Nazem Kadri's Trade Market Stagnant for 2 Reasons

Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri gets set to take a face off

Nazem Kadri was one of the buzziest centers on the rumor mill for the first half of the season, despite the fact that neither he nor the Calgary Flames were interested in a trade.

More recently, we learned that Kadri actually would be open to a trade, to the right spot. Nevertheless, his trade market seems to have quieted a bit, and according to insider Elliotte Friedman, writing in his 32 Thoughts column for Sportsnet, there are two reasons for that. And they're named Vincent Trocheck and Robert Thomas.

One of the reasons Nazem Kadri’s market slightly slowed is the availability of Trocheck and Robert Thomas. Add teams making sure they don’t miss anything with (Ryan) O’Reilly and it’s a kind of stasis.

Trocheck has become one of the top names on everyone's trade board as the most sought-after New York Ranger, now that the team is in sell-off mode. The intense, competitive two-way center is on everyone's radar, and he's getting most of the oxygen on the center market.

Thomas is another pivot who teams are loading up to make a run at, but the Blues have set a massive price tag on the 26-year-old center, not to mention the fact that he's now recovering from a minor procedure on his leg, and is out of action until late February (then again, so is the entire NHL).

O'Reilly has been on the rumor mill for two seasons running now, but Nashville isn't anxious to deal him, and he'd have to approve of any move.

As for Kadri, he's still a perfect addition for any postseason-bound team, given his championship pedigree and his gritty, intense, playoff-style type of game. The three more years at $7M remaining on his deal will be a challenge for some, but Friedman notes that "the Flames are flexible".

Expect talks to pick up again during and after the break—Trocheck and Thomas's availability notwithstanding.