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Flames’ Cammalleri won’t engage in ‘soap opera’ trade talks

cammalleriontheflames

James

A pending UFA on what figures to be a bad team, Mike Cammalleri knows he could be traded out of Calgary at some point this season.

He’s just not going to spend the season talking about it.

“What good does it do for me to speculate on (a potential trade?),” Cammalleri told the Calgary Sun. “I talked to my agent, and he suggested maybe it’s best to just wrap it up and say, ‘I said all I have to say, and there’s nothing to talk about.’

“Maybe this will be my last interview about it.”

Cammalleri, 31, led the Flames in scoring last year and is one of the club’s alternate captains. He’s already projecting to be a sought-after commodity at the trade deadline, especially since his five-year, $30 million deal expires at season’s end.

He’s confident he won’t be held back by his hand injury -- even though reports earlier this week suggested it was severe -- and said while he appreciates and understands the process of trade speculation, he’s just not willing to take part in it.

“I understand that it’s the media’s job to think about it and talk about it, and as a fan, I think about it and consume information on other people who are going through that journey, because it’s fun,” he explained. “It’s the soap opera to sports — and that’s great.

“So go ahead, speculate away, and pick scenarios. But at the end of the day, things change so quickly in this game so you can just play hockey the best you can and be the best teammate you can.”