Okay, so hear me out. Since the playoffs, the organization has repeatedly said that they will (finally) give Sam Bennett a shot at playing centre (see https://www.sportsnet.ca/960/big-show/united-community-day-dave-dickenson-geoff-ward/, as well as Conroy's interview back in August, among others). The organization has also said that they think Elias Lindholm is best suited at centre (https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/qa-flames-ward-moving-lindholm-top-centre-spot-markstrom-deal/). I can't see Backlund going anywhere, and I think Ryan is too valuable as a right-handed, faceoff-winning penalty killer to trade away. So that leaves five centres (Lindholm, Bennett, Backlund and Ryan and Monahan) for four spots.
If we accept this premise, I think Monahan is the one who is on the outside looking in: Lindholm becomes 1C, Backlund remains the defensive specialist with some scoring ability, Bennett becomes the gritty, tough-to-play-against centre, and Ryan is the 4th liner. Where does Monahan play? Who does he displace in the lineup? Some might say he replaces keeps 1C, everyone slides down the lineup and Ryan moves to the wing. But with all the wing depth the Flames signed this offseason, I just don't see it.
In this case, I think the Flames take advantage of Monahan's relatively high trade value and move him for someone who can replace Lindholm's minutes on the top RW. This allows the Flames to play the players they want at centre, it gives the team some better balance, it makes the team harder to match up against, and perhaps most interestingly, it allows the team to play Gaudreau with better drivers of play. I actually really like this lineup.
Will something like this actually happen? I don't know. But there are only so many roster spots for so many people. If the organization is serious about playing both Bennett and Lindholm at centre, something has gotta budge.
We can discuss the side pieces that would need to be included to actually take to make this trade happen. We could also discuss a Monahan for Laine swap instead. We could potentially even rediscuss a Monahan for Dumba+ deal instead.
The value is fair, but the fit isn't. Flyers have plenty of centers already. Also, Calagary is worse after this trade. If you're trading Monahan, get a top 4 D.
McDavid, Connor
$250,000)
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