Todd Cordell: On the Milan Lucic trade

Who does Lucic play with is my question ??

At least Neal can slide next to McFranchise or Drai or RNH and they should be able to put him in good positions to score. Not that the Flames don't have those kind of guys also. But perhaps not as high end as 97 and Drai.

Now that all the details have been disclosed, I can confirm I do like this trade from the Flames' perspective.

- We save 500K on the cap. Not huge, but might be just what was needed to resign everybody without needing to trade more guys.

- I'm pretty sure Treliving asked for Peters' green light before doing that trade. If Peters' plan for Neal next year was to bury him down the lineup no matter what, than any thought of him having a rebound year was shattered. If Peters was adamant on giving Neal a 2nd chance, he would still be in Calgary.

- Who cares about the expansion draft honestly. Yes, we will have to protect Looch, but so what. We will be losing a defenseman anyway, likely Kylington, maybe a extended Brodie or Hamonic. If not, we will lose either Jankowski, Mangiapane or Ryan. Big f'in deal. We lost UFA Deryk Engelland last time around, so things could be much worse.

- Yes Lucic's contract is buyout proof, but don't forget a lockout is VERY possibly coming, and with it most likely a couple of those sweet get-out-of-jail free buyout cards. Treliving will be dropping one on Lucic's house by carrier pigeon.

- On the 4th line, I don't mind Lucic. I actually prefer him to Neal, who would probably just sulk and be trouble in the locker room. People were calling for a Reaves trade, well you got Lucic, which is just as good a nose-puncher.

- Lucic being a LW probably means they will be trying Bennett on the RW. I wouldn't mind him filling Ferland's old role on the 1rst line, allowing us to dress a pretty neat defensive 2nd line with Lindy opposite wing of Tkachuk. If this is indeed the plan, sign Bennett to a 6 years x 4,5 million contract right now, since he will likely hit 25 goals and 50 points just cleaning Johnny's garbage.

- The condition is meh, and unlikely to be reached (I see Neal closer to 15 than 21+ goals), but an extra pick is always nice.

All in all, it's pretty much a blackhole for a blackhole, but we save 500K in the process, and the whole NMC + buyout proof situation is likely way overblown.

Now that all the details have been disclosed, I can confirm I do like this trade from the Flames' perspective.

- We save 500K on the cap. Not huge, but might be just what was needed to resign everybody without needing to trade more guys.

- I'm pretty sure Treliving asked for Peters' green light before doing that trade. If Peters' plan for Neal next year was to bury him down the lineup no matter what, than any thought of him having a rebound year was shattered. If Peters was adamant on giving Neal a 2nd chance, he would still be in Calgary.

- Who cares about the expansion draft honestly. Yes, we will have to protect Looch, but so what. We will be losing a defenseman anyway, likely Kylington, maybe a extended Brodie or Hamonic. If not, we will lose either Jankowski, Mangiapane or Ryan. Big f'in deal. We lost UFA Deryk Engelland last time around, so things could be much worse.

- Yes Lucic's contract is buyout proof, but don't forget a lockout is VERY possibly coming, and with it most likely a couple of those sweet get-out-of-jail free buyout cards. Treliving will be dropping one on Lucic's house by carrier pigeon.

- On the 4th line, I don't mind Lucic. I actually prefer him to Neal, who would probably just sulk and be trouble in the locker room. People were calling for a Reaves trade, well you got Lucic, which is just as good a nose-puncher.

- Lucic being a LW probably means they will be trying Bennett on the RW. I wouldn't mind him filling Ferland's old role on the 1rst line, allowing us to dress a pretty neat defensive 2nd line with Lindy opposite wing of Tkachuk. If this is indeed the plan, sign Bennett to a 6 years x 4,5 million contract right now, since he will likely hit 25 goals and 50 points just cleaning Johnny's garbage.

- The condition is meh, and unlikely to be reached (I see Neal closer to 15 than 21+ goals), but an extra pick is always nice.

All in all, it's pretty much a blackhole for a blackhole, but we save 500K in the process, and the whole NMC + buyout proof situation is likely way overblown.
- redseerpf

Not sure why everyone dwells on the buyout proof of Lucic. He can still be bought out, it's just the cap space gained to do so is non existent. If in two years we need to buy him out, it really isnt all as bad. Also, from a real money point of view, the actual $$$ the owners have payout are substantially less. I honestly couldnt see ownership giving Tre the authorization to buyout Neal after 1 year. If I was an owner, in a decimated Oil Industry, I would tell Tre to trade the sob.

I dont mind this at all. You're right, Neal was not going to get top 6, in fact the last exchange in game 4 & subsequent scratch in game 5 was a toxic ending for player & coach. Neal needed to be traded more than most of us were aware of. Im glad we gained $500K of cap & we didnt have to sacrifice a good asset to say good ridden to Neal.
Todd, Magpie has not had a large enough sample size to leap frog Bennett into the top 6.

