After losing team captain Mark Giordano to the Seattle Kraken in July, the Calgary Flames desperately needed somebody to step into a top-four role on defence in 2021–22.
Their combined $5.7 million cap hit notwithstanding, Nikita Zadorov and Erik Gudbranson were both unlikely to ever fill that void. Connor Mackey’s waiver-exempt status likely sealed his fate before he could ever get a chance to crack the Flames’ lineup.
Juuso Välimäki appeared to have the inside track toward a top-four spot heading into the 2021–22 season. The 23-year-old defenceman appeared in 49 of the Flames’ 56 games in 2020–21 and looked perfectly capable in his bottom-pairing minutes.