Friedman: Blackhawks, Flames "legitimately serious" about Glencross trade

Elliotte Friedman was on Calgary’s Sportsnet 960 on Friday morning.

As part of a larger discussion on Curtis Glencross, and cap implications of a trade today versus right before March 2:

“One of the teams that I believe is interested in Glencross – and he is interested in them – is the Chicago Blackhawks. The thing about Chicago is I’ve heard they also talked to Arizona a bit about Vermette. And I look at Vermette’s cap hit, which is larger than Glencross’s, and I’m like, ‘How on earth are they going to be able to pull that off if they really want to do it?’

“And the answer is that you wait until the absolute last minute. The way the cap works is that every day you’re under the cap, you bank the amount of money that you’re under the cap. And it adds up. So the more you’re under the cap for a longer time, the more bank you have to acquire a player.

“So what the Chicago Blackhawks want to do, if they can, is wait until the last minute – therefore have the most cap space they possibly can to be available – and then go out and get the player that they want to get if they decide to do it.

“I think with a team like Chicago, they will try to wait until the end. Now, you’re playing a game like that because you’re playing a game that A) Calgary doesn’t get an offer it wants beforehand, and B) you’re going to wait at the end and have what Calgary wants to make the deal.

“I’m sure, if Chicago and Calgary are serious about it, and I believe they are legitimately serious about it, then they’ve talked and said, ‘This is what we can offer.’ And the Flames know if that’s acceptable to them or not.

“But what people do in that situation is they will say, ‘Can you wait? Can we do this as late as possible so we have the flexibility to get it done.’

“And they leave it in Calgary’s hands.”

And for the Hawks, they’re in that territory, aren’t they?

“They’re right at the top. They’re like a guy surrounded by water. How much room do you have to breathe? And it’s not a lot for them.”

Source: Sportsnet 960/ Transcript: Nichols on Hockey

Nichols on Hockey

Nichols on Hockey

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