Flames and Canucks forced to make trades and clear cap space

Two Canadian teams are expected to be busy on the trade market in the coming weeks as NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reports that we should expect both the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks to be on the move in order to clear cap space. 

Friedman spoke about trade rumours on the air of Sportsnet 650 on Tuesday night and revealed that the Flames and Canucks might attempt to clear cap space from the bottom of their lineup. 

The Canucks got a little pressure off their shoulders on Monday night when they managed to re-sign star forward Brock Boeser to a three-year contract extension. They however remain cap-strapped and hoping to make room in their wallet by moving pieces around. 

Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal noted on Wednesday that he strongly believes the Canucks will attempt to move forward Tim Schaller. It could be what Friedman was hinting at when he mentioned the Canadian club would look to clear cap space from the bottom of their lineup. 

The Flames are still focused on re-signing RFA star forward Matthew Tkachuk, but are also expected to be forced to make room for his salary by pulling a trade. 

The season is just around the corner and you can feel it with the trade chatter getting more and more intense every day!