Not sure why everyone dwells on the buyout proof of Lucic. He can still be bought out, it's just the cap space gained to do so is non existent. If in two years we need to buy him out, it really isnt all as bad. Also, from a real money point of view, the actual $$$ the owners have payout are substantially less. I honestly couldnt see ownership giving Tre the authorization to buyout Neal after 1 year. If I was an owner, in a decimated Oil Industry, I would tell Tre to trade the sob.

I dont mind this at all. You're right, Neal was not going to get top 6, in fact the last exchange in game 4 & subsequent scratch in game 5 was a toxic ending for player & coach. Neal needed to be traded more than most of us were aware of. Im glad we gained $500K of cap & we didnt have to sacrifice a good asset to say good ridden to Neal.
Todd, Magpie has not had a large enough sample size to leap frog Bennett into the top 6.
- Kevin R

Lucic will be expansion bought out

No cap hit just dollars cost

Win win for all sides...lucic cant skate back or forward and hasn't been a defensive player in years...he hits guys by getting in their way and most times is called for interference....never fights anymore as he seems disinterested esp when he is playing against his friends on other teams...kassian,nurse,kharia became physical deterent in Edmonton for two years now as lucic sat back...Neal seemed to want more ice time, don't mind a player being upset being on the third line unlike lucic who embraced it...Neal seemed to always score at least 20 plus(31/80 games played avg) untill he got to Calgary...hmm one year and written off...lucic has been bad for 2.5 years and getting worse...ohh and Neal and mcdavid have been training and skating together developing chemistry...looks like we might owe you that third rounder after all...

I think this was a bad trade for the Flames, Neal could have easily been made to look decent and traded without eating a bad contract in return.

Feed him #1 PP time, give him favorable offensive zone time and a decent chance he strings together a solid month and then he could traded for cap space. I think your GM jumped the gun using the panic button on Neal.

I think this was a bad trade for the Flames, Neal could have easily been made to look decent and traded without eating a bad contract in return.

Feed him #1 PP time, give him favorable offensive zone time and a decent chance he strings together a solid month and then he could traded for cap space. I think your GM jumped the gun using the panic button on Neal.
- Guile

I really wanted to see what Neal could do this year ...if he still sucked then deal him with a pick

Well Calgary can definitely use Lucic's hitting no one on the flames were even close to 200 besides Hathaway. And if you look at the corsi stats Neal has always been offensive zone favored in his deployment and didn't seem to care much about defense last year just sorta floated no matter what line he was on, and he was given ample opportunity on the pp at the start of the year. Luc has been oz favored most of career until last year where he started 54% defensive zone and still lead the oil in corsi for at 51%. I don't think either player is as bad as they seemed just not a good fit with the team they were on.

Todd, please do yourself a favour and never refer to Lucic as a plus defender ever again.

Let me put it this way, if Lucic is on your PK it instantly becomes a 5 on 3. He didn’t sniff a second of SHTOI last season and that’s because anyone with a shred of common sense understands that if you cannot keep up with the play, you cannot be considered a plus defender.

Hard to believe Holland could actually convince someone to take Lucic's contract without over-sweetening the pot . Chiarelli was a fool to sign it but the guy who took it is now wearing the joker hat.

Todd Cordell: On the Milan Lucic trade
- ToddCordellCGY

https://www.msn.com/en-ca...r-AAEC2RL?ocid=spartanntp

Interesting...

Win win for all sides...lucic cant skate back or forward and hasn't been a defensive player in years...he hits guys by getting in their way and most times is called for interference....never fights anymore as he seems disinterested esp when he is playing against his friends on other teams...kassian,nurse,kharia became physical deterent in Edmonton for two years now as lucic sat back...Neal seemed to want more ice time, don't mind a player being upset being on the third line unlike lucic who embraced it...Neal seemed to always score at least 20 plus(31/80 games played avg) untill he got to Calgary...hmm one year and written off...lucic has been bad for 2.5 years and getting worse...ohh and Neal and mcdavid have been training and skating together developing chemistry...looks like we might owe you that third rounder after all...
- oil90

Don't forget Kadri...

Dream on- there's no way that Neal can skate with Edmonton's top line. He'd be at center ice while the rest of the line was in the zone setting up.
He'll get PP time, and if he stands in front then he'll score a few, but he never went to the front of the net in Calgary so unless that was by design/ coaching decision it's tough to think that he'll suddenly attack the blue paint now. If they tell him to go to a spot and rip one-timers while they feed him passes then it might work, though.
Hopefully Lucic, who is no speed demon his ownself, plays like he gives a damn because Neal sure didn't. Even if he's a bust on the scoresheet, as long as he gives some hustle and effort and has his teammates' backs in a scuffle then he'll be twice as useful as Neal ever was.

