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It's well documented the Calgary Flames would like to move back into the 1st round.
As it stands, they are first scheduled to make a selection at 105th overall. In other words, they have a *long* way to go to move up.
Including picks as part of a package isn't really an option so they'd have to part with quality assets – likely from the back end – to acquire a 1st round pick.
If they're really set on doing so, here are a few potential trade partners.
New York Islanders
Wouldn't this be something? A year after the Travis Hamonic trade, the Islanders are a disaster on the back end and the Flames are in desperate need of draft capital. It's funny how these things work out.
As it stands, the Isles own the 11th and 12th overall picks. Getting either would be costly but the Flames have the defense personnel – both on the roster and in the system – that could entice the Islanders to make a move, especially if John Tavares re-signs. He'll want the Islanders to be competitive again sooner than later and acquiring a) an established NHL defender or; b) a promising defense prospect further along in development than anyone available at 11 or 12 would help them do that.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers are another Metro Division team with a) a need on defense and; b) two mid 1st round picks (14th and 19th overall) to play around with.
Ron Hextall has proven to be quite stingy with his young players and picks so, again, trading into the 1st round would be costly.
Based on each team's needs, and the additional bonus that they play in different conferences, there could be a match here.
Ottawa Senators
No. 4 is a pipe dream. If you're doing that, you're probably talking Dougie Hamilton and more given a) his perceived value seems lower than his actual value and; b) high picks are always ridiculously expensive.
Young top pairing defenders on team-friendly contracts don't grow on trees, and the Flames want to contend in the immediate future, so we can probably scratch that idea off the board for both sides.
No. 22 is a much a different story. The Sens don't have a 1st round pick next season (oops) so they don't want to be bad. They literally can't afford to be. They're as money driven as an NHL franchise and trying to get fans at the games consistently will be like pulling teeth if they're anything like they were this season.
Also, if Matt Duchene costs them a lottery pick on top of everything else...yikes.
The Sens need to be better next season. They already have a pretty strong group of prospects coming and they'll be able to add to it at No. 4.
If they can get something to help the team in the short and long-term, be it an established defensemen or a young, cost controlled option ready to make the jump like *gulp* Rasmus Andersson, I could see something coming to fruition.
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We don't know for certain the Flames will be able to trade up. What we do know is it will be costly if they do – regardless of which team they're dealing with.
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