Treliving has a history with the keeper, serving as the co-manager for Canada's gold medal-winning entry at the 2016 IIHF World Hockey Championship, where Talbot tied the tournament record with four shutouts en route to a second straight, first-place finish.
"Having a glimpse of his character, his work ethic, what he puts into his craft," Treliving said, pausing. "We knew now that this has a chance to work here."
Fittingly, Bill Peters - then boss with the Carolina Hurricanes - was the head coach of that squad, and left the 10-day sprint with a similar impression on the now 31-year-old netminder.
"He was good," Peters said. "Really athletic; really dialled in. He was great teammate and really appreciated the effort in front of him.
"I remember that sticking out."
Talbot was coming off a strong first year with the Oilers, posting a .917 save percentage and a 2.55 goals-against average in a career-high 56 appearances.
The following year, he broke Grant Fuhr's franchise record with an astonishing 42 wins in a 73-start campaign, leading the Oilers to their first playoff appearance in more than a decade.
But Talbot was traded last year to the Flyers during a tough 2019-20 campaign.
"A change is going to be good for him," Peters said. "He's a competitive guy, knows he has to bounce back.
"He's on a one-year deal and he'll be hungry."
Talbot - who made waves in 2015, taking over for the injured Henrik Lundqvist and rolling off a 17-4-3 record in the King's absence - has been a workhorse over the course of his career.
In Calgary, he joins Flames' 26-year-old incumbent, David Rittich, between the pipes.
"Just coming in refreshed and having a short memory," Talbot said of putting the 2018-19 season behind him. "It's easier said than done sometimes, but last year was an outlier in my career.
"Coming here, I want to prove that I still have a lot of hockey left in me and there's no better team to do it with than this one."
"I'm looking forward to meeting David and complementing him. He's a young goaltender and took his game to another level last year. He had a heckuva season. Just coming in here to compete, push each other to be better and I'm looking forward to being part of that tandem."
Speaking of Rittich and that newly formed tandem, there's just one piece of business left to attend to.
That eerily blank sweater needs a number to complete the ensemble.
"We've thrown around a few ideas," said Talbot, who in the past wore No. 33, already taken by Rittich. "Haven't decided on anything yet. I haven't worn anything other than that for the past 13 years, so it's going to take some time to decide."
New team. New number.
Truly, a fresh start.