I could see the conditional pick coming into play, but I do like that Johnny can be a bit more confident that he won't end the season with broken wrists by the end of the year, from opposing players taking whacks at them. Neal sure wasn't scaring anyone off.

Hard to believe Holland could actually convince someone to take Lucic's contract without over-sweetening the pot . Chiarelli was a fool to sign it but the guy who took it is now wearing the joker hat.
- Elijah888

Easy to make statements like that when you dont know the story.

My nephew volunteered at the Flames celebrity golf tourney last September. When he saw Neal he asked, are you going to score 30 goals with Johnny? Neal just said 40, with a big smile. His expectations were he was going to play RW on the top line & Im sure Tre told him that to get him sign as well. But it didnt take long for Lindholm to bump him down to the 2nd line with Tkachuk & Backlund. Frolik got sent to the 4th line, which generated a sh!t show from Frolik's agent.
As the year progressed & Neal did nothing he was obviously frustrated & capped off at him being frustrated & his relationship with Peter's to go toxic. He had to go.

So the joker GM got rid of a "must move" player/contract without having to add assets but actually gained $500K in cap space & addressed a huge need we have been whining about missing for a few years. We'll worry about the expansion draft in two years. But our expectations for Lucic will be very achievable by Lucic & I can guarantee you there would be no way Neal would be coming anywhere close to meeting his expectation in a Flames uniform. We did not win the Western Conference last year because of anything Neal did, we won it despite what Neal did last year.

Hard to believe Holland could actually convince someone to take Lucic's contract without over-sweetening the pot . Chiarelli was a fool to sign it but the guy who took it is now wearing the joker hat.
- Elijah888

A steaming bag of poop was traded for another steaming bag of poop. Press the reset button on both players, the writing was on the wall for both to be ran out of town, especially the real whiner James Neal. Good luck with him keeping up with any player in your top 6, he couldnt skate with concrete feet Mony. At least Looch will embrace his role as a bottom 6 forward out to crush guys.

Easy to make statements like that when you dont know the story.

My nephew volunteered at the Flames celebrity golf tourney last September. When he saw Neal he asked, are you going to score 30 goals with Johnny? Neal just said 40, with a big smile. His expectations were he was going to play RW on the top line & Im sure Tre told him that to get him sign as well. But it didnt take long for Lindholm to bump him down to the 2nd line with Tkachuk & Backlund. Frolik got sent to the 4th line, which generated a sh!t show from Frolik's agent.
As the year progressed & Neal did nothing he was obviously frustrated & capped off at him being frustrated & his relationship with Peter's to go toxic. He had to go.

So the joker GM got rid of a "must move" player/contract without having to add assets but actually gained $500K in cap space & addressed a huge need we have been whining about missing for a few years. We'll worry about the expansion draft in two years. But our expectations for Lucic will be very achievable by Lucic & I can guarantee you there would be no way Neal would be coming anywhere close to meeting his expectation in a Flames uniform. We did not win the Western Conference last year because of anything Neal did, we won it despite what Neal did last year.
- Kevin R

Well said my friend, all valid points and I could see Neal saying something like that. My buddy works at cowboys casino and said in the off-season last year Neal and Johnny were trying to come into the casino to do some gambling and I guess Johnny didnt have his ID on him, and the security guard wasnt going to let him in, and legitimately didnt know who Johnny was (This guy is obviously not a hockey fan, seems asinine he still wouldnt know who Johhny was, but never the less) and apparently James Neal was in his face, saying the doucheiest poop ever like "Do you know how much this guy makes? He makes more in a year than you will in your lifetime. You fckin idiot." Hes obviously a huge douche canoe and it probably became more of a problem when he wasnt getting his way on the ice.

We did not win the Western Conference last year because of anything Neal did, we won it despite what Neal did last year.
- Kevin R

Ahhh, Blues won the Western Conference. They got the banner and trophy to prove it.

As for Looch... have at it. We all know Neal's conditioning going into last season was not there after playing until June the year before and signing a comfy contract. We also know his training this off season is with Roberts and he is motivated. A rejuvenated Neal might have been what the Flames needed to go the next level in 2019-20. Tough guys are a dime a dozen... Except Lucic is millions

Ahhh, Blues won the Western Conference. They got the banner and trophy to prove it.

As for Looch... have at it. We all know Neal's conditioning going into last season was not there after playing until June the year before and signing a comfy contract. We also know his training this off season is with Roberts and he is motivated. A rejuvenated Neal might have been what the Flames needed to go the next level in 2019-20. Tough guys are a dime a dozen... Except Lucic is millions
- Elijah888

You are pretty original. Sorry I didnt draw a picture for you but Flames won the "Regular Season/82 games" Western Conference.
Roberts can teach him to become fitter but he cant make him faster. I went to the games & watched Neal float around. Good luck with that. Hopefully he gets that McDavid bump like Chiasson did & we get our 3rd round pick as well.

