Flames sign Simon Nemec to five-year contract
The Calgary Flames announced on Monday that they’ve signed defenseman Simon Nemec to a five-year contract with a $7.25 million cap hit.
FOUND NEMO 🐟 We've signed Simon Nemec to a five-year contract with an AAV of $7.25 million!
Nemec was a restricted free agent after the conclusion of his three-year, entry-level contract with a $918,333 cap hit. The details of his new contract are not confirmed, so aspects of the deal like the salary structure, clauses and bonuses are not known.
Nemec signs for what appears to be the going rate for young defensemen with upside. Los Angeles Kings blueliner Brandt Clarke set the market with a five-year contract at a $7.4 million AAV earlier in the offseason, and then the Anaheim Ducks established it when they signed Pavel Mintyukov to a five-year deal with a $7.2 million AAV on Sunday.
The Flames acquired Nemec from the New Jersey Devils ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft along with Maxim Tsyplakov in exchange for Etienne Morin, a 2027 and 2028 first-round pick, and a second-round pick from the 2026 Draft, which the Devils used to select Ryan Roobroeck. A second-overall pick in the 2022 Draft, Nemec fell out of favour on a crowded Devils blueline, with the Flames bringing him onto their team in hopes of capitalizing on his upside in a larger role.
Nemec is coming off of his first season as a full-time NHLer, so it’s no surprise that it’s also his best, as he had a career high 11 goals and 26 points in 68 games with the Devils. That did come with significant defensive struggles though, as he had a 0.1 5v5 regularized adjusted plus/minus expected goals against per 60 minutes according to Evolving Hockey.
The Flames have had a relatively quiet offseason, as in addition to acquiring Nemec, their only other move of note was trading Blake Coleman and Olli Maatta to the Minnesota Wild, with Calgary acquiring Jacob Middleton and several picks in return. The Flames still have $14,883,334 in cap space according to PuckPedia, with only RFAs Brennan Othmann and Nikita Okhotyuk left to re-sign.