Flames Cap Crunch Continued...looking at the forwards
Posted 2:34 PM ET | Comments 19
After dissecting the backend and goaltending situation of the Calgary Flames I thought I would conclude by taking a further look into the quagmire of grinders and checkers that are the Flames forwards.
Currently the Flames have 10 forwards signed at $28,954,166. The rundown of players looks like this:
Jarome Iginla –Age 31, $7,000,000
Daymond Langkow-Age 32, $4,500,000
Matt Stajan – Age 25, $3,500,000
Rene Bourque- Age 27, $3,333,333
Niklas Hagman – Age 29, $3,000,000
Ales Kotalik – Age 30, $3,000,000
David Moss – Age 27, $1,300,000
Mikael Backlund – Age 20, $1,270,833
Curtis Glencross – Age 26, $1,200,000
Nigel Dawes – Age 24, $840,000
Where do you start?
Well, of those forwards, Iginla and Langkow both have ‘No Movement Clauses’ while Stajan, Bourque and Kotalik all have ‘No Trade Clauses.’ Now, this does not protect these players from being bought out by the Flames; specifically looking at Kotalik who was acquired in the Jokinen deal and put up an astounding three goals and five points in 26 games with the Flames. If you stretch that over an entire 82 game season, he would have almost put up 16 points, roughly $189,000 per point. Buying out Ales’ contract would give the Flames an extra $2,000,000 in cap space with $1,000,000 going towards the cap. Do yourself a favour Sutter and get rid of this useless player.
Side note: If this were to happen and the Flames were to not re-sign Higgins, then the Flames would have traded Jokinen for nothing, which further adds to the horror of the initial Jokinen deal that sent Lombardi, Prust and a 1st rounder to Phoenix. So, basically Sutter would just give the Coyotes those two players and a 1st rounder for a firm handshake…things that make you go hmmmmm.
Now, rumours were swirling that one the Flames core players were asked to waive their ‘No trade/movement clause.’ Much speculation has been that it was Regehr, but let’s just assume it was not and assume possibly that it is Langkow. With the addition of yet another 2nd line centerman in Matt Stajan this past season and the call up of highly touted prospect Mikael Backlund, it would look as if Langks is the odd man out. The reason being is that Stajan is not a first line center and so must play in the 2nd line spot. Backlund would not get sufficient enough ice time on the 3rd line to be developed properly, meaning he would be in line for more 1st line work alongside Iginla. This leaves Langkow with a hefty price tag and no place to play. Expect to see Langkow moved on Draft day, possibly for a couple draft picks.
This would free up another $4.5 million leaving Sutter with further wiggle room when going after some UFA’s.
Getting back to Backlund, he is ready for full time duty in the NHL. He has shown significant improvement in his game and it is time for him to show why the Flames drafted him 24th overall in the 2007 entry draft. I would love to see Sutter utilize him on the first line and on the power play. He has the playmaking ability that would open up room for Iginla and possibly give Jarome that center he has always dreamed of.
Looking at the Flames UFA forwards, Eric Nystrom stands at the top of the list. He has shown drastic improvement in his game year after year and has immerged as a leader on this team. He kills penalties, he scores timely goals, and he cares about winning. Other teams have seen the youth and energy that Nystrom can bring to a team and you can guarantee that he is on many GM’s radar come July 1. Sutter should sign this guy immediately. I would think he would compare with David Moss in terms of monetary value. He hasn’t shown the offensive flare equivalent to Moss, yet he has shown his leadership qualities and strong defensive ability which would counteract the lack of scoring. Sign him in the $1.3 million range for three years.
This all being said, the Flames still lack another top six forward. The Flames other UFA’s and RFA’s should be all non factors in this category. Higgins, Conroy, Mayers…gone, gone, gone and gone. These are all dime a dozen players in the NHL.
