The Calgary Flames will look to keep a quartet of pending restricted free agents, and, as Randy Sportak of the Calgary Sun reports, the paper work had to be filed by Tuesday.
Here is a snippet of what Sportak wrote on Monday. Read the full version here.The first order of business is the offer sheets to the RFA class which consists of centre Mikael Backlund and defencemen T.J. Brodie, Chris Butler and Mark Cundari from the NHL roster. (That said, all of that paperwork is likely already filed.)
All four of those players are seen as key parts going forward for the rebuilding club. In fact, all four will be expected to take a bigger role with the Flames next season.
Backlund and Brodie are two players the Flames would be smart to bring back, especially at this stage in the franchise.
Both are original draft picks of the Flames, having worked their way up through the American Hockey League ranks with the Abbotsford Heat, and are still in the early stages of their NHL careers.
Last season, Backlund, a 24-year-old center, contributed 16 points in 32 regular season games for Calgary. Brodie, a 23-year-old smooth-skating defenseman with huge offensive upside, had 14 points in 47 games.
The Flames had been busy in the days leading up to the NHL Draft.
Last week, the Flames picked up right winger David Jones and defenseman Shane O’Brien from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Alex Tanguay and defenceman Cory Sarich.
It has also become evident that general manager Jay Feaster is trying desperately to trade forward Mike Cammalleri.