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**Update - It appears that both Juri Hudler and Roman Cervenka could be ready for their Flames debut on Saturday night against the Edmonton Oilers.
Since taking over as General Manager of the Calgary Flames, Jay Feaster has been trying his best to acquire younger pieces to help shape his team as he sees fit. Recent reports from ESPN indicate that 20 year old Nino Niederreiter has requested a trade from the New York Islanders, as he feels he is not being given a fair chance.
Niederreiter was drafted 5th overall in 2010 and has since played a total of 64 NHL games with the Islanders. Just like any other prospect, Nino was sent to the teams respective affiliate club, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, where he has recently done quite well as the teams leading scorer. The young winger was hoping to make his transition into the NHL after such a strong campaign with the Sound Tigers, although he was not given the opportunity during the Islanders 2013 training camp.
There has been no indication from Islanders GM Garth Snow that he was willing to move the winger, although Nino has expressed his concerns with the team and would like to be moved. Niederreiter has two years left on his entry level contract, with a cap hit of $2,795,000. These figures could be quite attractive to a team like the Calgary Flames who are looking to improve their talent level while also adding youth to their organization.
The concensus so far isn’t that Niederreiter has not earned his chance to prove himself at the NHL level, rather that he has not been developed properly by his organization and as a consequence has requested a trade. When considering what a player of his age and experience level might cost for another organization to acquire, there are several things to consider. Firstly, how high are the Islanders on this young winger? How much do they see him within their current and future needs? Is he a piece in which they currently have an abundance?
While I cannot necessarily express where the Islanders currently stand in terms of organizational needs, it seems to me that they are not in a position to let a young talented winger like this go. However, the Islanders may have their hand forced if Nino continues to pout. Although I do not imagine anything happening between the two groups this year, a team like the Calgary Flames should be knocking at Garth Snow’s door immediately incase there is a chance they entertain offers.
What do you guys think? What would you offer Snow to take on this young winger? Given the current state of the Calgary Flames, they could certainly use another young player with promise…and would have a spot for him in their immediate line up.
Thanks for reading!
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