Jonathan Huberdeau Commits to Calgary Flames Long Term

The Calgary Flames announced late Thursday night they had re-signed newly acquired forward Jonathan Huberdeau to a new eight-year, $84 million contract extension. Huberdeau’s new contract carries a salary cap hit of $10.5 million.

“I’m excited for this new chapter and I am committed to this team. I’ll give everything I have, on and off the ice.”

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HUBY IS HERE TO STAY!

— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) August 5, 2022

In addition, Huberdeau has a full no-movement clause in the first six years. While in years seven and eight he has a 12-team trade list as part of his no-movement clause. The full contract sees Huberdeau getting $61.5 million of $84 million in signing bonus money.

Jonathan Huberdeau Feels the Love from Calgary

There was a shock for Huberdeau initially when he got traded from Florida to Calgary as part of the Matthew Tkachuk deal. There were a lot of mixed emotions going through Huberdeau’s mind. Considering he and the Panthers were talking about a contract extension. But this is a business and the Panthers were moving in a different direction. And so was Huberdeau in his career, as he embraced the challenge of coming to Calgary.

When Jonathan Huberdeau met with the media after being traded, there was optimism around the possibility of him staying with the Calgary Flames long-term. When the idea was presented to him, Huberdeau did not shoot it down.

“I’m open to staying in Calgary for a long time…I leave it to the GM and my agent, and they already started talking about it. We’ll see what’s going to happen”  Huberdeau told reporters. 

That was back on July 25th. Here on Thursday, August 4th, (now August 5th the day of this article) the deal Huberdeau talked about has come to fruition.

“I’m thrilled to be part of the Calgary Flames organization long-term,” Huberdeau said in a press release. “I’m excited for this new chapter and I am committed to this team. I’ll give everything I have, on and off the ice and I can’t wait to play in front of the passionate Flames fans.”

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Huberdeau Only Getting Better

Huberdeau was originally drafted by the Panthers third overall in the 2011 NHL Draft. In those 10 seasons with the Panthers before the trade to Calgary, Huberdeau recorded 613 points (198 goals and 415 assists) in 671 games. Huberdeau saw the postseason four times, the actual playoffs three times. In 26 postseason games, Huberdeau has 21 points (five goals and 16 assists).

Before the trade to Calgary, Huberdeau was coming into his own. Not just as a player on the ice, but as a leader as well. During the 2021-22 season, Huberdeau set career highs with 115 points, 30 goals, and 85 assists. He finished tied for second in league scoring with former Flame Johnny Gaudreau with those 115 points. In addition, Huberdeau was first in assists besting Connor McDavid by six.

With a season like many thought, Huberdeau was going to be nominated for the Hart Trophy as league MVP. Unfortunately he ended up finishing fifth in the voting. It was the fourth straight season Huberdeau averaged above a point per game.

Flames Changing The Narrative

There was a lot of talk after Tkachuk and Gaudreau left that no player wanted to commit to Calgary long-term. Well that all changed with Huberdeau committing to the Flames for eight more seasons. Which makes general manager Brad Treliving a very happy and smart man.

“We are excited to extend Jonathan long-term in Calgary,” said Flames general manager Brad Treliving. “He is an elite player, one of the premier forwards in the league who makes players around him better. We look forward to welcoming Jonathan to our community and his contributions to our team’s success.”

Huberdeau replaces the production that was lost from Gaudreau leaving and bolsters a very good top line for the Flames. In addition, as part of the trade Treliving also acquired MacKenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt, and a first-round pick.

With Huberdeau only getting better and not under the radar anymore in Florida, he will finally get the attention he deserves. Not to mention, the Flames were able to keep a top player in his prime before hitting unrestricted free agency again. That was a worry of Flames fans as Huberdeau had a year left on his deal when he was traded. Fans were worried they were going to be put through the same thing during the summer of 2023.

However, their minds can be put at ease as Jonathan Huberdeau commits long-term to the Calgary Flames, showing Calgary can keep top talent. It also helps that he is a Canadian player playing in a Canadian market.

Not only is Trevling excited, but Huberdeau is excited for the season to start in September and play in front of a passionate fan base like Calgary.

“Like I said, playing in front of (Flames fans), it’s going to passionate and it’s going to be a fun time and I’m just excited to get there in September and get things going.”