Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri could ask for trade if Darryl Sutter remains Flames’ coach!

While Flames general manager Brad Treliving’s future in Calgary remains unsure, seeing that he has yet to sign a contract extension as GM. It’s clear that Treliving deserves praise from what he managed to pull last summer after losing forward Johnny Gaudreau to the free agent market and Matthew Tkachuk declining a long-term contract extension to get traded to the Florida Panthers for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar. On top of that, Treliving signed Nazem Kadri.

"I think what’s going to happen in the coming days is that Treliving and the Flames’ front office need some time to take stock because that organization is numb right now, explained Pierre LeBrun on Insider Trading on TSN last night. "They can’t believe they didn’t make the playoffs. But Treliving, individually, has to decompress and look at the fact that he’s been there nine years and ask himself if there’s an offer from ownership, does he sign it? Does he move on? I think there’s a lot going through Treliving’s mind just like there’s a lot going through a lot of people’s minds in Calgary right now."

However, the Flames were officially eliminated from playoff contention following Monday’s 3-2 shootout loss to the Nashville Predators. It’s been noticed more than once that Huberdeau, Kadri and goalie Jacob Markstrom were among the notables who struggled under head coach Darryl Sutter, whose two-year contract extension kicks in next season. All of this prompted Sportsnet’s Eric Francis to wonder if Huberdeau or Kadri could demand to be traded if Sutter remains as the coach in an article that asks more questions than it answers them about what’s coming in Calgary.

To make things worse, Francis also speculates about players such as Elias Lindholm, Tyler Toffoli, Mikael Backlund and Noah Hanifin as they could pull a Tkachuk and force trades by declining to sign contract extensions…

“How many of them will make it crystal clear they’re disinterested in staying in Calgary and be swapped out early, a la Matthew Tkachuk?”

As Francis concludes, whatever answers come in Calgary will definitely shape what the Flames’ roster will look like in 2023-24.

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