Flames Seem Set To Trade Rasmus Andersson, Per Teammate
The trade rumors surrounding Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson are reaching a peak as the 2025-26 season rolls around. Flames centerman Mikael Backlund said that Andersson seems to be clearly headed for a change of teams during the NHL’s European Media Tour, as captured by Micahel Russo of The Athletic. Backlund went into depth on the divide between Calgary and the top-pair defenseman, sharing that the two sides are at ends on what a new contract should look like. Andersson will enter unrestricted-free agency next summer, and is looking for a boost over his current $4.55MM cap hit, while the Flames are looking for a value deal. Backlund told Russo:
Yeah, [Andersson is] getting traded. It’s obvious… I talked to him, too, and he doesn’t want to be a distraction… It’s too bad that it’s come to this. I don’t think that they’re close to getting an agreement, but you never know. Things could change.
Backlund seems among the most informed when it comes to changes within the Calgary organization. He’s spent all 1,066 games, and 17 seasons, of his NHL career in a Flames jersey. The Flames named Backlund team captain in 2023, after five years of serving as an alternate captain. Andersson has also served as an assistant captain as far back as 2022, cementing a clear connection between the two teammates.
Backlund’s comments ring loud as a result. Andersson has appeared to be the odd-man-left ever since general manager Craig Conroy completed a fire sale of trades in 2023 and 2024. The flurry moved out defenders Chris Tanev, Nikita Zadorov, and Noah Hanifin – leaving Andersson as the only long-term Flame left on the team’s blue-line. He has since been supported by veteran MacKenzie Weegar and emerging pro Kevin Bahl, playing ahead of an otherwise very fluid Calgary defense.
This news spells even more changes for the Flames’ defense. There will be no preparing for losing a player of Andersson’s caliber, even despite rumors swirling through the last few seasons. He has emerged as a true top-pair offensive-defenseman, capable of driving play and sustaining offensive chances for his side, even amid poor defensive play. Andersson tied his career-high of 11 goals this past season, to go along with 31 points on the full year. It was a slight dip from his scoring totals over the last few year. He previously scored 50 points in the 2021-22 season, 49 points in 2022-23, and 39 points in 2023-24.
These comments will once again spark what’s been an aggressive trade market for Andersson. Calgary has fielded interest from across the NHL, with teams like the Columbus Blue Jackets and Carolina Hurricanes previously emerging as front-runners. There has also been rumors of a fit with Pacific Division clubs like the Los Angeles Kings or Vegas Golden Knights, should the Flames be comfortable with moving Andersson to a nearby foe. Vegas will notably be without top defender Alex Pietrangelo next season due to injury, creating a clear hole in their lineup. The Golden Knights would need to find roughly $1MM in cap space to afford Andersson’s cap hit, assuming Calgary would be willing to retain a maximum 50-percent.
Tyson Barrie Announces Retirement
Amid his participation in yesterday’s Avalanche alumni game, defenseman Tyson Barrie confirmed to Nathan Rudolph of the DNVR Avalanche podcast that he’s retired.
A third-round pick of the Avalanche in 2009, Barrie was a highly intriguing offensive option out of the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets and quickly looked like he could be something of a steal. He led the league in assists by a defenseman in his post-draft year and was named the WHL’s top defenseman as a result, but concerns about the righty’s size and defensive acumen meant he returned for a fourth and final season of junior hockey before making the jump to the pro ranks in 2011-12. Even then, he spent most of that year in the minors and only received 10 NHL games.
He slowly worked his way up the Avs’ depth chart, seeing less and less AHL time each season before earning his final recall in November 2013, early in his age-22 season. While he checked in as a fringe top-four option at even strength, he overtook Erik Johnson as Colorado’s top power-play quarterback and ended up recording a 13-25–38 scoring line in 64 games over the balance of the campaign. Those 0.59 points per game placed him inside the top-15 among NHL rearguards that year.
The 2014-15 campaign marked Barrie’s true coming of age. He broke the 50-point plateau – the first of four times he’d end up doing so in his career – while serving as Colorado’s de facto No. 1 option for a good portion of the season with Johnson injured. He would continue averaging north of 21 minutes per game for the remainder of his Colorado tenure, twice earning fringe votes for year-end All-Star honors.
Colorado didn’t have a ton of team success during Barrie’s six-year run as a full-timer there, though, only making the playoffs three times and winning a round once. His struggles away from the puck played a significant role in that. Only once, his final season in Denver, did Barrie manage to record a positive expected rating based on shot quality generated and allowed when he was on the ice at even strength. He posted a negative actual plus/minus rating in his last four years for Colorado, including a league-worst -34 mark in the Avs’ disastrous 22-win season in 2016-17.
Entering the 2019-20 season, Barrie was a pending unrestricted free agent and had been made redundant with Cale Makar‘s emergence in the preceding postseason. That kicked off the latter journeyman phase of his career, beginning with a July 1 blockbuster that sent him to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Nazem Kadri. It didn’t work out all that well for Barrie or Toronto. He was no longer his club’s top power play option, sitting behind Morgan Rielly on the Leafs’ power play pyramid, and his offensive output declined to a more pedestrian 5-34–39 scoring line in 70 games as a result.
