And the only thing that stood out more than Jonathan Huberdeau revealing he’s selling his Smurf-blue Lamborghini was the hair on display in the team’s second row. As a fairly clean-cut Nazem Kadri eyed his wings, the bearded veteran might have wondered if he was in an ’80s metal band, given Cody Eakin’s ginger flow to his left and Sonny’s bird’s nest. Milano on the right. “I don’t know,” Milan smiled, when told he had the best cap in camp. “Eakin has pretty cool hair too.” Aside from Tyler Toffoli occupying the right wing alongside Elias Lindholm and Huberdeau, the pair of PTO wings flanking Kadri was the most notable trio of the day. The ever-versatile Eakin no doubt acts as a spotter for Andrew Mangiapane, who is skating on his own as he recovers from some sort of switch earlier in the summer. He puts Milan in the driver’s seat to fill the obvious void in a front nine that is clearly one player short in the management’s eyes. “I spoke to (coach Daryl Sutter) the day before I got here (Sunday) and they seemed happy for me to come, telling me there’s a spot open and I just have to take it,” the 26-year-old said. Old man who converted “The Dishigan” last year with Trevor Zegras, en route to 14 goals and 34 points in 66 games as an Anaheim Duck. “I had a very good season last year. I was definitely hoping for a contract, but it is what it is and I’m definitely excited for this opportunity. If I do my best and play my game, I think I’ll be good.” After a dismal start last year, Milano managed just three goals in his last 27 games, leading to a surprising split with the Ducks.
As difficult as it was for him to accept a PTO offer, he chose Calgary because of the opportunity that saw him playing alongside top players. “I’m with Country, who’s had a hell of a season, and Eakins, who’s also a veteran, so it’s a good spot,” he said. “I think I have a lot to prove. I thought he deserved a contract after last season. So I just have to prove I can do it again.” Insisting he wants to assess those in camp first, GM Brad Treliving didn’t deny he was still open to the possibility of adding another winger if, say, Milano isn’t the answer. “In all honesty, that front nine is still a work in progress for us,” admitted Treliving, speaking largely to the right-back’s position on the second line. “I want to understand what we have here, but you always smell. I don’t think anyone is done with the chump.” “This camp is very important to arrange where everyone fits.” As he joked, “we probably all join our lines on a napkin—it usually takes 10 minutes. You don’t know where the chemistry is going to come from.” Jakob Pelletier might be the world’s pick to break out, but when asked if he expected the AHL star to do anything special, Sutter said, “No.” “I think we have guys that can play on both sides, so we’re lucky with Blake (Coleman), Mangs, Dubs (Dillon Dube), Cody. It’s not ‘who’, it’s more ‘how?’” Sutter won a Stanley Cup with Toffoli and has long praised what a natural scorer he is, making him the favorite to use his right-handed shot on the front line with an ace like Huberdeau. When asked about the different skill sets between him and the man he’s replacing, Matthew Tkachuk, Sutter was blunt. “A guy won Stanley Cups and played a big part in big playoff runs,” he said. Mikael Backlund, Dube and Coleman formed a familiar third line. At the back, the plan seems clear: MacKenzie Weegar will play on his off side with Chris Tanev as the club’s closing pairing. “Weegar can play big minutes,” Sutter said of the rookie defenseman, who is close to signing an extension with the team. “Tanny can take it, his shoulder can take it… whatever you throw at it.” Last year, Tanev helped turn Oliver Kylington into a top-four defenseman. Kylington is not currently in the camp mix as he deals with a personal issue, leaving Nikita Zadorov and Nicolas Meloche as the third pairing. Greeted by media crowds he had never seen in Florida, Huberdeau said he is already making other adjustments to his new surroundings, including selling his Tesla and Lamborghini. “It would be a little cold,” he said of the convertible, one of “three or four” vehicles owned by the man who signed an $85 million extension with the Flames this summer. “I sell everything. Starting over.” “I already have a pickup truck. That’s off the list. Then I’m not sure. If you put a convertible with snow tires, maybe that will work.” Adjustments on the fly — the camp story for these flames. LINES: Huberdeau-Lindholm-Toffoli Eakin-Kadri-Milano Coleman-Backlund-Dube Lucic-Rooney-Ritchie Pospisil-Ruzicka-Lewis Weegar-Tanev Hanifin-Andersson Zadorov-Meloche Specimen – Stone *Mangiapane out due to injury and Kylington out for personal reasons.