You first look at the top of the free agent list where you would find Patrick Marleau and Ilya Kovalchuk. Marleau is coming off of a huge year and will be demanding upwards of $6 million a year while Ilya wants even more. Both unlikely scenarios for Calgary, I believe.
So what about the rest?
There is Alexander Frolov, a talented Russian forward with loads of skill and still only 27 years old. He would add a dynamic element to the Flames power play, something they definitely need and simply provide the Flames with an added weapon. He made $4,000,000 last season with the Kings and would likely be in line for something similar. If Matt Stajan is worth $3.5, than Frolov is definitely his equal and most likely better.
Another option could be Lee Stempniak who is coming off a breakout second half with the Phoenix Coyotes and will probably want a slight raise from his $2,500,000 salary of last year.
What about buying on a low? Well look no further than Alex Tanguay. After leaving the Flames in 2008, he went on to Montreal where injuries hampered his season and was subsequently forgotten about until he signed in Tampa Bay last September. He had his worst year ever offensively, only scoring 10 goals and 37 points in 80 games with the Lightning. He made $2,500,000 last season but would likely take less in 2010-11 and is an ideal candidate for a rebound season.
Tomas Plekanac, Matthew Lombardi, Paul Kariya, Marek Svatos and Pavol Demitra are some other possible candidates. All fast, skilful players who would add some much needed talent to the Flames organization.
Directing our attention to the Flames prospect pool you have a few players that might be ready to make the full time jump to the show.
Brett Sutter would be ideal to fill the fourth line role this year. He is young, at 21 years of age, and he is sound defensively (he has Sutter genes), so he wouldn’t be a liability on the ice like former fourth liners might have been.
Greg Nemisz, Mitch Wahl, and Bryan Cameron are all candidates to challenge for a starting spot on this team. Cameron scored 53 goals this season with the OHL Runner up Barrie Colts. Wahl put up 96 points with Spokane this season, while picking up 4 points in 4 games with the Abbostford Heat at the end of the season. He also picked up 6 points in 12 playoff games with the Heat. Nemisz is coming off of back-to-back Memorial Cup Championships with the Windsor Spitfires. He was relegated to more of a checking role late in the season as he was a little overshadowed by someone else on that team…I think his name is Tom, or Tyler, or is it Taylor…I don’t really recall. Nemisz still picked up 70 points this season and has scored at least 34 goals in three straight seasons.
It is time for the Flames to buy in to the young revolution in the NHL. The Flames are the 7th oldest team in the NHL. By comparison the Chicago Blackhawks are the youngest team in the NHL; seems to have worked out alright for them.
With all the changes I have proposed, the Flames forward core could look something like this:
Jarome Iginla –Age 31, $7,000,000
Alexander Frolov – Age 27, $4,000,000*
Matt Stajan – Age 25, $3,500,000
Rene Bourque- Age 27, $3,333,333
Niklas Hagman – Age 29, $3,000,000
David Moss – Age 27, $1,300,000
Eric Nystrom – Age 26, $1,300,000*
Mikael Backlund – Age 20, $1,270,833
Curtis Glencross – Age 26, $1,200,000
Mitch Wahl – Age 20, $883,333*
Nigel Dawes – Age 24, $840,000
Brett Sutter – Age 21, $600,000*
Brian McGrattan – Age 28 , $500,000*
*projected contracts
(I left McGrattan in there because I know Sutter likes having a goon at his disposal)
With the buyout of Kotalik’s contract, which would count $1,000,000 towards the cap, the Flames would have 13 forwards at $29,737,499.
This would bring my projected total cap number, using my defence and goaltending assumptions, to a grand total of $54,262,499. It would leave Sutter with just under $4,000,000 to play with throughout the season and some flexibility when it comes to trades and free agent pick-ups.
All I am asking for is a change in mindset. The game, as I have stated time and time again, is no longer about grinding and checking. Look at the four teams in the conference finals; every single team relies on their speed and skill to win them games. Every team has various offensive weapons that could strike at any moment.
