Calgary Flames Increase Offensive Depth With Roster Changes

A couple of roster moves were made by the Calgary Flames on Jan. 9.

First, tough guy Brian McGrattan was waived, moving him to the team’s AHL affiliate, the Adirondack Flames. Then, Adirondack forward Corban Knight was traded to the Florida Panthers in exchange for centerman Drew Shore. Both moves place an emphasis on offensive production, and create the potential for Calgary to have more depth up front. Overall, general manager Brad Treliving did well today.

Waiving Mcgrattan does decrease the amount of grit the Flames have in their lineup, but there are plenty of other players capable of stepping into McGrattan’s role. Players like Brandon Bollig, Deryk Engelland and even Lance Bouma are all tough guys in their own sense, and even though they might not drop the gloves as much as others, they don’t really need to. McGrattan made only eight appearances this season totaling no points and four penalty minutes. Head coach Bob Hartley said the move was made with the intention of finding a place for McGrattan to play, as opposed to watching the games from the pressbox, and was also one of the hardest moves he’s had to make in his professional career.

Acquiring Drew Shore for Corban Knight is a trade that I think the Flames won. Shore was a second-round selection in 2009, while Knight was a fifth-round pick in the same draft. Shore has played a total of 67 NHL games in his career (none this season), and has 20 points. In 35 games this season with the San Antonio Rampage of the AHL, Shore has 30 points, while Knight has 12 in 22 games with Adirondack. Shore has potential to be a third line centerman, and there is even talks of him moving to the wing if need be. The current third line center, Markus Granlund, is clicking at a poor 35 percent in the face-off circle going into the Jan. 9 game against the Panthers, so Shore could make a case for himself with by winning the draws.

Shore will report to Adirondack for now, and if he plays one more NHL game, he must clear waivers if he ever gets sent down again, so Treliving has to think about what he is going to do.  For now, it appears as if the Flames want an increase in offense, and sending McGrattan down along with acquiring Shore are both moves which help that cause.

Shaun Lavery is a Calgary Flames writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter, or add him to your network on Google.