Flames GM Treliving looking to bolster secondary scoring ahead of trade deadline

With the Calgary Flames sitting fourth in the Pacific Division, general manager Brad Treliving is looking to bolster his secondary scoring ahead of the NHL trade deadline.

Offensively, the trio of Johnny Gaudreau (54 points), Matthew Tkachuk (45) and Elias Lindholm (37) up front, currently leads the Flames.

“Listen, Johnny and Matthew and Lindy have had a terrific first half, right?” Treliving told The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun in an interview on Tuesday. “They’ve driven us offensively most nights. We need that to continue. But if you hope to have any success, you can’t rely on one or two guys or one line.

“I still think there’s people currently here that we can get more from offensively.’’

After the first line, the scoring drops off. Andrew Mangiapane has 20 goals, but has just two in 13 games since Jan. 2. Sean Monahan has seven goals and 19 points in 42 games, while Blake Coleman has 10 goals and 18 points in 41 games.

“Yeah, if there’s an area we continue to look at to try to upgrade in, it would be that,’’ Treliving said. “That’s fair to say. If we can help ourselves there, that’s certainly something we’d like to do.’’

In contrast to the forward unit, Treliving is happy with how the defence corps has played. After losing captain Mark Giordano to the Seattle expansion draft, there were questions as to how the team would fill that hole.

Since then, young defencemen Rasmus Andersson and Oliver Kylingston have stepped up this season, while veterans Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev have continued to take on tough minutes. Off-season acquisitions Nikita Zadorov and Erik Gudbranson have proven to be solid depth additions.

“It’s a defence that can transition the puck, there’s puck movers, and there’s some size and weight back