Looking at whether the Calgary Flames could pursue Kirill Kaprizov

It has been a pretty uneventful offseason when it comes to news around the NHL. Many said it would be a summer for the ages with lots of signings, trades, and offer sheets, but for the most part, it has been crickets.

However, in the last few weeks, things have started to heat up. The Calgary Flames have made some moves in their own right signing Connor Zary and Dustin Wolf to extensions, Connor McDavid has not signed an extension with the Edmonton Oilers and has spoke very public about not rushing to sign one, and on Wednesday it was reported that Minnesota Wild superstar rejected an eight-year, $128M extension with the Wild, throwing the hockey world into a frenzy.

Now, everyone is going to be talking about where Kaprizov will sign, or whether he will even get traded. It may even overtake all the headlines regarding McDavid and his deal.

I am going to try to make a case today for the Flames to pursue Kaprizov if he becomes available, even if it is a major long shot for them to land him.

Kaprizov’s situation in Minnesota

Kaprizov was drafted 10 years ago by the Wild in the fifth round of the loaded 2015 draft. He spent the next five years dominating the KHL before finally coming over to the NHL ahead of the 2020–21 season. He made an immediate impact for the Wild, easily becoming their best player and winning the Calder Trophy that season. Kaprizov would then sign a five-year extension with the Wild. He has dominated ever since, becoming one of the best players in hockey and the engine that carries the Wild night in and night out.

Kaprizov’s contract will come to an end at the end of this season, and the Wild are very clearly desperate to sign arguably the best player who has ever played for their franchise. He has done everything for them, when his is in the lineup they win, a lot, and when he isn’t, well they have seemed to struggle. If Kaprizov didn’t miss as much time as he did this past season, I believe he would have won the Hart Trophy; he was that good, and the Wild know it.

That is why they offered him the largest contract in NHL history; he means that much to the organization, and without him, they would probably become a lottery team, even with some of the pieces they have. So the question becomes, why would he reject the offer? There are a couple different reasons, maybe he doesn’t want to be in Minnesota long term, maybe he doesn’t see them contending for a championship, or maybe he is using all of his leverage to get even more money from the Wild.

Kaprizov is one of the league’s best players, and he knows it. He holds all the cards, so he can really do whatever he wants to put himself in the best position moving forward after this upcoming season.

How could the Flames land Kaprizov?

Now, this is very unlikely to happen. I would put it at probably less than a 5% chance of actually happening, but for the sake of it, would it even be plausible for the Flames to have a chance to bring in Kaprizov?

He would sure be that superstar forward they have been missing since losing both Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk back in 2022, and Kaprizov really is a one-man wrecking crew who can put a team on his back and produce like few league-wide with not much help. It may not bring a championship to Calgary, but he would sure put them in a spot where they would at the very least be a playoff team with all the pieces they already have.

If the Wild become certain that Kaprizov is not going to sign and they would prefer not to lose him for nothing when free agency next year rolls around, he could become available for trade. The Flames have assets; they have drafted very well in the last few years and have accumulated a lot of players that could be impact guys at the NHL level. They have all of their picks for the upcoming few drafts and then some, and they have the cap space to be able to afford Kaprizov’s next deal.

There are two main issues with going the trade route: the first being whether the Wild would want what the Flames have to offer. The Flames have some nice pieces, but none of them project to become what Kaprizov is, and would the Wild be interested in that? I’m not too sure. The package would probably have to start with Cole Reschny, Cullen Potter, Matvei Gridin, or even Zayne Parekh—who I know the Flames would not want to move—and loads of picks on top. Is it feasible for either side? Again, I am not too sure. It has been a while since a player of this calibre has been traded, so even to start putting together mock trades would be tough.

Secondly, would Kaprizov even want to sign in Calgary? Everything would be dependent on this. The Flames and the Wild could come to an agreement on a trade of some sort, but it would not make sense unless the Flames were able to sign him. If I had to guess, he probably would prefer to go elsewhere, considering he won’t sign with the Wild, but hey, maybe the Flames would be able to make a great pitch to get him to sign, but I definitely wouldn’t be counting on it.

If Kaprizov becomes available, the Flames have to give it a shot

It is not every day that a superstar player becomes available in the NHL. It is so rare; the Jack Eichel saga was now four years ago, Matthew Tkachuk was traded three years ago, and obviously Mikko Rantanen was moved this past season.

However, if a player like this suddenly hits the market, you at the very least need to get in there and see if a deal can happen. The only way to find true superstars in the NHL these days is usually through the draft, and we all know how hard it is to find true game-breaking, superstar-level talent, so if Kaprizov does make it onto the market, the Flames, at the very least, have to give it a shot. That is a player that can change a franchise for the better, and do the Flames ever need that player right now.