At 39-16, the Flames entered Monday's trade deadline atop the Western Conference and with the NHL's second-best record. Aside from adding depth to the blue line in the form of Oscar Fantenberg, Calgary made no other transactions.
“I like the depth we have," Flames general manager Brad Treliving said after the deadline passed. "We looked at ways to add something impactful to our lineup, but it didn't fit with what we were going to do.”
NHL TRADE GRADES
Breaking down the best, worst deals from 2019 deadline day
The parameters did not line up, but it was not for a lack of trying. A trade that would have sent winger Jason Zucker from the Wild to the Flames fizzled out, according to Pierre LeBrun and Michael Russo of The Athletic. In 62 games, Zucker has registered 15 goals and 16 assists for Minnesota and would have come in handy in what's shaping up to be a grueling Western Conference playoff battle.
While the Zucker trade did not come to pass, several of the Flames' biggest challengers were aggressive buyers. The Sharks (Gustav Nyquist), Golden Knights (Mark Stone), Jets (Kevin Hayes, Nathan Beaulieu, Matt Hendricks) and Predators (Wayne Simmonds, Mikael Granlund, Brian Boyle)all made significant upgrades.
The difference between the Flames and their Western Conference counterparts was the reluctance to include significant prospects or picks in exchange for rental acquisitions.
"If we can help our self, of course we're going to help ourselves," Flames vice president Don Maloney told TSN. "But not at the price that's going that's going to affect us long term."
Maloney revealed the Flames had a "significant" trade lined up Saturday that fell through because of the asking price.
"The thing with us (is) we like our group, as you've probably heard that a number of times, we're not a team that's fighting and scratching and clawing to get in the playoffs like some teams,” Maloney told TSN. “We're just sitting, waiting, looking at the market. We were involved in something significant last night that went away from us, but it really comes down, as we all know, [to] how much you're willing to pay to help yourself short term."
For Calgary, their form of improvement will need to be maintaining the current pace. Led by team captain Mark Giordano, Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm, Matthew Tkachuk and others, the Flames are on pace to make the playoffs for just the third time in the last 10 seasons.
"Today, there is no mourning. The hearse is not driving by, and none of us are climbing in," Treliving said. "We're pretty excited about our team. The fact that we wake up and I'm going to have a cold beer right now and still have guys like (Jusso) Valimaki in our organization, that's a pretty good day. So let's all put it in perspective. We have a good hockey team."