3 things Flames fans should know about the Stone trade
Calgary Flames general manager Brad Treliving wasn't about to wait until the March 1 trade deadline to start swinging deals, and one week before the scheduled cutoff, Treliving got his man.
The Flames added defenseman Michael Stone from the Arizona Coyotes on Monday, giving up a 2017 third-round pick and a 2018 conditional fifth-round pick to snag the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent.
There's plenty right with the deal from the Flames' perspective. That in mind, here are three things to know about the acquisition:
Low risk, high reward
Treliving was able to buy low on the rearguard after a down year in Arizona but Stone - coming off knee surgery - has shown potential to perform well above his recent level.
He was a highly offensive blue-liner during his junior days, posting two 60-point seasons and a 21-goal campaign in his final WHL season. Stone was also a dominant playoff performer before his NHL tenure, scoring at nearly a point per game pace as he helped capture a WHL championship back in 2010.
The Flames manager is well aware of all of this, as Treliving was an assistant GM with the Coyotes when they drafted Stone in 2008, while current Flames scout Don Maloney served as GM at the time.
Stone's attributes at the NHL level remain impressive in their own right - notable size (6-foot-3, 210 pounds), a right-hand shot, and top-four skill at both ends of the rink.
Plus there's very little risk involved.
Besides the fact that Calgary lost only a pair of mid-round picks, Arizona is also paying half of Stone's $4-million salary - making him the cheapest of the team's six starting defenders. As well, Stone won't affect the team's expansion draft plans as he's signed only until this summer.
No place like dome
That exceptional junior hockey tenure? It came in Calgary Hitmen colors.
Stone's best career stretch took place at the Scotiabank Saddledome, the same building he'll now call home as an NHLer, where he played four seasons and served as the Hitmen's captain.
That sense of familiarity surely can't hurt.
He took a step back from his offense-first approach during his time with the Coyotes organization, but last year the 26-year-old found a healthy balance between jumping into the play and hanging back, posting a career-best 36 points in 75 games for Arizona.
In Calgary, he'll have the green light to showcase his scoring skill far more often, as the Flames' offensive blue line has been one of their key strengths over the past few seasons. Luckily he has plenty of experience putting pucks in the net at the 'dome, so it should come naturally.
Brodie's redemption
Without a doubt, the most significant aspect of Stone's addition is his potential impact on T.J. Brodie.
Brodie nearly took over the mantle of Calgary's No.1 rearguard last season, posting a career-high 45 points and leading the team in ice-time - a fitting step in what was becoming a dominant ascent.
But 2016-17 has put him right back into the middle of the pack.
The 26-year-old has seen his points per game pace drop from 0.64 last season down to 0.39 this year, and has been on the receiving end of far more goals against in 2016-17.
The central factor in Brodie's apparent off-year? He's lost his first-pair role alongside captain Mark Giordano to young Dougie Hamilton, leaving Brodie shackled with Deryk Engelland or Dennis Wideman for the majority of the season.
In Stone, Brodie will find a much more stable defensive partner - one with a strong enough two-way game to either hang back and let Brodie fly or jump into the play himself, depending on the circumstance.
Stone isn't moving the needle all that much in regards to the Flames' playoff chances, but if he can help Brodie get his game back, he'll give Calgary all they need to take the next step.