Here we are, gang. The dog days of the summer come, the remaining scent of piss and vomit has washed away from the rush grounds, and the Calgary Flames are suitable and started for another campaign in Cowtown.
Like many years earlier, and probably for many years, we again notice that we are running in the vortex of mediocrity. That said, as a group we are nothing less than blindly faithful. With a small handful of deals outside of season, and a remarkable movement that is expected in the coming season, there has been a little movement in the forward direction, and we can take a logical approach, or we can use this new info to absolutely guarantee that the flames are so damn back. Anyway, let’s take a look, shall we?
Firstly, the Lombergini himself took out his shirt for a chance of social media, to the shock of absolutely zero people who have ever seen him before. One of the more regular boys in the team, but somehow also the flames newest high-risk scored threat, has his role in this team absolutely. That role is thirsty to catch the internet and achieve 6 points over 82 games. You just can’t have the flames without a glue man like Lombo.
Then, and in particular, we have to dive in the Rasmus Anderson trade that never happened. Although the internet, as it is always, is divided on whether he should have already been treated, the end of the 2025-26 season will be expected to end with Raz who wears the colors of another team when it is all said and done. Given that he is consistently considered one of, if not the man on the Flames Blue Line for the past six months, the hope we should have, is that he will absolutely play in the first half of the year, and a front office of the Flames can benefit from a team that is willing to pay in the “Win Now” mode. That said, in the “blind faith” rich Calgary could agree with that competition, and the chance of an extension in the middle season comes by. Unlikely, but the opportunities are not zero.
In recent weeks there has also been an enormous amount of chatter about Nazem Kadri, specifically aimed at a return to Toronto. The expression “birthplace team” has also been thrown around a lot, and I get that Toronto is the self-proclaimed center of the hockey universe, but if you want to lose yourself in play-offs in a disappointing way, you can also do it in a better city than Toronto. Plus, I come from the same place of residence as Kadri, and depending on how long it takes to get over the Ambassador Bridge, and how hectic traffic is on the 401, Detroit can actually be his real home town team in terms of the proximity. To be honest, I can do the Leafs and Boston Pizza Jr. The willingness to renounce the capital that I would personally expect for Kadri, but there are way those strange things have happened in Flames Transaction History, usually by treliving itself. When he is involved, nothing is certain.
Now, on some more equipment important things. The child is locked up in Cowtown. That is correct, finalist of Calder Trophy and the future First-Ballot Hall of Fame goal-defender Dustin Wolf stays here, with a wonderfully budget-friendly 7x $ 7.5 million deal. For context, Wolf was the last goalkeeper selected in the NHL design of 2019 on the 214th General. Selected the first goalkeeper? Spencer Knight on 13th general. Spencer Knight is currently at the Chicago Blackhawks on a contract with a cap -hit of $ 5,83 million and who played only 15 games last season. An extra closer comparison in recent years would be to look at the current $ 8.5 million AAV contract from Thatcher Demko. Demko, and yes, he was injured, played 23 games last year with a record of 10-8-3, compared to the 53 games of Wolf, with 29-16-8 behind one of the worst attacking teams in the NHL. The broad strokes here indicate that $ 7.5 AAV is a lot, given what Wolf could and will possibly get along the line if it remains healthy and as effective as he has been. Wolf is at home and he stays at home, and that, my friends, is great news. From today, Wolf is the 10th best paid for it in the NHL, and there is a strong argument that it is better than the 10th best in the position. That is value.
Finally, although there is more moving and shaking that went out in the summer, we look at our captain Mikael Backlund who draw on an extension of 2 years with a team -friendly $ 3.25 million AAV. Is Backlund the scoring Juggernaut who has to wear the team to Lord Stanley’s holy ground? No. But he is a man on whom you can trust a big point here and there, who can set up a positive +/- at the front and adds more value than he makes mistakes. He is part of the structure of the community in Calgary, and it is nice to see him hang around for a few more before the C is inevitably passed on to, well, probably weighs, but we will see when it happens.
Being a flames fan is not much, but it’s a fair job. We get high when the vibes are high, we let it roll away when the vibes are bad, and we are absolutely unbearable when the vibes are in the middle, which they have been for a minute. Let’s bring a crispy dome foam to the dirty pipes that pour our beer, the ceiling that could come up at any time on top of us, and the hope that when the new shed rolls around, we have a cup threat team to place in it. See you flames outside of it.
#Red #Outlook