Trading within your own division is maybe not the first choice, but for the Calgary Flames, sending Nikita Zadorov to Vancouver for a 2024 fifth-rounder and 2026 third-rounder was making the best of a negative situation after the player asked for a trade out.
And it’s all because of cap space.
The Canucks weren’t the only team calling on Zadorov, a six-foot-six, 236-pound bruising defenceman with understated offensive contribution. But they had the draft picks to put up and the cap space to absorb all of Zadorov’s $3.75 million AAV. That gave them the leg up on a team like, say, the Toronto Maple Leafs, who wanted Zadorov but needed the Flames to retain some of that money, as reported by Luke Fox.
So the Flames get draft picks in this deal, yes, but also more cap room to play. And, with the March 8 trade deadline far in the future, Calgary still has each of the three salary retention slots available to them to perhaps make future deals work with more cap-strapped teams.
Funny, because they’re now down to three big pending UFAs between Elias Lindholm, Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev.
“To make a deal now in the NHL with the money, with retention, to not retain any money, to have three retentions remaining is very valuable also,” Flames GM Craig Conroy told Pat Steinberg on Flames Talk “Those are another chip for you. For us to do this without retaining money, obviously going to Vancouver that’s not the place you’d want him to go, but in the end you have to do what’s right for the team.”
The Canucks cleared the necessary cap space to make this trade when they offloaded Anthony Beauvillier to Chicago earlier this week. At that time, with Carson Soucy’s injury straining the back end, Canucks GM Patrik Allvin acknowledged his need for a blue liner and communicated his belief he’d get a deal done.
One day later, here we are.
For a scouting report on what Zadorov will add to the Canucks, and also a look at which youngster the Flames could give an opportunity to next, we turn to our own Jason Bukala.
SCOUT’S ANALYSIS
Adding Nikita Zadorov to the Canucks’ lineup is a tidy bit of business by Patrik Allvin and Vancouver’s management group. Investing the 2024 fifth-round pick they acquired in the Anthony Beauvillier trade with Chicago, and a third-round pick in 2026, are assets well spent in my opinion.
The Canucks have built up some leverage in the standings, but they also recognize how difficult it can be to maintain position when injuries start affecting the look of your roster. Adding Zadorov stabilizes their group until Carson Soucy returns from injury, and reshapes their pairings when everyone is healthy.
I don’t know for a fact, but I’m anticipating the Canucks’ defence pairings to look like this when Soucy returns:
Quinn Hughes – Filip Hronek
Ian Cole – Carson Soucy
Nikita Zadorov – Tyler Myers
Zadorov and Myers will resemble the towering pairing Calgary had a couple years ago when Erik Gudbranson and Zadorov were paired together. Myers isn’t close to as physical as Gudbranson, but the combined wing span of Zadorov and Myers will almost cover the full width of the ice.
The obvious element that Zadorov brings to the Canucks is his physical presence. When he properly times his gaps he hits people with authority.
Perhaps an understated element is Zadorov’s ability to rush the puck. He’s a hulking human, standing six-foot-6, 236 pounds. Once up to speed he’s like a train running downhill. He’s difficult to gap up on, and has the ability to make plays.
But, before everyone gets too carried away with only glowing reports, no NHL player is perfect and Zadorov isn’t an exception. There are times in games when he seems to get stuck. His read/react/jump to space can be poorly timed. A big body, when not moving, is a tough look …
Conversely, when in motion and rotating and reading the play properly or getting in shooting lanes, Zadorov is difficult to direct pucks around from the perimeter. Sometimes he just needs to get in the shooting lane and allow pucks to hit him from the flank.
The addition of Zadorov adds a layer of depth to the Canucks’ blue line and they become a harder team to play against with his addition. Zadorov can skate in the second pairing if required, so he’s best defined as a combination second/third pairing defenceman.
As far as the return the Flames get in this deal, I’m not an insider but it feels to me like they could have received more. Having said that, anytime a player asks for a trade the team moving him is immediately put in a position of weakness.
It’s my belief that Craig Conroy wanted to send a message in this process. He, of course, tried to get the best available deal to benefit his organization, but he also wants more youth inserted in his lineup — and isn’t going to allow the inmates to run the asylum. It’s his team.
Part of the benefit of having their AHL affiliate in Calgary is that Flames management has an opportunity to watch the growth of their prospects in their own arena.
Maybe this deal opens up an opportunity for six-foot-three, 190-pound, left shot, two-way defenceman Ilya Solovyov.