theathleticuk
ST.
PAUL, Minn.
One day after the Minnesota Wild came up empty-handed in free agency, they traded Jake Middleton to the Calgary Flames on Thursday for veteran winger Blake Coleman and veteran defenseman Olli Maatta, according to league sources, speaking under the condition of anonymity to address negotiations that are not public.
Advertisement Middleton is entering the second year of a four-year deal worth $4.35 million per year.
Minnesota is also sending a 2027 third-round pick, a 2028 fourth-round pick and a 2029 second-round pick to Calgary in the trade, the sources said, and the Flames are retaining 50 percent ($2.45 million) of Colemans salary.
Coleman, 34, whose contract goes through 2027 with a $4.9 million cap hit, won back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 2020 and 2021.
He had 20 goals and 35 points in 69 games during the 2025-26 season.
He spent the past five seasons of his career with the Flames, joining the franchise as a free agent ahead of the 2021-22 season after signing a six-year, $29.4 million contract.
The 2021-22 campaign was the only one in which Coleman made the playoffs while on the team.
Coleman scored 99 goals and 199 career points in 392 games with the Flames, the most games hes ever played for one franchise.
Most of those games were alongside defensive center and Flames captain Mikael Backlund, where the two contributed offensively and defensively in a middle-six role.
The Texas native has also played for the Lightning, with whom he won the Cup twice, and the New Jersey Devils.
For the Wild, he can be expected to chip in offense in a middle-six role.
Hes got experience on a Cup-winning shutdown line, playing with Barclay Goodrow and Yanni Gourde on a unit that was a driving force during the Lightning Cup runs in 2020 and 2021.
He is also a strong penalty killer.
Maatta, 31, was a first-round pick in 2012 and has played 804 NHL games over 13 seasons.
The left-shot defenseman had two goals and 14 points in 21 games for the Flames last season after a trade from the Utah Mammoth.
Hes on a three-year, $3.5 million contract that runs through the 2027-28 season.
Middleton, 30, is a mobile, stay-at-home defenseman who established himself as an everyday player after coming to the Wild from the San Jose Sharks in 2022.
He scored 21 goals and 82 points in 322 games with Minnesota but is coming off an extremely tough postseason.
He was on the ice for 13 goals against in the teams series against the Colorado Avalanche.
Advertisement I watch my shifts every game.
I go back and watch them, Middleton said after the season.
Theres obviously times that you make a poor decision and it goes in the net.
I dont think that was the case for the majority of the playoffs, but yeah, it definitely felt like any time a puck went in the net, I was on the ice.
It was a sy feeling.
You look back, its not how do I say it? If I was making mistakes and I wasnt playing my balls off, I would feel a lot worse sitting up here talking to you guys.
But I do think it was just a situation where they just went in, you know? Middletons no-move clause became a modified no-trade clause on Wednesday.
After the deal, the Wild currently hold zero second-round picks in 2027, 2028 and 2029.
The view from Calgary Coleman was a prime trade deadline candidate for the Flames as they stripped their roster of their most prominent parts, namely MacKenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri.
But he remained, finishing the season helping its youth along.
Flames fans will remember him most as one-half of the teams reliable third-line duo with Mikael Backlund.
Both players worked well together at both ends of the ice, working against opposing teams best lines and players while also generating offense as secondary contributors.
Coleman was used primarily as a left-winger, but has some experience playing center.
His experience and veteran leadership he has two Stanley Cup wins from his time in Tampa will be missed in Calgary.
But Coleman would much rather compete on a winning team at this juncture of his career.
Maatta wasnt expected to be on the Flames for long after he was acquired at the deadline.
So, the fact that he helps fetch draft picks and a player in return is a bit of a bonus for Calgary.
But the defenseman proved to be a solid contributor in a limited number of games.
Advertisement The Flames are looking to the future, which explains the draft picks in this haul.
But they also need players who can usher along their youth movement.
Middleton could be a perfect fit as a stay-at-home defenseman who could clean up mistakes by the Flames younger, attacking puck-moving defenders in Zayne Parekh or Simon Nemec if it came to that.
As the Flames hope to build a winning culture, theyll turn to Middleton to provide that.
This story will be updated.