Neal to get us over the next level lol...put the pipe down.

Easy to make statements like that when you dont know the story.

My nephew volunteered at the Flames celebrity golf tourney last September. When he saw Neal he asked, are you going to score 30 goals with Johnny? Neal just said 40, with a big smile. His expectations were he was going to play RW on the top line & Im sure Tre told him that to get him sign as well. But it didnt take long for Lindholm to bump him down to the 2nd line with Tkachuk & Backlund. Frolik got sent to the 4th line, which generated a sh!t show from Frolik's agent.
As the year progressed & Neal did nothing he was obviously frustrated & capped off at him being frustrated & his relationship with Peter's to go toxic. He had to go.

So the joker GM got rid of a "must move" player/contract without having to add assets but actually gained $500K in cap space & addressed a huge need we have been whining about missing for a few years. We'll worry about the expansion draft in two years. But our expectations for Lucic will be very achievable by Lucic & I can guarantee you there would be no way Neal would be coming anywhere close to meeting his expectation in a Flames uniform. We did not win the Western Conference last year because of anything Neal did, we won it despite what Neal did last year.
- Kevin R

I didn't realize HOW disfunctional the flames truly were...seems to make sense now why Reaves said no, stone said no, kadri said no,Smith said no and Neal feels like he hit the jackpot to go to edmonton...a coach who makes situations personal with players and buries talent with a reputation like Neal of toughness and scoring every year but in Calgary down the line...explains why the hurricanes took of when Peters left...I guess its possible Neal just all of a sudden wanted to ruin his career and not care in Calgary where everywhere else he was a perfect teammate...or more likely something in the water bottles in Calgary...

You are pretty original. Sorry I didnt draw a picture for you but Flames won the "Regular Season/82 games" Western Conference.
Roberts can teach him to become fitter but he cant make him faster. I went to the games & watched Neal float around. Good luck with that. Hopefully he gets that McDavid bump like Chiasson did & we get our 3rd round pick as well.

Neal to get us over the next level lol...put the pipe down.
- Kevin R

Some teams fans for instance see that the blues actually won the west cause well they went to the cup and won the cup...reg season stats are meaningless unless you are up for a new contract...hang that Pacific/ Western reg season bestest team banner with pride...it's the mark for success for the flames organization while others see it as the ultimate choke job thanks to kadri's avs...

Well said my friend, all valid points and I could see Neal saying something like that. My buddy works at cowboys casino and said in the off-season last year Neal and Johnny were trying to come into the casino to do some gambling and I guess Johnny didnt have his ID on him, and the security guard wasnt going to let him in, and legitimately didnt know who Johnny was (This guy is obviously not a hockey fan, seems asinine he still wouldnt know who Johhny was, but never the less) and apparently James Neal was in his face, saying the doucheiest poop ever like "Do you know how much this guy makes? He makes more in a year than you will in your lifetime. You fckin idiot." Hes obviously a huge douche canoe and it probably became more of a problem when he wasnt getting his way on the ice.
- Emcee27

Sounds like a friend/teammate sticking up for his fellow teammate on and off the ice...you yourself admit it's foolish and ridiculous the guy didn't know who Johnny was...so words were exchanged and Neal stepped up to defend...I'll take that natural instinct anyday on my oilers team...

Sounds like a friend/teammate sticking up for his fellow teammate on and off the ice...you yourself admit it's foolish and ridiculous the guy didn't know who Johnny was...so words were exchanged and Neal stepped up to defend...I'll take that natural instinct anyday on my oilers team...
- oil90

Give me one instance where he stuck up for Johnny on the ice last year, and if you equate Neal being a total dyck to that security guard, who was just doing his job, as sticking up for his teammate off the ice, than you’re just as big a douche as Neal.

Seeing your comments all over this site just solidifies you are the biggest clown on here, so why don’t you do yourself a favour and go back to your job at Once upon a child and leave the hockey comments and opinions on here to people who actually know what they are talking about.

I didn't realize HOW disfunctional the flames truly were...seems to make sense now why Reaves said no, stone said no, kadri said no,Smith said no and Neal feels like he hit the jackpot to go to edmonton...a coach who makes situations personal with players and buries talent with a reputation like Neal of toughness and scoring every year but in Calgary down the line...explains why the hurricanes took of when Peters left...I guess its possible Neal just all of a sudden wanted to ruin his career and not care in Calgary where everywhere else he was a perfect teammate...or more likely something in the water bottles in Calgary...
- oil90

Are we needing math lessons again son??? you know, wins, losses, goals differential?
Now scoot little boy.

Brad treliving was indulging in some Canadian cannabis, and I joined him and we pulled the trigger on the deal. Hunk was there too