3 players the Calgary Flames need to trade after embarrassing postseason exit

3. Sam Bennett

Sam Bennett isn’t a member of the Calgary Flames core, but he is a common denominator for their mediocrity in recent years. He was drafted by the Flames in 2013 in the first round and has never really lived up to his hype. Bennett is a decent third-line forward, mind you, but when you draft someone with the fourth overall pick, you’re hoping for more than just an OK player.

Bennett has a $2.55 million cap hit for next season, which is reasonable for the role he plays. The Flames need every ounce of cap space they can get, though, so keeping Bennett is a luxury they likely can’t afford.

A player for player trade could make sense for the Flames. Calgary currently only has three healthy defensemen signed for the 2020-21 season – Mark Giordano, Rasmus Andersson, and Noah Hanifin. You can pencil in Juuso Valimaki for a roster spot, though it’s worth mentioning he’s coming off an ACL injury. They’ll likely re-sign Oliver Kylington as well. But the Flames could use more defensemen.

Swapping Bennett for a third-pairing defenseman is something Calgary could do. Someone like Nick Jensen of the Washington Capitals could make sense, though I’m not sure the Capitals would want Bennett. If the Flames could get a solid defenseman for Bennett, I think that’s a win for them at this point.