Flames ‘continuing to plug away' on contract negotiations with Dan Vladar, says Conroy

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Second-string goalie Dan Vladar was emphatic in his end-of-season interview about his desire to stick around the Saddledome, while the Flames seemed similarly keen on continuing with their current twine-minding tandem.
But two months later, and less than two weeks before Vladar would become an unrestricted free agent, there's been no news of a contract extension for the 27-year-old from the Czech Republic, raising the possibility that rising star Dustin Wolf might have a different sidekick when the puck drops on the 2025-26 campaign.
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'We're talking to his representation and seeing where his mindset is at,' Flames general manager Craig Conroy told Postmedia on Thursday when asked for an update on negotiations with Vladar. 'We're open, just like he was open to a contract. But both sides have to come to terms with that. We're just continuing to plug away at that one.'
Vladar is at the tail-end of a two-year contract that carries an annual cap hit of US$2.2 million. Coming off the heaviest workload of his NHL career, and after finishing the season on a 6-1-1 run, it's safe to assume that he's looking for at least a slight raise.
The Flames have plenty of salary-cap wiggle room, but teams are often hesitant to be allocating too much loot to their backup puck-stopper.
Vladar and Wolf split starts last fall, but the youngster emerged through the winter as the obvious workhorse in Calgary. Wolf, en route to his runner-up finish in the Calder Trophy race, was tapped for 76 per cent of the crease time in the second half of the season.
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In 30 appearances, Vladar posted a 12-11-6 record with a 2.80 goals-against average and .898 save percentage. It did not go unnoticed by teammates and staff that he was handed a lot of tough assignments, including the second half of any back-to-back sets.
'We talk about Wolfie a lot and the season he did have, but I think a big reason why he had such a good year was the way Dan was, too,' said Flames head coach Ryan Huska on locker clean-out day. 'We had a great tandem. You look at our team and that was probably the strength of our team this year — those two guys in net gave us a chance to win every night, and it was rare when one of them had an off-night.
'When you're planning ahead, you know you have one area covered. For me as a coach, I know we're going to be good in net.'
The big question is, have those plans changed since mid-April, when their backup stressed he would 'love to be back' for a fifth season with the Flames?
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Is Vladar, who really seemed to find his groove after the 4 Nations Face-Off and continued to roll with a sparkling .950 save percentage in his four appearances at the world championship tournament, now wondering if another organization might view him as a potential starter or a platoon possibility?
Is he hoping for more playing time so he can showcase himself for a chance to represent his country at the 2026 Winter Olympics?
Is it simply a matter of finding some middle ground on term and dollar figure?
If Vladar does opt to test the market when free agency opens on July 1, he will be one of the most appealing options available, a guy who can offer a blend of experience and upside.
If the Flames need to go another route, the pickings are somewhat slim. Beyond Vladar, the list of soon-to-be UFAs in the crease is headlined by Jake Allen, Alexandar Georgiev, Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek, who just lifted the Stanley Cup as the No. 2 for the Florida Panthers.
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The Flames have also been mentioned as potential suitor for Ivan Prosvetov, who is looking to return from the KHL.
Also factoring in this conversation is whether there is internal belief that Devin Cooley can be part of the big-league plan. Cooley's contract upgrades to a one-way for this coming season, but there may be some second-guessing after his rollercoaster campaign with the Wranglers — a superb start that netted an invite to the AHL All-Star Classic and then a miserable finishing stretch.
Cooley, who turned 28 last month, will certainly be among those keeping close tabs on Vladar's situation.
While there's still time to get a deal done, the Flames might need a backup backup plan.
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