Update (1:10pm): In a follow-up tweet, Dreger pegs the value of Versteeg’s one-year deal with the Flames at $950K pending final approval.
According to Darren Dreger of TSN, Kris Versteeg’s time with another club has come to an end. He’ll be leaving the Oilers, and is close to a deal with the Calgary Flames instead. The veteran winger also was close to a deal in Switzerland earlier this summer, before taking a PTO from the Oilers. Dreger says that the deal with the Flames would be for one year, somewhere under $1MM.
Versteeg, 30, has been a solid contributor in the league for nearly a decade now, scoring 30+ points six different times, while playing for seven different teams. He’s the perfect trade deadline addition (as many teams have found out), as he can provide depth on the wing and play anywhere up or down a lineup.
A former fifth-round pick, Versteeg has accomplished more than most first rounders do in their career, winning the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010 before beginning his journeyman path. The Flames will try and take advantage of that playoff experience – Versteeg has 44 points in 89 career playoff games – and get back to the postseason this year. One of their biggest weaknesses was depth on the wing, which Versteeg would fill admirably.