On Tuesday, PHT discussed a few lingering “bargain bin” free agents. The bargain bin looks a bit like the bread aisle before a storm after teams got done with it by Wednesday.
The Calgary Flames were handing out the most tryouts (or PTOs), as they invited these four players: Tobias Rieder, Devante Smith-Pelly, Zac Rinaldo, and Alexandre Grenier.
Reider and Smith-Pelly are the most intriguing names, as while Rieder served as a surprising scapegoat for the Oilers’ failure after what was undoubtedly a brutal season for the winger, he does bring the sort of speed and skating that can be valuable for Calgary. Smith-Pelly, meanwhile, is a rugged player who scored some big goals during the Washington Capitals’ 2018 Stanley Cup run, although he struggled to make it into the lineup during much of 2018-19.
Last season for #Flames new PTO invitees:
— Pat Steinberg (@Fan960Steinberg) September 4, 2019
Smith-Pelly (WSH): 54 GP, 4G, 4A, 8 PTS
Rieder (EDM): 67 GP, 0G, 11A, 11 PTS
Rinaldo (NSH): 23 GP, 1G, 2A, 3 PTS
Grenier (Laval): 68 GP, 11G, 16A, 27 PTS
It doesn’t hurt to take a look, and the Flames are doing just that, even if it’s tough to imagine many spots being open on the team that finished atop the West regular season standings -- although they’re likely not lingering on that accomplishment after the Avalanche launched them out of Round 1 in a staggering fashion.
Other teams made some mildly interesting PTO invites, too, in the last day or two:
- The Dallas Stars might find some cheap defensive forward help with Stefan Noesen.
Stars giving Noesen a PTO is clever; he provides a lot of defence. pic.twitter.com/xGwv8RqtHy
— Micah Blake McCurdy (@IneffectiveMath) September 3, 2019
- Dale Tallon loves his former Blackhawks, so the Panthers are giving it a whirl once again with Troy Brouwer on a PTO. Brouwer played in 75 games for Florida last season.
- The Minnesota Wild are taking a look at Drew Stafford, who’s fallen on tough times lately.
Sometimes PTOs are just filler for split squad exhibitions and training camp competition, but every now and then, a team stumbles upon a gem. We’ll see if any of the names above, or maybe someone else, can be diamonds in the rough.
MORE:
• ProHockeyTalk’s 2019 NHL free agency tracker
• Your 2019-20 NHL on NBC TV schedule
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.