Jul 3, 2008 - 1:55 AM
CALGARY, Alberta (Ticker) -- The Calgary Flames got involved in the free-agent frenzy Wednesday, signing Curtis Glencross, Jim Vandermeer and Peter Vandermeer.
Terms of the deals were not disclosed.
It marks the fourth team in the last three years for Glencross, who split last season with Columbus and Edmonton. The left wing combined for 15 goals and 25 points in 62 games.
"Our philosophy going into the draft and through this period was to get younger, quicker and bigger on the wings," Flames general manager Darryl Sutter said. "With the addition of Curtis, along with our recent signings, I feel we will have really good competition among these good, young players."
Glencross, 25, has collected 16 goals and 26 points in 71 career games with Anaheim, Columbus and Edmonton.
A Calgary native, Jim Vandermeer finished last season with the Flames, recording two points in 21 games. The defenseman also played with Chicago and Philadelphia last season and finished with three goals and 17 points.
"Jim is a young defenseman who fits very well with our group and brings us that element of toughness that is important to our team," Sutter said. "He is clearly a player who plays in our top six. Jim gives us five defensemen still on the upswing, and we know we have them for the next three to five years."
Jim Vandermeer's older brother, Peter Vandermeer is entering his 13th season of professional hockey. Despite his longevity, he has appeared in just two NHL games, both coming last season with Phoenix, and figures to spend most of his time in 2008-09 with Quad Cities of the American Hockey League.
"We signed Pete Vandermeer to be a role model for our young players in Quad Cities," Sutter said. "He is a tough, physical player who will be important for the development of our prospects. It's important to have character people like Pete in the organization."