Quiet NHL Trade Deadline But Flames Future May See Massive Changes

More changes are coming for the Calgary Flames. 

The biggest question is who is going to make them? 

Current GM Brad Treliving is on an expiring contract. Missing the playoffs might mean the end of his time with the Flames. Or maybe he’s done either way. Perhaps he doesn’t even want another contract here. 

Head coach Darryl Sutter had his contract extended by Treliving. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that ownership hands Sutter total control — at least temporarily — as they move forward. 

So while no major moves took place on Friday, with Treliving trading a bunch of pending UFAs for a bunch of other pending UFAs, some massive changes may come this summer. The entire front-office staff could quietly make a clean exit with the simple expiry of their contracts. 

Not that his status had any effect on what he did on deadline day, Treliving said. 

“Zero impact,” Treliving told the media on Friday. “I don’t worry about the job, I was doing my job. Zero impact.”

Whether or not Treliving is the person who will address it, there is a lingering question of what to do with the player’s contracts. In particular, the ones that were getting the most attention ahead of NHL trade deadline day. 

Friday’s most exciting talk was of the Calgary Flames as a potential seller, with some interest in the names of those who have contracts that end in 2025. 

Mikael Backlund, Tyler Toffoi, Elias Lindholm, Noah Hanifin, Nikita Zadorov and Chris Tanev all have deals that end after next season. 

Those are some key pieces of the current core, although that group has been unable to get any momentum all season long. 

“Right now, we’re a really good team that doesn’t know how to win,” summarized a dejected Blake Coleman after a 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, which Coleman called gut-wrenching. 

With less than a coin-flip’s odds of making it to the postseason while chasing Saturday’s opponent, the Minnesota Wild, and the Winnipeg Jets for a wildcard spot in the Western Conference, the high drama may just have to wait until the offseason.