With trade deadline soon, Greer injury a reminder of risks for Flames

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This was a sport A.J. Greer had circled on his calendar.

However a merciless accident ensured he received’t be anyplace close to the ice when the Calgary Flames tackle the Boston Bruins on Tuesday evening.

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By itself, perhaps that’s unremarkable. Hockey gamers do get damage, and the fractured foot Greer suffered in opposition to the Columbus Blue Jackets final month is one thing he’ll come again from.

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He simply received’t get to play in opposition to the Bruins, the crew that put him on waivers on the finish of coaching camp.

And in case you’re Craig Conroy, you’re all too conscious that Greer’s anticipated prolonged restoration means he received’t be a commerce chip on the looming March 8 deadline. There was hypothesis that the Flames would possibly be capable of flip him for an asset, too, and his harm serves as a reminder of what’s in danger each time the Flames step on the ice.

Conroy’s completed effectively with the returns he acquired for Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov and Tyler Toffoli, all of whom had been set to grow to be unrestricted free brokers this summer season. When it grew to become clear that re-signing them was unlikely, Conroy moved them. He didn’t rush into it, however he took the deal he favored when it was provided.

Now, all eyes are on Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin, the 2 Flames defencemen who may stroll without spending a dime this summer season.

The Flames don’t need to lose them for nothing. Usually, the returns get higher the nearer you get to the deadline.

However then you definitely have a look at a man like Greer and also you bear in mind how shortly that may all change. One little bit of unhealthy luck going into the boards and a man is sidelined for months. His harm got here on a totally routine play. The Flames are getting Jakob Pelletier again this week after shedding him in pre-season on one other play that occurs dozens of instances in a sport.

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And within the instances of Hanifin and Tanev, one thing comparable would possibly imply any commerce curiosity dries up in a cut up second.

Weighing that threat has acquired to be weighing closely on Conroy’s thoughts. Wait a pair weeks and also you would possibly obtain dwelling run commerce provides. However, a little bit of unhealthy harm luck and also you would possibly get nothing.

Greer, after all, is in a considerably totally different scenario. His case is illustrative of how shortly issues can change within the NHL, however that’s concerning the extent of the way in which it’s associated to the futures of Hanifin and Tanev.

However Tuesday evening in opposition to the Bruins would have been a giant one for the 27-year-old. He was a fan favorite in Boston, the place they appreciated his hard-nosed model of play. He was signed to a two-year deal in the summertime of 2022 and started constructing his life within the metropolis, solely to be positioned on waivers in the direction of the tip of coaching camp.

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It damage and Greer’s by no means hidden from that. Earlier than he acquired injured, he was open about what Tuesday evening meant to him.

“Yeah, positively, you might name it a ‘revenge sport.’ It’s by no means enjoyable once you get lower or somebody takes your job away,” Greer stated a number of weeks in the past earlier than he acquired damage. “I received’t disguise the truth that I used to be actually unhappy about it, horrible scenario being in it.

“Like I’ve stated time and time once more, I don’t want my worst enemy going by the waiver course of, simply due to being in a scenario the place I performed within the NHL after I was younger, a pair video games right here and there and I used to be sort of shunned from the league after that. Individuals didn’t actually imagine that I had the power to play right here ever once more.”

In Calgary, although, Greer appears to have discovered a brand new dwelling. He’s slot in properly on the fourth line, offering physicality and vitality on a line that has typically struggled to get going.

He’s pleased with the Flames and would love to remain past the tip of this season, which isn’t at all times one thing Calgarians have heard a tonne of in recent times.

“I’m so grateful for the Flames group that they had been A+ in serving to me do the whole lot that I may have completed however they took the stress off my again,” Greer stated. “In two weeks I used to be settled and now we love our life in Calgary and hopefully we need to keep, that’s the final word objective.

“I need to keep right here and I need to signal a contract extension and be a beneficial asset to this crew and I need to be a frontrunner on the finish of the day.”

Greer ought to be again by the tip of the season. That’s the hope, anyhow.

He’ll possible return to a crew that appears very totally different from the one he was enjoying with when he acquired damage final month. Lindholm is already gone, and it most likely received’t be lengthy earlier than we see a minimum of one or two others moved on, too.

It’s on Conroy to maximise the returns and to do not forget that there’s at all times a threat of harm each time his crew steps on the ice.

daustin@postmedia.com

X: @DannyAustin_9

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