The Calgary Flames have had their share of almost-moves over the years, and a few of them could have changed the franchise in a big way.
Some were superstar swings that came right down to the wire. Others involved icons, franchise pillars, or deadline deals that seemed done until they weren’t. None of them actually happened, but the “what if” factor is part of what makes them so fascinating.
Here are six near trades that Flames fans still can’t help but think about.
The biggest one might be the Jack Eichel chase in 2021. By then, it was clear his run with the Buffalo Sabres was over, and Calgary was firmly in the mix for the then 29-year-old superstar.
Eichel himself later said, “When it came down to it, towards the end, it was Calgary and Vegas,” which tells you how close the Flames were. The reported Calgary package included Matthew Tkachuk, a first-round pick, a former first-round pick, and two prospects.
Instead, the Vegas Golden Knights landed Eichel, and the Flames were left without the true number-one centre they’d been trying to find for years.
That wasn’t the only time Tkachuk was at the center of a major deal conversation. Early in the 2022 offseason, Calgary knew it had to move him and explored plenty of options before eventually dealing him to the Florida Panthers.
One of the most intriguing possibilities came from Carolina. Elliotte Friedman reported that the Hurricanes had serious interest and put together a package of Martin Necas, Alexander Nikishin, Jake Gardiner, and one or two first-round picks.
Friedman wasn’t certain whether it was one first or two, but the rest of the framework was there. Necas has since developed into a star-calibre player with the Colorado Avalanche, while Nikishin is viewed as a promising young defenceman.
For Calgary, it’s the kind of deal that still invites plenty of second-guessing.
Then there’s Jarome Iginla, a name that still hits hard in Calgary. In 2013, with the Flames headed for their fourth straight missed playoff season, GM Jay Feaster believed he had a deal lined up to send Iginla to the Boston Bruins.
The return would have been Matt Bartkowski, Alex Khoklachev, and a first-round pick. But Iginla shut it down at the last minute and ended up going to the Pittsburgh Penguins instead.
Calgary later got Kenny Agostino, Ben Hanowski, and a first-round pick in that broader deal, but Agostino and Hanowski never became meaningful pieces, and the pick became Morgan Klimchuk, who played just one NHL game.
Miikka Kiprusoff nearly had an odd final chapter, too. During his last NHL season in 2012-13, the Toronto Maple Leafs had worked on a deal for the former Vezina Trophy winner.
The trade never went through because Kiprusoff chose to stay in Calgary. For Flames fans, the idea of seeing him in Leafs blue would have been a strange sight, especially after everything he meant to the franchise.
Joe Nieuwendyk was another big-name Flame who nearly got moved. After Calgary’s disappointing 1992-93 season ended with a first-round playoff exit, the team started looking at major changes.
St. Louis showed strong interest, with the reported offer being Nelson Emerson and Bob Bassen.
Calgary passed, and that decision ended up working out. Nieuwendyk stayed for two more seasons before being traded to the Dallas Stars for Corey Millen and a prospect named Iginla, who would go on to become one of the franchise’s defining players.
And then there was the most unusual one of the bunch: Jason Zucker in 2018-19. Calgary was chasing an upgrade at the deadline, and it looked like they had one in hand.
The proposed deal would have sent Michael Frolik and a 2019 first-round pick to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Zucker. Minnesota believed it was done, too, enough so that Zucker stayed at his hotel instead of traveling with the team that night.
The reported reason it fell apart was that Flames management couldn’t reach owner Murray Edwards for approval because he was believed to be out of the country.
That’s the strange thing about near trades. They never show up in the standings or the record books, but they linger anyway. For the Flames, these six are a reminder of how thin the line can be between one era and another.
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