The Flames, on the other hand, were a very one-dimensional team last year and other teams exposed that. Their power play was very static and has little to no creativity, which resulted in other teams controlling the tempo and breaking up the Flames chances before they even cross the blue line.
I just hope Sutter has realized this. He has been quoted as saying the Flames will be “tweaking” a bit this summer when it comes to the roster.
Tweaking…hopefully he meant fixing.
This has been,
Newman on the Flames
All numbers for this article were taken from capgeek.com. and nhlnumbers.com
Currently the Flames have 10 forwards signed at $28,954,166. The rundown of players looks like this:
Jarome Iginla –Age 31, $7,000,000
Daymond Langkow-Age 32, $4,500,000
Matt Stajan – Age 25, $3,500,000
Rene Bourque- Age 27, $3,333,333
Niklas Hagman – Age 29, $3,000,000
Ales Kotalik – Age 30, $3,000,000
David Moss – Age 27, $1,300,000
Mikael Backlund – Age 20, $1,270,833
Curtis Glencross – Age 26, $1,200,000
Nigel Dawes – Age 24, $840,000
Where do you start?
Well, of those forwards, Iginla and Langkow both have ‘No Movement Clauses’ while Stajan, Bourque and Kotalik all have ‘No Trade Clauses.’ Now, this does not protect these players from being bought out by the Flames; specifically looking at Kotalik who was acquired in the Jokinen deal and put up an astounding three goals and five points in 26 games with the Flames. If you stretch that over an entire 82 game season, he would have almost put up 16 points, roughly $189,000 per point. Buying out Ales’ contract would give the Flames an extra $2,000,000 in cap space with $1,000,000 going towards the cap. Do yourself a favour Sutter and get rid of this useless player.
Side note: If this were to happen and the Flames were to not re-sign Higgins, then the Flames would have traded Jokinen for nothing, which further adds to the horror of the initial Jokinen deal that sent Lombardi, Prust and a 1st rounder to Phoenix. So, basically Sutter would just give the Coyotes those two players and a 1st rounder for a firm handshake…things that make you go hmmmmm.
Now, rumours were swirling that one the Flames core players were asked to waive their ‘No trade/movement clause.’ Much speculation has been that it was Regehr, but let’s just assume it was not and assume possibly that it is Langkow. With the addition of yet another 2nd line centerman in Matt Stajan this past season and the call up of highly touted prospect Mikael Backlund, it would look as if Langks is the odd man out. The reason being is that Stajan is not a first line center and so must play in the 2nd line spot. Backlund would not get sufficient enough ice time on the 3rd line to be developed properly, meaning he would be in line for more 1st line work alongside Iginla. This leaves Langkow with a hefty price tag and no place to play. Expect to see Langkow moved on Draft day, possibly for a couple draft picks.
This would free up another $4.5 million leaving Sutter with further wiggle room when going after some UFA’s.
Getting back to Backlund, he is ready for full time duty in the NHL. He has shown significant improvement in his game and it is time for him to show why the Flames drafted him 24th overall in the 2007 entry draft. I would love to see Sutter utilize him on the first line and on the power play. He has the playmaking ability that would open up room for Iginla and possibly give Jarome that center he has always dreamed of.
Looking at the Flames UFA forwards, Eric Nystrom stands at the top of the list. He has shown drastic improvement in his game year after year and has immerged as a leader on this team. He kills penalties, he scores timely goals, and he cares about winning. Other teams have seen the youth and energy that Nystrom can bring to a team and you can guarantee that he is on many GM’s radar come July 1. Sutter should sign this guy immediately. I would think he would compare with David Moss in terms of monetary value. He hasn’t shown the offensive flare equivalent to Moss, yet he has shown his leadership qualities and strong defensive ability which would counteract the lack of scoring. Sign him in the $1.3 million range for three years.
