from Salim Valji of TSN,

The next priority for Flames general manager Brad Treliving has to be an honest heart-to-heart discussion with Tkachuk, his other star forward, who’s coming off a career-high, 104-point season. Does Tkachuk see himself playing in Calgary for the next eight seasons or, like Gaudreau, is the native of Scottsdale, Ariz., eyeing a change of scenery?

Should Tkachuk, the sixth overall pick by the Flames in the 2016 NHL Draft, even be slightly on the fence about an extension, Treliving must shop the winger on the trade market immediately. Moving the restricted free agent before the start of the 2022-23 season would net the Flames several assets in the form of young players, prospects and draft picks — but would likely start a re-set where the team would not be competitive for at least a couple of seasons.

That scenario might not appeal to Flames fans, but the franchise cannot afford a repeat scenario of what happened with Gaudreau. A Tkachuk trade would also result in questions about Elias Lindholm, Jacob Markstrom, Rasmus Andersson and Noah Hanifin – good players with significant trade value – on whether they will be on Calgary’s roster should a re-set built around a new core of younger players lead to another serious competitive window.

In recent years, the Flames have lost Gaudreau, TJ Brodie, and Travis Hamonic on the free-agent market and received nothing in return. With both Tkachuk and Mangiapane now in similar situations, Flames management has to evaluate if keeping pending unrestricted free agents until the end of their deals instead of trading them (and how they negotiate with them) is something that should change.

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