Calgary Flames top player tells the team he isn't interested in returning and wants to be traded

Earlier this year, Brad Treliving made the decision that he wouldn't return to the Calgary Flames as the General Manager of the team. The Flames made the decision to promote internally from the organization and promoted Craig Conroy. But it appears the departure of Treliving may have long reaching impacts on the team.

After the departure of Darryl Sutter it was reported that multiple players had rescinded their trade requests, but it appears that's not the case for some players. According to Frank Seravalli, at least 2 players have no intention of returning or re-signing with the Flames.



Rumors have already swirled that Noah Hanifin is being shopped by the Flames, but adding Mikael Backlund to that list is rather surprising. It was reported on multiple occasions that Backlund was next in line to be the next Flame's Captain. If Backlund is not willing to re-sign and Hanifin is on his way out, it's difficult to believe the Flames won't be forced into a rebuild.

This might be a difficult sell to the organization, especially after acquiring both Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau and Mackenzie Weegar to long-term contracts last summer. It could be hard to swallow, but it appears the impact of losing Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau could be finally hitting the franchise.

Update: Another player seems intent on not re-signing.