With Barrie’s point production his only real calling card, the fit in Toronto obviously wasn’t going to be a long-term one. They let him become a free agent during the COVID-laced 2020 offseason, and he proceeded to land a one-year, $3.75MM “prove-it” deal with the Oilers.
Barrie was plopped onto a top power-play unit in Edmonton with the two-headed monster of Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid – the league’s two leading scorers in the shortened 2021 season – and responded with the best campaign of his career. He recorded 48 points in the truncated 56-game schedule, leading the NHL in scoring among defenders. His defensive deficiencies remained quite visible, though. He only managed a +5 rating compared to regular partner Darnell Nurse‘s +27 mark, and as Edmonton was swept in the first round of the playoffs, Barrie became the first defenseman in league history to lead the position in scoring while not receiving a single Norris Trophy vote.
While Barrie remained a fine puck-mover for the Oilers, his production never quite found that gear again. His minutes began to drop back below the 20-minute mark, and at the 2023 deadline, he was sent to the Predators in the deal that landed Edmonton two-way dynamo Mattias Ekholm.
Nashville marked the last real turning point in Barrie’s career, and it wasn’t for the better. While he was still quite effective for the Preds down the stretch after the trade, recording 12 points in 24 games, that didn’t last very long. In 2023-24 – the final year of a three-year, $13.5MM extension he signed with Edmonton – Barrie tumbled down Nashville’s depth chart and ended up becoming a routine healthy scratch by the time the season ended. As such, he was limited to just one goal and 15 points in 41 games and only drew into the Preds’ playoff lineup once in their first-round loss to the Canucks.
Ahead of his age-33 season and with his value at an all-time low, Barrie ended up needing to settle for a professional tryout with the Flames to participate in an NHL training camp last fall. He did convert that into a $1.25MM contract in early October, but the fit wasn’t quite what Calgary hoped for. He only logged 13 appearances for the club and even ended up on waivers and cleared, seeing his first AHL action in over a decade with the Calgary Wranglers.
Barrie was a free agent this summer, and there was no reported interest in him on the open market. He hangs up his skates with 822 games played in 14 seasons, 23rd among his rather stacked draft class. He scored 110 goals and added 398 assists for 508 points, 10th in the league among defensemen since he debuted back in the 2011-12 season. He averaged just over 21 minutes per night for his career and made $47.85MM in estimated total earnings, per PuckPedia.
All of us at PHR congratulate Barrie on his fine career and wish him the best in his next steps.
Image courtesy of Sergei Belski-Imagn Images.
Dustin Wolf Looking For More Success
While last season was a successful one for Calgary Flames goaltender Dustin Wolf, he is setting a high bar for his encore season and has playoff aspirations heading into the new campaign, per NHL.com’s Derek Van Diest.
Despite being undersized, Wolf flashed the potential that the Flames were hoping for. However, he isn’t satisfied with simply repeating last year’s performance — either individually or as a team.
- Sticking with the Flames, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is hearing the team and restricted free agent Connor Zary continue to remain apart on an extension. Speaking on his 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman said that while he believes the two sides will eventually reach a deal, both term and annual salary remain sticking points. “I don’t think this is a situation where the Flames don’t like the player, or the player doesn’t like the Flames,” Friedman said. “And the good news is the market is picking up.” In 54 games last season, Zary posted 13 goals and 27 points.
Nazem Kadri Hopeful To Make Olympics
After a career-high 35-goal season, Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri remains hopeful to represent Team Canada at the 2026 Olympics, despite not receiving an invite to the team’s Olympic orientation camp. Speaking with Julian McKenzie of The Athletic, Kadri said he felt he “deserves a chance” to represent his country.
“I feel like I deserve a chance. I think over the last few seasons I’ve certainly proven that with my statistics and the winning pedigree. I think it speaks for itself,” he said.
To his credit, Kadri hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down despite entering his mid-30s. Over the past three seasons, he has recorded 88 goals and 198 points while appearing in every regular-season game. What’s more, Kadri has displayed postseason success, including winning the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2021-22, where he secured 15 points and a plus-seven rating in 16 games. Still, his name was not among the 42 players invited to Hockey Canada’s Olympic orientation camp. In response, the 34-year-old shared a direct message on social media questioning why he was left off the list. Asked if he felt his social post would hurt or help his chances, Kadri noted that he wasn’t sure, but that the post shouldn’t be taken too seriously.
One of the main issues Kadri will face are the incredible names Canada has at the center position. Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, and Nathan MacKinnon were already named to Canada’s preliminary roster. Then there is a host of additional center options for Canada to consider, with some known for their pure offensive skill and others offering a blend of scoring and defensive reliability. These names include Connor Bedard, Sam Bennett, Macklin Celebrini, Quinton Byfield, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Brayden Point, Mark Scheifele, Sam Reinhart, and John Tavares — all of whom will be looking to center their own line in Milan.
With that said, Kadri still likes his chances despite being a self-named “long shot.”
