- Craig Conroy has said Calgary likely won’t be shopping in free agency this summer
- The case for adding a veteran forward keeps building after the Flames loaded up on defense
- Read below for why Eeli Tolvanen is the cleanest fit left on the market
Craig Conroy has been clear that the Flames don’t plan on wading into free agency.
The case for changing his mind keeps getting stronger, and the name that fits best is Eeli Tolvanen.
Conroy said a few weeks back that he didn’t expect many available players to fit what Calgary is building, per Pro Hockey Rumors. That was a fair stance at the time. After a summer spent loading up on the back end, though, the forward group still looks light.
Calgary traded for and extended Simon Nemec, then brought in Jacob Middleton from Minnesota. The blue line is crowded. The scoring depth up front is not.
That’s where Tolvanen comes in. He’s 27, coming off 12 goals and 24 assists with Seattle, and he’s been a free agent since July 1 without a deal. More than a week into the market, that price is only dropping.
Here’s Tolvanen’s exit interview with the Kraken from the spring:
He’s a two-way winger who can be trusted in most situations. He kills penalties, he can slot onto a second power-play unit, and he wouldn’t block a young forward so much as make one earn the job.
Watch him score the first playoff goal in Kraken history:
Cap space is the holdup. Calgary doesn’t have much left after the spending on defense, so Conroy would likely need to move a contract before signing anyone.
Do that, and a short, cheap Tolvanen deal is about as low-risk as it gets. For a team trying to climb out of a rebuild without handing big minutes to kids who aren’t ready, that’s a swing worth taking.
