Brad you did what?

My wife almost had a heart attack on July 23 around ten pm. I might have gotten a little excited about a specific trade. I was told that Tkachuk was signed and delivered to the Blues. You can imagine my astonishment when the trade went down. 

While everyone worries about the status of Huberdeau and Weegar, even if they don't sign, the Flames scored big time at the deadline. Don't worry; the Flames will not be left holding the bag; they will unload both players at the deadline if they don't have them inked to a contract extension.  (Update: Huberdeau signs a $10.5 mm 8-year extension August 4.)

Now, what do we know about Cole Schwindt? We know he is excellent on the draw. He works hard in the corners and will not be cheated or outworked with the puck. He is also hard to take off the puck. 

Schwindt has been improving his shot each year. He is becoming a more and more solid third-line centre. He can also play wing. Most people consider him a B+ prospect. Cole is tenacious when covering his assignments and will stick to opponents like glue.

The Flames signed Mangiapane and Kylington to avoid arbitration. This way, the Flames can move on with these two upcoming stars. I love it when teams can avoid the arbitration hearings, erasing the resentment of the players.

As for the contracts, I like them. Kylington is developing into an all-around defenceman. He might be a steal at this price if he doesn't get traded before the camp starts. 

The Mangiapane signing was crucial. He will be motivated to prove his naysayers out of Calgary they're wrong. The Flames are thin on the forwards, and he could not lose the 35-goal scorer after the Gaudreau fiasco; Eat Bread brings a certain tang to his game, but he does not get the respect he deserves. 

The Flames have 10 defencemen and one of the league's best defensive cores. The addition of Weegar puts Kylington or Hanifin as excellent trade bait to bringing in another top-six forward. Filling the void left by Tkachuk will be hard. No single player can replace Tkachuk, but they can find another 20-goal scorer to help fill the void. The offensive side of the game is going to be accomplished by committee. Everyone will have to pick up their game after the loss of Tkachuk.

Randy