There has been much discussion and speculation over an upcoming, 22 year old, free agent of late and the Calgary Flames appear to be right in the middle of it all.
For those who are unfamiliar with the current situation, Kevin Hayes who was selected 24th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks is slated to become a UFA and is receiving the attention of many teams around the league.
Standing at 6’4, 215lbs forward not only possesses the size which the Flames are looking to add to their roster, but he’s also a right winger which the organization could stand to upgrade in terms of their prospect pool.
While some may argue that the Flames could be at the bottom of Hayes list of “potential candidates…, they currently possess two things which could sway his decision making in their favour; Johnny Gaudreau and Bill Arnold.
The three of these forwards played together in college and, well, let’s just sum up their work as great. Combining for 198 points in but 40 games, this line had some serious chemistry on and off the ice.
In fact, Hayes up to this point continues to spend time with Gaudreau during the off-season. Given the excitement which Gaudreau has expressed over signing with the Flames, I’m sure the little man has done his due diligence in trying to convince his college buddy to join the growing organization.
All this said, we must remain realistic in our expectations of both the player and where he could sign. While the above relationship with Gaudreau and Arnold should certainly help the Flames’ chance, they are competing against teams such as the Hawks whose pedigree may seem more enticing than that of the Flames. Although, conversely, signing with a team like Calgary offers a player like Kevin a greater chance for immediate ice time versus having to wait a few years while playing for an established Chicago roster.
Of all teams who have the greatest chance to sign this player, in my humble opinion, would be the Boston Bruins. Not only is Boston the hometown of Hayes, but they are also a much respected organization who properly develops their players.
So I suppose at the end of the day it will all come down to whether or not Calgary can entice the young forward to sign with them for perhaps a few extra dollars than a team like Boston could offer, in addition to the chance to once again play with Johnny Gaudreau on the big surface.
There should be more very soon on all this, but as of now Eklund recently advised the hockey world that the race is currently between three teams, one of which being Calgary!
Thanks for reading!