Eyes moved to Tkachuk and his contract situation once it was announced Gaudreau would join the Blue Jackets last Thursday. Tkachuk is a restricted free agent and was even listed as a possible top offer sheet candidate, but could become an unrestricted free agent as early as the summer of 2023. Tkachuk had until Friday to sign his $9 million qualifying offer, but the Flames took away that option Monday by filing for arbitration. This brings us to the present day where Tkachuk reportedly isn’t interested in staying in Calgary long term. A trade is likely to happen before his arbitration date, which will be scheduled between July 27 and Aug. 11. Now that Tkachuk’s desires are known, questions for the Flames will shift to whether the club needs to rebuild or retool.
Why did the Flames elect to take Tkachuk to arbitration?
The team said, via tweet, that going to arbitration gives Calgary “the opportunity to continue to work with (Tkachuk’s) representatives towards a contractual resolution while removing the possibility of an offer sheet.” It essentially would have given the Flames more time to negotiate a long-term deal with him, or possibly find a trade partner for him before the arbitration period if it got to that point. We provided an in-depth explainer about why the Flames would elect to go to arbitration with the 24-year-old.
What will the Flames’ plan be post-Tkachuk?
If the Flames do trade Tkachuk, a lot will depend upon what they can harvest for his rights in return. Even a year away from unrestricted free agency, he should command a significant package, something along the lines of what the Buffalo Sabres were able to extract for Jack Eichel. Presumably, Tkachuk’s preferred destination would be his hometown of St. Louis, a team that would need to move out a significant salary in order to pay Tkachuk whatever he will eventually command (a salary of $9 million per season is the starting point).
Calgary always tries to stay in win-now mode, so they’d likely take on Vladimir Tarasenko’s money, as long as the Blues also included a young producing NHLer such as Jordan Kyrou, and maybe a prospect along the lines of Jake Neighbours. The Blues have a lot of money committed to their defense corps, but it’s hard to imagine the Flames taking on a Torey Krug because he’s too pricey and it’s not an urgent area of need at the moment.
The other strategy for Calgary — and again, keeping in mind the issue of trying to retain players in a Canadian market — is that they might try to get players in return that are under their control for longer periods of time. That’s what suddenly would make the New Jersey Devils contenders too.
The Devils tried to sign Gaudreau. Tkachuk, his former linemate, would be a nice consolation prize. The Devils’ pool of high-end young talent would include at least one or two players still in the entry-level system that would be under team control for two years or more. As long as the Flames have Jacob Markstrom in goal, Sutter behind the bench, and Murray Edwards as the controlling interest in the ownership group, there will be limited interest in a scorched-earth rebuild.
How big of an impact does Tkachuk have on the Flames?
Losing Johnny Gaudreau already stings for the Calgary Flames. Losing Matthew Tkachuk in the same summer might as well be the nail in the coffin for the team’s aspirations for Cup contention. The Flames may still be in the playoff mix thanks to their depth, but their star power will have completely evaporated.
Tkachuk is a unicorn in this league, an extremely rare mix of skill and snarl, finesse and grit, scoring and passing, offence and defence. He really can do it all and is currently in the prime of his career as one of the league’s most valuable players. This is a guy who scored 42 goals and 104 points last year while driving play to an elite degree at both ends of the ice. Tkachuk is a superstar.
Tkachuk projects to stay at such a high level for quite some time. Over the next seven seasons, he’s expected to be worth 26 wins. The only question about his impact moving forward is how he’ll manage without his elite linemate, Gaudreau. Calgary’s already reeling from that so losing both of their game-changing wingers would be absolutely devastating — especially because they don’t have any other wingers who measure anywhere near this pair.
Why would Tkachuk want out of Calgary?
It is probably a combination of things, but it would unquestionably start with Gaudreau’s departure as a free agent last week. Tkachuk spent most of the early part of his career playing left wing on the second line, mostly alongside Mikael Backlund, because Gaudreau played left wing on the first line, mostly alongside Sean Monahan.
Last season, almost from start to finish, coach Sutter shifted Tkachuk to right wing on the top line, employing the theory of putting all the scoring eggs in one basket. It worked. Largely because Gaudreau created so many openings with his speed and vision, Tkachuk had a career year, and many analysts deemed that top line, centered by Elias Lindholm, as the best line in the NHL. Without Gaudreau there, the appetite to play in Calgary long term would be greatly diminished.
Then there is the Canadian quandary: More and more, it seems teams such as Calgary end up on a players’ no-trade list, which is concerning. Partly, that might be a function of playing in an older building. Partly that may be the scrutiny of playing in a Canadian market. Partly, that might be the fear of playing for a demanding, old-school coach such as Sutter. But once a player adds up all the pros and cons of playing in Calgary, they may just decide that they’d rather be somewhere else.
So, which teams might be interested in Tkachuk?
We looked at seven possible options that could work with Tkachuk. The St. Louis Blues are an obvious destination considering it’s where he grew up and where his father, Keith, spent nine years as an NHLer. Teams like the Nashville Predators, Detroit Red Wings and the New Jersey Devils were also listed as options.
If the Blues are the preferred destination, how could they make a trade work?