This all being said, the Flames still lack another top six forward. The Flames other UFA’s and RFA’s should be all non factors in this category. Higgins, Conroy, Mayers…gone, gone, gone and gone. These are all dime a dozen players in the NHL.
You first look at the top of the free agent list where you would find Patrick Marleau and Ilya Kovalchuk. Marleau is coming off of a huge year and will be demanding upwards of $6 million a year while Ilya wants even more. Both unlikely scenarios for Calgary, I believe.
So what about the rest?
There is Alexander Frolov, a talented Russian forward with loads of skill and still only 27 years old. He would add a dynamic element to the Flames power play, something they definitely need and simply provide the Flames with an added weapon. He made $4,000,000 last season with the Kings and would likely be in line for something similar. If Matt Stajan is worth $3.5, than Frolov is definitely his equal and most likely better.
Another option could be Lee Stempniak who is coming off a breakout second half with the Phoenix Coyotes and will probably want a slight raise from his $2,500,000 salary of last year.
What about buying on a low? Well look no further than Alex Tanguay. After leaving the Flames in 2008, he went on to Montreal where injuries hampered his season and was subsequently forgotten about until he signed in Tampa Bay last September. He had his worst year ever offensively, only scoring 10 goals and 37 points in 80 games with the Lightning. He made $2,500,000 last season but would likely take less in 2010-11 and is an ideal candidate for a rebound season.
Tomas Plekanac, Matthew Lombardi, Paul Kariya, Marek Svatos and Pavol Demitra are some other possible candidates. All fast, skilful players who would add some much needed talent to the Flames organization.
Directing our attention to the Flames prospect pool you have a few players that might be ready to make the full time jump to the show.
Brett Sutter would be ideal to fill the fourth line role this year. He is young, at 21 years of age, and he is sound defensively (he has Sutter genes), so he wouldn’t be a liability on the ice like former fourth liners might have been.
Greg Nemisz, Mitch Wahl, and Bryan Cameron are all candidates to challenge for a starting spot on this team. Cameron scored 53 goals this season with the OHL Runner up Barrie Colts. Wahl put up 96 points with Spokane this season, while picking up 4 points in 4 games with the Abbostford Heat at the end of the season. He also picked up 6 points in 12 playoff games with the Heat. Nemisz is coming off of back-to-back Memorial Cup Championships with the Windsor Spitfires. He was relegated to more of a checking role late in the season as he was a little overshadowed by someone else on that team…I think his name is Tom, or Tyler, or is it Taylor…I don’t really recall. Nemisz still picked up 70 points this season and has scored at least 34 goals in three straight seasons.
It is time for the Flames to buy in to the young revolution in the NHL. The Flames are the 7th oldest team in the NHL. By comparison the Chicago Blackhawks are the youngest team in the NHL; seems to have worked out alright for them.
With all the changes I have proposed, the Flames forward core could look something like this:
Jarome Iginla –Age 31, $7,000,000
Alexander Frolov – Age 27, $4,000,000*
Matt Stajan – Age 25, $3,500,000
Rene Bourque- Age 27, $3,333,333
Niklas Hagman – Age 29, $3,000,000
David Moss – Age 27, $1,300,000
Eric Nystrom – Age 26, $1,300,000*
Mikael Backlund – Age 20, $1,270,833
Curtis Glencross – Age 26, $1,200,000
Mitch Wahl – Age 20, $883,333*
Nigel Dawes – Age 24, $840,000
Brett Sutter – Age 21, $600,000*
Brian McGrattan – Age 28 , $500,000*
*projected contracts
(I left McGrattan in there because I know Sutter likes having a goon at his disposal)
With the buyout of Kotalik’s contract, which would count $1,000,000 towards the cap, the Flames would have 13 forwards at $29,737,499.
This would bring my projected total cap number, using my defence and goaltending assumptions, to a grand total of $54,262,499. It would leave Sutter with just under $4,000,000 to play with throughout the season and some flexibility when it comes to trades and free agent pick-ups.
