and they want to be competitive.”
That’s typically not how it should go for retooling teams. It only underlines how difficult it will be for GM Craig Conroy to build a squad that will fit along a timeline that will please everyone. And it’s hard not to think there are two conflicting schools of thought at play.
The Flames have spent the last 10 months offloading pieces, beginning with Tyler Toffoli then Nikita Zadorov, Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin. They have infused younger talents like Connor Zary and Martin Pospisil into the lineup while testing out prospects like Matthew Coronato and Dustin Wolf. Calgary has also integrated talented pieces like Andrei Kuzmenko and Yegor Sharangovich, but they’re still ways away from being a contender.
It’s also not a guarantee that Jacob Markstrom, the Flames’ most important player who faced immense trade speculation this year, will return, either.
“I don’t know,” Markstrom said about where he sees himself next season. “What I do know and what I tell you guys every day is that I love winning hockey games. I think that’s the competitive side of me. Every time I lace up the skates that’s something I urge and I want to accomplish. I know everyone in (the) locker room wants to win hockey games too. So, that’s pretty much where my head is at right now.”
If Friday’s exit interviews mean anything — and they do to some degree — the rest of the Flames still feel they’re ready for that next step.
“For us, the expectation next year is to make playoffs,” Flames head coach Ryan Huska said. “So, you can talk about development all you want. Part of our job, to put ourselves in a position to be there, is to see some growth. Not just from our younger players, it’s the older players as well. That’s how we get ourselves to the next level. People have had opportunities to play games here over the last 10-15. They have a better understanding, I think, of what they have to do to contribute on a different level next year. Or to raise their level. Because expectations will be the same for our team.
“You talk about development, yeah, we’ll keep infusing people in. There will be different people in the lineup. But expectations are not going to change for what we want out of this team next year.”
Yes, athletes won’t ever publicly advocate for losing. Even Conroy doesn’t want to foster a losing culture, so he might not completely hate hearing his players and coach say this. The Flames will have over $18.5 million in cap space to play with. But some hurdles and challenges remain in their way before they can match the best teams in the Western Conference, and some luck will be needed to try to match the luck of other teams like the Dallas Stars, who have been in similar positions.
Jacob Markstrom has two years left on his $6 million AAV contract. (Brad Penner / USA Today)
The goalies
As we’ve established, Markstrom is a massive domino waiting to drop for the Flames. At his best this season, he was a goaltender who stole games and kept the team in the playoff hunt as long as he could. Flames players have sung his praises publicly for how important he is between the pipes. If Markstrom leaves, the Flames’ chances at competing take a hit even if he commands a sizeable return with the future in mind.
Markstrom has a no-movement clause and is signed through 2026. But Markstrom seemed non-committal, at least publicly, on remaining with the Flames next season and beyond. Nor was he willing to shine a light on how his talks went with Conroy.
“I saw Conny and I’ll leave it at that,” Markstrom said.
Later that day, Conroy mentioned he had spoken with Markstrom and his agent Pat Morris. But, similarly to Markstrom, declined to speak more on what was said between them.
“Time will tell with all that,” Conroy said when asked if he sees Markstrom being back next season. “With everything we’re doing. The one thing we’re trying to do is figure out how we move this thing forward where we’re not sitting here talking to you guys right now.”
If Markstrom leaves, how would a Dan Vladar and Dustin Wolf tandem work out for their plans to compete? Unless Vladar isn’t in the plans either and the Flames plan on getting another goaltender to help with that process. It might as well be Item No. 1 on Conroy’s offseason checklist.
The youth
The Flames’ youth infusion is a strong positive and a welcome change from previous rosters. Seeing players like Zary and Pospisil take positive steps was encouraging. Coronato and Wolf each played a handful of NHL games this past year, showing improvements with more playing time. There are also more youth gaining pro experience with the Wranglers and draft picks to be made.
Conroy, naturally, wants his younger players to make a step forward. The GM also amassed some picks and prospects through his wheeling and dealing since last June. But there remains a lack of blue-chip, top-tier talent. It’s one thing to draft it, but Conroy knows the trade route is also an option. He cited the Montreal Canadiens as an example of how they acquired Alex Newhook and Kirby Dach — players between 18 and 23 — as we highlighted in a recent mailbag.
“Not easy because not a lot of teams want to give them up,” Conroy said. “But with the cap, if a team is really going for it or if someone wants to add a veteran in free agency. Maybe there’s an opportunity.”
If the Flames want to accelerate the window, the quality of youth on the roster must improve. That’s on the players who’ve already made the team, and on Conroy to find more players who can fit his vision.
The veterans
Rasmus Andersson is the second-longest tenured player on the roster after Mikael Backlund. His contract will expire in 2026, which could be the earliest — and optimistic — year the Flames would see a new building open up one block north of the current Scotiabank Saddledome. Andersson knows the score about wanting to win while still in his prime.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat it. I’m 27 now turning 28 next year. I’m not at the start of my career anymore,” Andersson said. “I want to make the playoffs every year. I want to play in important games at the end of each year. I’ve got two years left on my contract. As far as I’m concerned, I have a contract with the Calgary Flames and that’s not going to change this summer.”
Andersson, along with some of the other veterans, will ultimately dictate the success of this team. And there’s an expectation that some of the veterans who had stellar seasons like MacKenzie Weegar, Kadri and Blake Coleman can maintain their form. However, more will be needed from players like Jonathan Huberdeau and Andrew Mangiapane.
Oh, and how does Conroy plan on satisfying those veterans who want to win sooner rather than later? Let’s try to make some sense, briefly, of the Stars’ plan that Conroy said he’d like to see his team emulate
When they found themselves sputtering despite having two top-line talents in Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, they established a foundation in the 2017 draft class with three picks: Miro Heiskanen, Jake Oettinger and Jason Robertson while also adding some key free agents. Subsequent drafts have seen them add players like Wyatt Johnston, Logan Stankoven and Thomas Harley to a bustling core featuring Roope Hintz, Joe Pavelski and Matt Duchene.
“They made draft picks, they brought in players, they added a few veterans here and there,” Conroy said. “You look at that team and they’re right in the win-now mode. They did it over a short period of time. They had a great draft and it might take a little bit of time. But we have some very good players in this team and young guys that are taking steps. And we need to continue taking another step.”
It’s a model that sees the Stars still in a contention window four years after their last appearance in the Stanley Cup Final, a loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020. But almost everything had to go right. And the Flames will still be in tough against fellow conference competition.
“It’s tough in the West,” Conroy said. “Every team you look at, they’re good. I can’t wait to watch the playoffs. That’s part of it. How do we build a team that’s going to get us to compete with these teams in the West? It’s going to take a little bit of time.”
There is no definitive time on how long retools, or rebuilds, take before success is achieved. And it remains to be seen how patient some players are willing to be while waiting for it to happen. It’s probably not what fans who have been scarred by the Flames trying to get into the playoffs as underdogs instead of trying to rebuild themselves as a bona fide contender down the road wanted to hear.
(Top photo of Craig Conroy: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
