NHL Rumors: Snag that kept Mark Giordano from returning to Flames, plus other trade deadline misses

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NHL Rumors had the Calgary Flames reuniting with Mark Giordano at the NHL Trade Deadline as a persistent rumor. It was also helped by his agent publicly stating a return to Calgary wasn’t out of the question.

“Calgary has got to be a possibility,” Ritch Winter said on Sportsnet 960. “I know from Gio’s perspective, obviously his entire adult life has been lived in the city of Calgary, where he counts most of his friends, many who are teammates. I gotta think he’d be excited about it.”

NHL Rumors: Flames tried to reacquire Giordano

It turns out that the Flames absolutely tried to trade for their old captain but a snag derailed that possibility.

As outlined by Pierre LeBrun, who had to consult with experts that were also not fully aware of the CBA stipulation, the Flames could reacquire Giordano but had to assume his full cap hit.

Because Giordano played in Calgary last season, as per the rules, Seattle would have been unable to retain any salary on Giordano’s $6.75-million AAV in a trade with the Flames. It’s a rule in the CBA designed to protect against cap circumvention with a player potentially going back to his old team within 12 months.

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LeBrun also added that the Flames also tried to acquire Hampus Lindholm and Ben Chiarot but were unsuccessful in their attempts.

Elliotte Friedman wrote in his latest 32 Thoughts Blog that had Calgary landed Lindholm it’s likely that center Sean Monahan would’ve been part of the deal.

Other NHL Trade Deadline Misses

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Mar 21, 2022; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (29) warms up before the game against the Vegas Golden Knights at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

The most discussed miss at the NHL Trade Deadline was the Toronto Maple Leafs balking at the asking price to acquire Marc-Andre Fleury and Brandon Hagel from the Chicago Blackhawks. The leak out of Chicago still has Leafs GM Kyle Dubas upset.

Here’s some other NHL Trade Deadline misses:

  • Avalanche, Bruins, and Rangers all tried to trade for Claude Giroux (per Friedman)
  • Rangers were outbid by the Flames for Calle Jarnkrok (per Friedman)
  • Bruins and Kings were talking about Jakob Chychrun leading to the deadline but Arizona never got a reasonable offer (per LeBrun)
  • Teams called about Zdeno Chara but Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello kept his promise not to move him (per Friedman)

Daily Goal Horn was also made aware the Rangers were very much in the hunt for Brandon Hagel.

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