Insider: Some In Flames Organization "Want A Full Tear-Down"

There's an interesting dynamic happening in the Calgary Flames front office at the moment, as they try to decide how to add to this team, maybe "retool" on the fly and keep the team relevant.

But according to NHL Insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period and NHL Network, speaking this weekend on the Hello Hockey podcast, he noted that everything is on the table in Cow Town, even potentially a complete teardown:

There are some people in the Flames organization that just want to tear it down and do a proper rebuild, and there are others that understand that's probably the right way to go.

But Pagnotta says he doesn't believe that's the direction they'll take, despite all names being available:

They'd like to get some young NHL caliber players or guys that are just about to make that jump. So if they do go a rebuild route, I get the sense that it's more along the lines of an 'escalated' rebuild where it's not just first round picks and kids that were just drafted... My assumption, based on other teams I'm talking to out there is that they'd be looking for guys just about to make the jump to The Show.
So whether [they get offers on] Naz(em Kadri), or (MacKenzie) Weegar, or (Jonathan) Huberdeau or (Mikael) Backlund or whoever, they're willing to listen.

Pagnotta goes on to surmise that based on some of the moves they've made already this summer, they're on "that escalated rebuild path."

The main moves the Flames have made thus far include trading starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom to the New Jersey Devils for 24-year-old d-man Kevin Bahl and a 2025 1st-round pick, moving out Andrew Mangiapane and his $5.8M cap hit for a 2025 2nd-round pick, bringing in 29-year-old veteran Anthony Mantha on a one-year deal and signing defenseman Jake Bean to a two-year deal.