It wouldn’t be easy. The Blues are currently over the $82.5 million salary cap, so the addition of Tkachuk would have to be a dollar-for-dollar deal. That means the Blues would have to move enough players to fit in Tkachuk’s salary, which will be at least $9 million. The player probably most coveted by Calgary would be Kyrou, but his salary is just $2.8 million in 2022-23, so it’ll take more than that. Could it include Krug? Tarasenko? Both of those players have no-trade clauses. Blues GM Doug Armstrong would have to get creative, but if Tkachuk says he wants to play in his hometown of St. Louis, the club will do everything it can to make it work.
(Answers compiled by Hailey Salvian, Jeremy Rutherford, Eric Duhatschek, Shayna Goldman and Dom Luszczyszyn)
The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé the 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he’s entitled to, the league said Thursday.
The league confirmed the decision to The Associated Press without more details, a day after the France superstar rejected a mediation offer by the commission in his dispute with his former club.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former football star Reggie Bush was at his Encino home Tuesday night when three male suspects attempted to break in, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“Everyone is safe,” Bush said in a text message to the newspaper.
The Los Angeles Police Dept. told the Times that a resident of the house reported hearing a window break and broken glass was found outside. Police said nothing was stolen and that three male suspects dressed in black were seen leaving the scene.
Bush starred at Southern California and in the NFL. The former running back was reinstated as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner this year. He forfeited it in 2010 after USC was hit with sanctions partly related to Bush’s dealings with two aspiring sports marketers.
VANCOUVER – A fresh face has been gracing the B.C. Lions‘ highlight reels in recent weeks.
Midway through his second CFL campaign, wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt has contributed touchdowns in two consecutive games.
The 26-year-old wide receiver from Loveland, Colo., was the lone B.C. player to reel in a passing major in his team’s 37-23 victory over the league-leading Montreal Alouettes last Friday. The week before, he notched his first CFL touchdown in the Lions’ win over the Ottawa Redblacks.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been really good,” Eberhardt said of his recent play. “At the end of the day, the biggest stat to me is if we win. But who doesn’t love scoring?”
He’ll look to add to the tally Friday when the Leos (7-6) host the Toronto Argonauts.
Eberhardt signed with B.C. as a free agent in January 2023 and spent much of last season on the practice squad before cementing a role on the roster this year.
The six-foot-two, 195-pound University of Wyoming product has earned more opportunities in his second season, said Lions’ head coach and co-general manager Rick Campbell.
“He’s a super hard worker and very smart. He understands, has high football IQ, as we call it,” Campbell said.
The fact that Eberhardt can play virtually every receiving position helps.
“He could literally go into a game and we could throw him into a spot and he’d know exactly what he’s doing,” the coach said. “That allows him to play fast and earn the quarterback’s trust. And you see him making plays.”
Eberhardt credited his teammates, coaches and the rest of the Lions’ staff with helping him prepare for any situation he might face. They’ve all spent time teaching him the ins and outs of the Canadian game, or go over the playbook and run routes after practice, he said.
“I’ve played every single position on our offence in a game in the last two years, which is kind of crazy. But I love playing football,” he said. “I want to play any position that the team needs me to play.”
While B.C.’s lineup is studded with stars like running back William Stanback — who has a CFL-high 938 rushing yards — and wide receiver Justin McInnis — who leads the league in both receiving yards (1,074) and receiving TDs (seven) — versatility has been a critical part of the team’s back-to-back wins.
“I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys who deserve to get the ball and make big plays when they have the ball in their hands. So it’s really my job to get them the ball as much as possible,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke.
“I think that makes it easy when you can lean on those guys and, really, we’re in a situation where anyone can have a big game. And I think that’s a good place to be.”
Even with a talented lineup, the Lions face a tough test against an eager Argos side.
Toronto lost its second straight game Saturday when it dropped a 41-27 decision to Ottawa.
“We’ll have our hands full,” Rourke said. “We’ll have to adjust on the fly to whatever their game plan is. And no doubt, they’ll be ready to go so we’ll have to be as well.”
The two sides have already met once this season when the Argos handed the Lions a 35-27 loss in Toronto back on June 9.
A win on Friday would vault B.C. to the top of the West Division standings, over the 7-6 Winnipeg Blue Bombers who are on a bye week.
Collecting that victory isn’t assured, though, even with Toronto coming in on a two-game skid, Campbell said.
“They’ve hit a little bit of a rut, but they’re a really good team,” he said. “They’re very athletic. And you can really see (quarterback Chad Kelly’s) got zip on the ball. When you see him in there, he can make all the throws. So we’re expecting their best shot.”
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (6-6) AT B.C. LIONS (7-6)
Friday, B.C. Place
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Lions boast a 4-1 home record this season, including a 38-12 victory over the Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, B.C., on Aug. 31. The Argos have struggled outside of BMO Field and hold a 1-5 away record. Trips to the West Coast haven’t been easy for Toronto in recent years — since 2003, the club is 4-14 in road games against B.C.
CENTURION: B.C. defensive back Garry Peters is set to appear in his 100th consecutive game. The 32-year-old from Conyers, Ga., is a two-time CFL all-star who has amassed 381 defensive tackles, 19 special teams tackles and 16 interceptions over seven seasons. “Just being on the field with the guys every day, running around, talking trash back and forth, it keeps me young,” Peters said. “It makes me feel good, and my body doesn’t really feel it. I’ve been blessed to be able to play 100 straight.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