All I am asking for is a change in mindset. The game, as I have stated time and time again, is no longer about grinding and checking. Look at the four teams in the conference finals; every single team relies on their speed and skill to win them games. Every team has various offensive weapons that could strike at any moment.
The Flames, on the other hand, were a very one-dimensional team last year and other teams exposed that. Their power play was very static and has little to no creativity, which resulted in other teams controlling the tempo and breaking up the Flames chances before they even cross the blue line.
I just hope Sutter has realized this. He has been quoted as saying the Flames will be “tweaking” a bit this summer when it comes to the roster.
Tweaking…hopefully he meant fixing.
This has been,
Newman on the Flames
All numbers for this article were taken from capgeek.com. and nhlnumbers.com
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04 More Newbie's and a Trick
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01 Let the Games Begin?
02 Two for the Money
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16 A Turning Point
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24 Hagman Lifts Flames to Victory
26 And now, the end is near
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02 Two for the Money
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15 Flames Cap Crunch Part 1
17 Flames Cap Crunch Continued...looking at the forwards
15 Flames Cap Crunch Part 1
17 Flames Cap Crunch Continued...looking at the forwards
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02 The Flames Speak-UPDATE: King Responds to this blog
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11 Flames Podcast - March 11, 2011
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01 Flames are Cooked
05 Hope: It's a Horrible Thing
06 Newman on CBC Radio
12 Playoff Predictions!
18 Calgary Flames Post Mortem
21 Jay Feaster: Acting to be or not to be?
28 Second Round here we come!
05 Hope: It's a Horrible Thing
06 Newman on CBC Radio
12 Playoff Predictions!
18 Calgary Flames Post Mortem
21 Jay Feaster: Acting to be or not to be?
28 Second Round here we come!
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16 Flames sign Glencross and Feaster is GM
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05 Washington Capitals: Perplexed
16 Flames sign Glencross and Feaster is GM
30 Stanley Cup Predictions
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27 The Newest Flames
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14 Hagman Claimed by Ducks
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14 Hagman Claimed by Ducks
23 Neil Sheehy: An Agent of Change
26 Let's be honest: The Calgary Flames Suck
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27 One year can change a lot
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02 The Calgary Flames: Mid Season Report
09 Mr. 500: Jarome Iginla
13 Guess who's back?
16 Tom Renney and the boys to the North
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20 The lowly Edmonton Oilers
22 Flames Pound Oilers...AGAIN
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25 Flames shut out by Sharks
