When the Calgary Flames acquired for the first time Andrey Kuzmenko Midway through the 2023-24 season, he was expected to be flipped between then and the 2025 trade deadline. The theory made perfect sense, as the Flames are in the early stages of a rebuild and would be able to move it to another room that could help improve their future.

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What apparently no one expected, however, was that Kuzmenko would fit in as seamlessly as he did. The 28-year-old ended up scoring 14 goals and 25 points in 29 games with the Flames last season, while quickly becoming a fan favorite. All of a sudden, a trade didn’t seem as likely.

Shortly before the start of the 2024-25 season, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reported that the Flames were interested in extending Kuzmenko. This wasn’t a total surprise given his integration, but some questioned whether it made sense given his age and the current state of the team. Now, considering how he has started the 2024-25 season, it has become clear that a trade is the right move to make.

Kuzmenko is extremely inconsistent

After several successful seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), Kuzmenko opted to sign a one-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks ahead of 2022-23. It was an immediate success, as he had a phenomenal rookie season, scoring 39 goals and 74 points in 81 games. The Canucks were pleased with his play and quickly rewarded him with a two-year, $11 million extension.

However, things did not go well in year two for Kuzmenko, as he struggled to adapt under a new head coach in Rick Tocchet and found himself out of the lineup several times. The Canucks finally decided they had seen enough and sent him to the Flames as part of the trade of Elias Lindholm.

As fate would have it, Kuzmenko started producing like he did the previous season immediately after joining the Flames. Many thought his scoring drop was simply due to a poor fit with Tocchet, but based on how he started this season, that may not be the case.

Kuzmenko has really struggled to start the 2024-25 campaign, finding the back of the net just once in 15 games. This isn’t due to a lack of opportunities, as he spent a lot of time in the top six and had some minutes on the power play. It seems that he is rather a very regular player.

The flames better recover an asset

Despite Kuzmenko’s early season struggles, he will still attract interest at the trade deadline. Teams are always looking to improve heading into the playoffs, and adding a forward who has proven he can put up big numbers like Kuzmenko would interest several general managers (GMs).

Even though the Flames are off to a good start this season, it will still be years before they become true Stanley Cup contenders. They are on the right track, however, adding numerous prospects and draft picks since Craig Conroy took over as general manager. It’s important not to rush their plan, and extending Kuzmenko would make it seem like that’s what they’re doing.

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In moving on from Kuzmenko, the Flames could opt to sign a free agent to a short-term deal similar to they did it with Anthony Mantha this past offseason. They could once again rely on this forward to keep them afloat offensively for much of the year, and once again turn him into a playoff contender no later than the trade deadline.

As painful as rebuilds can be, the Flames fan base seems to be on board with the steps Conroy has taken so far. It is evident that most Calgarians have become very frustrated with this organization remaining as mediocre for as long as they have been, leading them to be willing to go through a few difficult years to ensure greater success for the future. Trading Kuzmenko, rather than extending him, will help with that.