No, the Buffalo Sabres did not ask for permission to speak with Brad Treliving about their vacancy at GM.
The hockey world knew the pending free agent wasn’t signing anywhere but Calgary, as he did Monday.
So, the Sabres asked for – and were granted – consent to meet with the man who has learned plenty under Treliving: assistant GM Craig Conroy.
That’s how highly Treliving is thought of.
The former Flames captain interviewed with the Sabres Monday, adding one more potential issue for Treliving to deal with as part of a lengthy list he’ll tackle this summer.
The Flames sure took their time on this one, but they got it right.
With Treliving’s extension, the club remains in good hands as it looks to continue solidifying an organization that was in full rebuild mode when he was hired three years ago.
One year after Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff moved on, Treliving was hired by hockey operations president Brian Burke to start stocking the shelves with prospects, while trying to add stability to a club finally realizing the team needed an overhaul.
Since then his Flames have made the playoffs two of three seasons; his hits have far outweighed his misses; and the team’s young core is the envy of many around the league.
Understandable then why the locals were starting to get nervous. His contract was weeks away from ending and Treliving had yet to be re-upped by the club.
[snippet id=3317575]
“No one should read anything into time frames at all,” said Flames president and CEO Ken King, whose ownership group has opted to snub the age-old practice in pro sports of re-signing front-office types one year away from their contract expiring.
“This is the time of year you deal with it. We’re not unorthodox.”
Either way, the man with the legendary work ethic has another two or three-year mandate to continue building upon a base he’s constructed around youth and speed. He wouldn’t elaborate on the details of his “multi-year” extension.
“That’s so I don’t get another three months of questions once it gets close to expiring,” chuckled Treliving, 47, who admits that while he’s made great strides there are still plenty of moves needed to get this club beyond being first-round sweep candidates.
“I’m where I want to be. We’ve got some work to do but I’m excited about the future here.”
The goaltending situation is Treliving’s top priority this summer after his prized acquisition from last off season, pending UFA Brian Elliott, fell apart the last two games of the playoffs. Chad Johnson is a shoe-in to re-sign as a UFA, but a starter along the lines of Ben Bishop is clearly the target.
Treliving also has to sign RFAs like Sam Bennett, Micheal Ferland and Curtis Lazar, who will all be protected in the Vegas expansion draft that will likely see Troy Brouwer, Matt Stajan and Brett Kulak exposed.
He needs to ink or replace UFAs Michael Stone and Deryk Engelland at the back end and is also looking to add scoring depth on the wing.
Acquiring Stone at the deadline along with Matt Bartkowski helped kick-start the 10-game winning streak that ultimately landed the squad back in the playoffs. Treliving deserved that much credit.
It capped a year of moves that also saw Treliving add Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan to the list of core players he’s signed long term like Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, T.J. Brodie and Michael Frolik. Let’s not forget, he essentially stole Hamilton from the Bruins, plucked Frolik from free agency and signed Brodie to an extremely cap-friendly pact.
“We are striving to create a level of continuity and stability, as all successful teams do,” said Burke, who, for what it’s worth, is definitely not in the running to move to Buffalo.
“(Monday’s) announcement is another step forward for our organization on that path. Under Brad’s leadership, we have seen progress over the past three seasons and look forward to building on that growth in the coming years.”
That growth includes Stockton Heat standouts Mark Jankowski and Rasmus Andersson, both of whom Treliving thinks could push for NHL jobs next fall. This is a relatively new development for an organization that had long ago depleted its minor-league coffers in a vain attempt to try keeping Iginla’s aging teams in contention.
Treliving’s first order of business is signing “a large portion” of his hockey operations staffers whose contracts were also allowed to all but expire this spring.
Monitoring his AHL club’s playoff fortunes, prepping for the Vegas expansion draft, scouting the world championship and making free agency wish lists before the draft will also keep Treliving on his toes.
A testament to just how deserving Treliving is of his extension is the fact the magnitude of his decisions this summer pale in comparison to past years given how well-positioned his team is for the future.
Keeping the architect of a 125-103-18 record may be the most important move the organization has made in years.
[snippet id=3332601]
Over three years he received solid trade-deadline returns for Kris Russell, Curtis Glencross and Jiri Hudler and even made a solid swap for Elliott that made sense on every level.
Signing Johnson as his backup helped save the season after a rocky start. The coaching change last summer to Glen Gulutzan was as big a success as drafting Matthew Tkachuk sixth overall or signing Kris Versteeg out of the Oilers camp.
Oh sure, deals for Brandon Bollig, Lance Bouma, Mason Raymond and potentially Troy Brouwer are reminders he’s human.
He’s fearless, well-connected and, finally, signed.
It paves the way for a franchise he’s helped rebound to grow into contenders down the road.
[relatedlinks]
