The Calgary Flames have had a much quieter season in regards to trades than they did in 2023-24, where they wound up moving out four players in Nikita Zadorov, Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, and Noah Hanifin. Their most recent move came in the summer, when they chose to deal Andrew Mangiapane to the Washington Capitals. While this season will be much quieter, it doesn’t mean that there won’t be any moves at all.
One player on the Flames who has been discussed as a potential trade option is Rasmus Andersson. The 28-year-old has been fantastic through 30 games, registering 15 points while averaging a team-high 24:40 in ice time.
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There is no rush from the Flames side to move Andersson, as he is locked up through the 2025-26 season. That extra year remaining on his contract would help the Flames get even more in a deal, though fans remain divided on whether he should be moved at all. Here are some of the pros and cons when it comes to trading him.
Pros for Trading Andersson
The Flames, despite remaining in the playoff hunt past the quarter mark of the 2024-25 season, aren’t by any means a Stanley Cup contender right now. As the moves made last season mentioned above suggest, they are in somewhat of a rebuilding stage, with the goal of becoming a true contender by the time their new arena opens its doors for the 2027-28 campaign.
They’ve already moved out plenty of veterans in exchange for picks and prospects, which should help in their goal of becoming a competitive team. As everyone knows, however, picks and prospects are never guaranteed to turn into legitimate NHL players, which makes it crucial to add as many as possible with the knowledge that some won’t pan out.
Andersson, who is an everyday top-four defenceman on every team in the league, would bring in a major haul for the Flames. Not only is he an exceptional two-way defenceman, but he’s also a right-handed shot who commands just $4.55 million per season. Every playoff team would love to have him on their back end; the question is, would any be willing to pay a price the Flames believe to be worth it?
Cons for Trading Andersson
As exciting as it is to acquire picks and prospects, teams always need to be careful when it comes to moving each and every sought-after veteran on their roster. Keeping at least some around to help mentor the young talent learning the ropes at the NHL level is important. By all accounts, Andersson helps do just that, evidenced by the ‘A’ he has worn on his sweater since 2022-23.
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There is also something to be said about keeping players around that want to be in Calgary. Several of the players who have been traded in the last year seemed to indicate they no longer wanted to stick around. That gets noticed by others around the league, who in turn may be hesitant to sign with a team in free agency that many seem to want to leave.
The Flames also saw Johnny Gaudreau choose to depart in favour of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2022 offseason, followed by Matthew Tkachuk essentially forcing his way out of town a short time later. Those decisions hurt Flames fans, many of whom would love to see a player like Andersson commit long-term to the organization.
Andersson’s intentions on whether he wants to stick around are unclear at this point. Considering he’s been vastly underpaid on his current six-year deal, one would imagine he is in no rush to make any sort of decision on a new deal. That isn’t a major concern for the organization right now, as they do have time with him.
Another concern when it comes to trading Andersson, especially for this season, is that the Flames don’t have a ton of options to replace his minutes. MacKenzie Weegar is their next best option, but he is also playing a ton as it is right now. From there, you have a lot more relatively unproven options in Kevin Bahl, Brayden Pachal, and Daniil Miromanov. Sure, making the playoffs isn’t the goal this season, but you also don’t want to ice a blue line so horrendous that it results in one of the organization’s best young talents in Dustin Wolf being torched game to game.
Interesting Decision Lying Ahead
The Flames could very well end up trading Andersson before the 2025 Trade Deadline, as he’s been listed on several insiders’ boards as a potential candidate to be moved. That said, it’s feeling more likely that a decision on his future will either take place this coming offseason, or ahead of the 2026 Deadline. Either way, it’s going to be quite interesting to see which route Conroy chooses to go, as both are reasonable options, but carry risk as well.
