The Calgary Flames’ final game of the regular season sure felt like a glimpse into the team’s blue-line future.
In that contest, both Zayne Parekh and Hunter Brzustewicz made their NHL debuts. Parekh — a highly touted ninth-overall pick in 2024 — scored a goal and went plus-3 in over 20 minutes of play. Brzustewicz — a 2023 third-rounder who made a strong AHL debut this season — didn’t grab a point, but finished plus-2 in nearly 20 minutes of work.
Lending even more of a symbolic feel to that finale versus the Kings, Rasmus Andersson missed his one and only contest of the 2024-25 campaign, opening up some space for the two kids to shine.
A couple chapters beginning while another is set to close?
Speculation about Andersson’s future in Calgary is nothing new. The Flames shipped out three defencemen during the 2023-24 campaign — Chris Tanev, Noah Hanifin and Nikita Zadorov — and there was some sense, even then, that Andersson could join them.
Now that the veteran Swede has just one year to go on a contract that accounts for just a $4.55-million cap hit in 2025-26, we’re once again left wondering if Andersson’s time in Calgary is ending.
While Andersson’s numbers the past couple years — when he’s a combined minus-49 on non-playoff squads in Calgary — don’t shine the best light on his capabilities, this is a player who would attract no shortage of interest from teams if he lands on the trade market at 28 years old.
Andersson is an all-situations, right-shot (always a bonus draw) defenceman who could complement a left-shot horse on a top pair or anchor a second pair from the starboard side. He’s got 50- and 49-point seasons on the books, demonstrating an ability to help the attack while still capably battling opponents in his own zone.
Andersson has a six-team no-trade list according to PuckPedia, so he’d have some ability to steer the ship if a summer swap is coming. He also holds the additional leverage of being just one season away from unrestricted free agency, meaning Calgary would obviously be best served to work with the player and find a dance partner Andersson might be willing to commit to long-term.
Whatever form a potential Andersson deal takes, teams would be calling. Here’s a list of squads that might be among the first to inquire.
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The Sabres have been screaming out for a right-shot defender to complement lefties Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power in the top 4. Not only that, but Buffalo has a defenceman of its own — 23-year-old Bowen Byram — who was part of trade speculation from the season that’s spilled into the summer.
Byram — a B.C. native who played AAA hockey in Alberta — almost seems like a dream fit for the Flames, who are retooling on the fly with players who are nearly NHL-ready or just entering their prime. Additionally, the aforementioned Parekh and Brzustewicz are both righties, so there’s actually more need for a puck-mover like Byram on the left side in Southern Alberta.
Even a limited no-trade has to be a concern for Buffalo, but the Sabres — who want to improve ASAP — could sure make a good pitch to Andersson in terms of playing partners and long-term role.
The Canes must feel as though they’re banging their head on the door after a five-game loss in the Eastern Conference final to Florida. Carolina has been a final-four club in two of the past three seasons, but has a 1-8 record there against the juggernaut Cats.
While the focus will once again be on the Hurricanes’ need for more scoring up front, a puck-mover like Andersson can certainly help drive offence.
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There’s also been a lot of flux on the Canes’ back end in the past year, with more to come. Carolina watched Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce leave as free agents in the summer of 2024, while bringing Scott Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere in on UFA deals.
Now, 40-year-old Brent Burns and 33-year-old Dmitry Orlov are at the end of their contracts, while Russian stud Alexander Nikishin and fellow promising youngster Scott Morrow are knocking on the door.
Andersson could be a stabilizing presence in the Carolina top 4 while the pieces settle around him and elite defensive defenceman Jaccob Slavin.
Carolina has the picks and prospects to pull off a deal, including two 2026 firsts thanks to the trade that sent Mikko Rantanen to Dallas.
In a perfect world, the Canes would add a scorer for nothing but money in free agency, while pulling off a swap to land a needle-mover like Andersson on the back end.
Leafs GM Brad Treliving drafted Andersson 53rd overall in 2015, when he held that post in Calgary. Treliving has already repatriated one former Flames D-man in Chris Tanev, who — after spending a few months with the Dallas Stars — signed a free agent deal in Toronto 11 months ago.
And, for what it’s worth, Andersson played two years of major junior hockey with the OHL’s Barrie Colts, so he has some familiarity with the Leafs neighbourhood.
Andersson would bring a puck-moving element Toronto’s defence corps could use, and the Leafs would really be set on the right side with Andersson, Tanev and trade deadline pickup Brandon Carlo.
Any chance Calgary would look at Morgan Rielly as part of a return? It sure feels like the longest-tenured Leaf — who holds full no-movement projection — could benefit from a scenery change, and removing him from the books would help with keeping Andersson around long-term.
The issue for the Leafs is, they’ve blown a lot of their powder already landing the aforementioned Carlo and Scott Laughton at the deadline. They have no first-round picks for the next three years and — outside of Easton Cowan, who they’d surely like to retain — Toronto doesn’t have a ton in the way of appealing prospects, having already parted with Fraser Minten in the Carlo trade with Boston and Nikita Grebenkin in the swap that got Laughton from Philly.
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Dallas Stars
The Stars must be ready to change the mix a bit after having their season end for the third straight spring in the Western Conference final. They’ve had a number of stop-gap solutions on the right side in recent years, but nobody who fit the bill as a true top 4 guy. The one who did — Chris Tanev — left via free agency last summer.
If left-shooting Miro Heiskanen stays on the right side, Andersson could slide behind him to round out the top two pairs with Thomas Harley and Esa Lindell. That’s a long, rangy top 4 to throw at the league’s best teams.
Pending-RFA Mavrik Bourque might be somebody the Flames would be interested in acquiring, as he’s a 23-year-old coming off a decent rookie showing.
The Habs’ No. 1 target this off-season is a No. 2 centre who can support Nick Suzuki.
That said, Montreal is examining all avenues to build on its surprise playoff appearance, and the right side of the defence is an area that could use an upgrade.
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The Canadiens are loaded with picks and prospects thanks to a years-long rebuilding process, and a number of those prospects are on the verge of graduating to the NHL. Again, players at that stage of their career seem to be of interest to Calgary.
Montreal likely still has David Reinbacher — the fifth-overall pick in 2023 — pencilled in as its long-term top guy on the right side (Lane Hutson plays a lot on the right as a lefty, but could obviously switch back to his natural side). It’s going to take a while for Reinbacher to develop, though, and Andersson, at 28, threads the needle for Montreal in terms of being a defenceman who can help now, but can also be a key contributor for the next half-dozen years as the team tries to become a true contender.
You could see a world where Andersson occupies the top right-shot position on the D for two or three years, then moves back to the second pair when Reinbacher is up to the job.
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