Forward Elis Lindholm is in his sixth season with the Calgary Flames, but it’s an open question how much longer he’ll be there. And it’s a question worth monitoring for Ontario sports betting too.
The native of Sweden is one of the best two-way forwards in the Western Conference and was the runnerup in voting for the Selke Trophy, as the league’s best defensive forward, in the 2021-22 season. That was when he scored a career-high 42 goals and was named an All-Star. He has been in the top 10 in Selke voting two other times, including last season, even as his offensive production slipped.
Calgary entered Wednesday with 33 points, three points out of a wild-card spot in the West playoff race. So will the Fames, who have +11000 Stanley Cup odds as of Wednesday morning with DraftKings Ontario Sportsbook, dump assets such as Lindholm? Or will they try to add pieces for a postseason push? We provided our own odds for whether Lindholm will be traded, and what his destination might be. Here are the results.
Elias Lindholm Next Team Odds
Remember, you can’t get these odds at Ontario sportsbook apps; these have been produced exclusively for OntarioBets.com.
Calgary Flames Salary Cap Situation
Lindholm, who turned 29 on Dec. 2, is making $4.85 million this season and is a pending unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. According to Spotrac.com, the Flames have a current salary cap allocation of $82.839 million, less than a million below the cap max of $83.5 million. They have several other players who can be unrestricted free agents after this season, including two who are in a price range similar to Lindholm – defensemen Noah Hanifin ($4.95 million this season) and Chris Tanev ($4.5 million).
But it’s fair to argue that Calgary hasn’t gotten its money’s worth in 2023-24. Again, Calgary is on the edge of the playoff race but the Flames are not in a playoff spot at this point. They have 41.22 decimal odds to win the Western Conference at Pinnacle Ontario Sportsbook, among the seven biggest longshots.
Even after a five-game points streak (three wins, an overtime loss and a shootout loss) from Dec. 12-21, they still have a losing record at 14-15-5 and are nine points behind the Los Angeles Kings for third place, the last automatic playoff qualifying spot, in the Pacific Division.
Elias Lindholm Possible Trade Targets
And Lindholm is on pace for 19 goals, which would be tied for his fewest since he joined the Flames for the 2018-19 season (he arrived in a trade from the Carolina Hurricanes, where he spent his first five NHL seasons). TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported this week that there has been little movement in talks between Lindholm and the team on a possible contract extension.
We rate the Colorado Avalanche as the most likely destination if Lindholm is dealt this season, at +450 odds, or an 18.2% implied probability. The Boston Bruins (14.3% chance, +600 odds) are next, followed by his old team, the Hurricanes (12.5%, +700). The Philadelphia Flyers, Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets are also on our list. However, the best probability is that he is either dealt to another team or stays with the Flames, at +200 odds.
BetMGM Ontario Sportsbook has the Flames at +185 odds to make the playoffs and -250 odds to miss out for the second consecutive season. Stick with OntarioBets.com for more hockey coverage all season.
