Who’s Next To Ink? Flames Players Eligible For Extensions

On January 1, players who signed one-year deals with their NHL clubs are eligible for extensions. The Flames have a few players in that category, and GM Craig Conroy will have his work cut out deciding what to do with them.

Jakub Pelletier may be one of the more important signings for Conroy to get done. Drafted in the first round (26^th overall) in 2019, the 23-year-old was called up in early December. Since joining the NHL team, he has scored four points in eight games.

In 37 games over the previous two seasons, he had 10 points, so this year’s pace is much better — although it’s a small sample size. Pelletier has seen penalty kill deployment and has proven effective when down a man. On a team trying to get younger and re-tool, Pelletier should be a priority.

A couple of bottom-six forwards, Kevin Rooney and Justin Kirkland, are also eligible for extensions. Rooney has had a fine year so far, bringing a physical presence to the bottom six while chipping in on the penalty kill. Not known for being a points guy, he scored half of his season’s four total points in a victory against the Nashville Predators.

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Kirkland was placed on injured reserve in early December, leading to the aforementioned Pelletier’s call-up. Like Rooney, Kirkland brought a physical presence to the bottom six. Unlike Rooney, however, Kirkland was scoring a little more with eight points in 21 games. He also played a little on the man advantage, usually on the second unit. Unfortunately, the Flames won’t get a full resume of work to decide whether to re-sign Kirkland or not after season ending knee surgery.

Veteran defender Tyson Barrie was originally signed to a PTO by the Flames and later signed to a full contract for one year and $1.25 million. Appearing in nine games so far this year, he has not been back in the lineup since November 12th. Despite scoring two points, including one one the powerplay point in those games, it’s hard to see the Flames re-signing him if he can’t crack the lineup regularly. Conroy will likely shop Barrie at the NHL trade deadline if there is a market for him.

Another complex case Conroy will have to look at is Anthony Mantha. After getting off to a wonderful start,  scoring seven points in 13 games, he suffered a season-ending ACL injury in a game against the Montreal Canadiens. It will be a tough call to make on whether or not to re-sign the 30-year-old winger, as that is a very tough injury to return from.

With his work cut out for him, Conroy will likely look to start the new year getting some business taken care of. With more on his plate when the trade deadline comes around, the sooner the better.