29 Morrison Traded
31 Ritch Responds - The Press
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09 Mr. 500: Jarome Iginla
13 Guess who's back?
16 Tom Renney and the boys to the North
18 Calgary Flames: Fall to Sharks in Shootout
20 The lowly Edmonton Oilers
22 Flames Pound Oilers...AGAIN
24 Ritch Responds - LTIR Insurance
25 Flames shut out by Sharks
29 Morrison Traded
31 Ritch Responds - The Press
01 Flames still cant score -- lose to Wings
01 How do you become an NHL Agent?
06 Further info on becoming an Agent
07 Flames Don't Like Disneyland
09 Looking deeper into Goalie stats
12 Olli Jokinen and the Calgary Flames
17 The Day Glen Sather punched Ritch Winter
17 Cammy ties it late; Big point for Flames
21 Flames in Playoff Spot; PP Struggling
26 Flames lose third straight; Trade Deadline Looms
27 Hodgson for Kassian
28 Flames Sing the Blues
01 How do you become an NHL Agent?
06 Further info on becoming an Agent
07 Flames Don't Like Disneyland
09 Looking deeper into Goalie stats
12 Olli Jokinen and the Calgary Flames
17 The Day Glen Sather punched Ritch Winter
17 Cammy ties it late; Big point for Flames
21 Flames in Playoff Spot; PP Struggling
26 Flames lose third straight; Trade Deadline Looms
27 Hodgson for Kassian
28 Flames Sing the Blues
08 Flames Call on Sven Baertschi
14 Flames Sink Sharks in OT
24 Flames Lose Fifth Straight: Season Over
27 Flames Win: Hope Lingers for Playoffs
27 Talking about the Flames on CBC
29 Flames Shut out by Kings: Golf Season Awaits
14 Flames Sink Sharks in OT
24 Flames Lose Fifth Straight: Season Over
27 Flames Win: Hope Lingers for Playoffs
27 Talking about the Flames on CBC
29 Flames Shut out by Kings: Golf Season Awaits
05 Brent Sutter: The Bell Tolls
11 Oilers win First Overall Pick...Again
12 Brent Sutter and Flames part ways
11 Oilers win First Overall Pick...Again
12 Brent Sutter and Flames part ways
I really enjoyed this blog! Some serious rational thought went into it, and it made sense. Unlike so many others that are posted. Not a fan of picking up Frolov, but the thought process is intellegently put forward.
you dont want demitra, he is washed up and old.
great blog Newman. I wouldnt hesitate at moving Moss, Kotalik and Langkow, the rest can stay and prove their worth but those 3......
Thanks. Frolov is just one option and it does make sense as he is a winger. just want some youth and skill on the team!
This blog was awesome, love that forward line up without Frolov, he seems the same player as kotilik, no heart or drive...just picking up a pay cheque. but thats just me, $4,000,000 could be used better.
interesting, the thought of signing Frolov never really crossed my mind, but like the idea of it now. great blog, enjoyed the read.
Frolov would really help our PP (which needs tremendous help right now) for those questioning the thought.
I think langkow AND Regehr could both move but I 100% agree with your assesment. maybe brining up chucko instead to spend time on the 4th line, pretty sure nystrom is gone too. Great write up here.
Ughhh, no way you keep Nystrom for 1.3 million and no way you don't try and sign Higgins. Personally I think you are really off base in evaluating our forwards here
Nystrom is gone. Kotalik won't be bought out (Sutter wont admit that much defeat). He will go to Russia or play in Calgary. I wouldn't be surprised in Langkow goes, and wouldn't be opposed to Tanguay back for $1.5 per.
RE: oldtimehockey: Higgins!! That's the player you are saying they don't try and sign. Are you nuts? Why, please explain? How is he any different than moss, glencross, nystrom, etc...he is possibly worse than the three i just mentioned. And if Nystrom won't sign for 1.3, then you get rid of him...
Thanks again for taking Kotalik, that was a miracle!
This makes too much sense for ant of it to happen. And by that I mean none of it sounds like Sutter-thinking, unfortunately. Especially the part about Backlund playing with Iginla. As a Flames prospect, you have to prove yourself by somehow managing to score on a checking line getting limited minutes. And then when you don't, you will get traded for nothing and explode onto the scoring scene shortly thereafter.
P.S. Speaking of buying low; Higgins was amazing defensively so pay him dirt for a third line role and then the potential for his scoring upside is still there. Just don't bank on it.
I agree. If you can sign Higgens around 1.5 he works hard and is strong defensively. It looks like Nystrom will make 2 somewhere else so he just won't fit anymore.
I'm Ok with Higgins for right $$$, 1.5M max/Tanguay at 1.5M is worth the shot/ if Kotalik is here then a Plekanec signing would be intriguing, I guess in 1 week speculating will turn to analysing
I think it would be near impossible to move Langkow. 49 and 37 points the last two years isn't enough production to justify 4.5 million, I think that deal only gets done if the Flames take back unwanted salary in return. He's past his prime, unlikely he'll get back into the 70 point range. I'd like to see Calgary have a good off-season though, my favourite team in the west - Good luck.
I do agree however remember that injuries played a factor.