Sportsnet: Calgary Flames analyst Meaghan Mikkelson on the Jeff Marek Show talking about the Calgary Flames and which direction they will go in and when, if anything, they could happen.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Marek: “Okay, so I think one of the things that everybody’s wondering here is, you know there’s gonna come a time in the season before the trade deadline approaches and maybe it’s the players that ultimately make the decision for Craig Conroy, where the Flames have to decide which direction they’re going in.
There are expiring contracts and we’ve talked a lot about Tanev, Hanafin and Lindholm certainly top of that list as well. Is this just going to be a matter of the players are going to decide what Craig Conroy’s decision is? Ie, if they win, everyone staying, if they lose, everyone’s going. How do you see this awesome?
Like, I can’t help think about a team like the St. Louis Blues and Doug Armstrong, you know, no matter where the team is, trade deadline, if they’re in the playoff picture or out of it. If he decides that he doesn’t have the team he’ll move guys. That’s how (Paul) Stastny got to Winnipeg. Where do you think Craig Conroy’s at with this team?
Mikkelson: “Yeah, I mean, I think he’s ready to make moves but I don’t think, like from what I’ve heard the right opportunities, and the in terms of what he would get in terms of trade value. Those opportunities haven’t presented themselves and with the guys that you look at, you know who’s available, I mean, Lindholm like he’s, he’s worth quite a bit. So you don’t want to you don’t want to cheap out on that one.
You look at Chris Tanev as well, and Noah Hanifin playing, you know, I would say the best hockey of his career and he’s young, like, you don’t want to give up those guys for nothing.
So I think Craig Connor is in a position where he’s not going to make any deals where they don’t get the return that they want. But, you know, I think we all show up here every single day wondering if something’s gonna happen. You hear all the rumblings and rumors and whatnot, and it’s like, if they go on, you know, you know, four or five-day losing streak then those the rumblings they come up again, they start happening again. And you can sort of feel the vibe around Sattledome and, you know, around the players and that they know that it like they’re on the constant edge of, if they don’t win hockey games, that if this team doesn’t win games and things are probably going to change a lot sooner rather than later.
But, you know, and I were chatting about it the other night and we had said that we thought that by Christmas time that there would be a lot better of an indication and an idea of the direction that this team was going to go in for the remainder of the season. And I don’t know that we’re any, anywhere different than we were a month ago in terms of you know what, what is going to happen.
Because (they keep) playing really good hockey. The game against Tampa Bay. The game against Florida. So you look at the way that they’re able to play when they’re when they’re humming and when they’re going. They’re rolling four lines, six D, like they’re a dangerous team to play against. And so, how do you move guys when a team is playing that well. It’s, it’s really, really tough.
But I think the reality of the situation as you know, it sounds as though, not all three guys want to come back. And I think that’s, that’s the sense that everyone kind of gets you know, does Elias Lindholm want to be here?
Does Noah Hamilton? I mean he’s, he’s a great guy. He’s so good in all the media availability and he work’s tail off but you know, at the end of the day, this you want to be here?
Chris Tanev has come out and said that you know if the team wants him he’ll stay but if they want to move him, he understands that as well.
So I think, you know, we’ve said by Christmas we would have a better idea, like I said, but you know, I think the reality is that I don’t know that anyone has a better idea. There’s rumbles and rumors and, but I do think that there will be some moves made at some point before the trade deadline.