“Honestly man, it would be an absolute dream come true to show how crack that team,” he said. “I’ve been a long shot before. I’m looking forward to giving myself an opportunity. But I understand I’m going to have to play well,” he said.
Flames Have Started Extension Talks With Dustin Wolf
Dustin Wolf’s first full NHL season was quite an impactful one. He became the full-fledged starter in the second half of the year and played an instrumental role in Calgary’s last-season playoff push, one that ultimately came up just short. He’s entering the final season of his bridge contract but the Flames have clearly seen enough to want to lock him up long term. Wolf told Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson that talks on that front are underway:
They’re working, that’s about all I can really tell you. There’s talks, but nothing really confirmed yet. I’d love to stay here and I think they want me to stay here, as well. So as soon as something comes to fruition where both of us like where we’re at, I’m sure it won’t be long after that point where pen will be to paper.
Wolf played in 53 games for Calgary last season, posting a 2.64 GAA and a .910 SV%. His performance was strong enough to earn him the runner-up position in Calder Trophy voting for Rookie of the Year while he also received a third-place vote in Vezina Trophy voting for the league’s top netminder. That’s quite the solid performance for a player making $850K, making him one of the top bargains in the league.
While undersized for the modern-day goaltender, Wolf has been a top performer coming up. In the WHL, he put up a .935 SV% over four seasons, winning Goalie of the Year twice and taking home the CHL Goalie of the Year title once. Then, with AHL Calgary, he had a .926 SV% in parts of four seasons with them, again twice winning the award for being the top goaltender along with being league MVP in 2022-23. Accordingly, while there’s not an overly long NHL track record to work with, Wolf’s overall track record shows that he’s someone who can be relied on to be a key goalie for the long run.
Finding the right price point on a new deal could be tricky, however, given that he has fewer than 100 career NHL appearances. Wolf still has two RFA-eligible years left after this one so a second bridge agreement probably isn’t on the table unless it was a one-year pact in the arbitration window which is a long way away. Assuming their mutual preference is a long-term contract, AFP Analytics suggests that a six-year deal worth a little over $8MM per season could make sense. While several starting netminders have landed in that range in recent years, most have had much longer track records of NHL success than Wolf currently has.
On the other hand, with at least two more big jumps in the salary cap coming over the next two years, the potential price tag could go even higher if Wolf builds on his performance in 2025-26. On the other hand, if he struggles a bit, the asking price would probably come in below that projected number. With negotiations like this with relatively untested players, it’s about finding a spot where both sides are comfortable with the risk of a possible overpayment or underpayment. We’ll see if they can find that point over the coming weeks.
No Recent Talks Between Flames And Rasmus Andersson
The future of defenseman Rasmus Andersson with the Flames has been a subject of much debate this offseason. While Calgary isn’t looking to rebuild and thus doesn’t necessarily want to move him, Andersson doesn’t appear to be ready to sign a long-term extension with them either, fueling trade speculation.
Earlier this summer, TSN’s Darren Dreger suggested that Los Angeles had a deal in place to acquire Andersson but that the blueliner indicated that he didn’t want to play there. Speaking with Expressen’s David Carlsson and Mikael Ljungberg, the 28-year-old acknowledged he had been approached about a move somewhere but declined to confirm that it was indeed the Kings. But he wasn’t comfortable about moving his family and signing a long-term deal right away, scuttling those talks. Andersson also continues to vehemently deny earlier reports that the only team he’d sign with right away is Vegas.
With trade talks seemingly at a stalemate for now, it would be logical to think that the two sides might resume contract discussions. However, Andersson noted that since the draft-day trade fell apart, there has been zero communication with the team.
Andersson has been an all-situations player for the last several years in Calgary while reaching at least 30 points in each of the last four campaigns. That has him in line to land a sizable raise on his current $4.55MM AAV, even though he’s coming off a quieter year offensively where he has 10 goals and 21 assists in 81 games while averaging 23:59 per night of playing time. Even with the reduced point total, AFP Analytics pegged an Andersson extension to cost around $8.4MM per season on a seven-year deal.
While it’s believed there were at least initial discussions about a new deal this offseason, the belief is that there’s still a big gap to bridge and clearly, neither side appears to be in a rush to try to reduce the difference. GM Craig Conroy has stated multiple times that he’s comfortable with Andersson coming to camp without an extension in place and based on the lack of contact between the two sides, that appears to be the likeliest outcome as things stand.
Flames, Connor Zary Remain Apart In Contract Talks
The Flames and RFA forward Connor Zary still have a roughly $1MM gap to bridge as they continue talks on a new contract, Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff reports.
While Calgary prefers a three-year deal and Zary is open to that term, the Flames are holding firm in the $3MM-$3.5MM range annually, Di Marco writes. Zary’s ask on a three-year pact is around $4.5MM annually.
Zary does have first-round pedigree (No. 24 overall in 2020) to fall back on, but his ask on a multi-year deal likely checks in above market value. He’ll be 24 in September and only emerged as a full-time NHL option in the 2023-24 campaign and missed nearly 30 games last season due to injury.
When healthy, the 6’0″ forward has comfortably shouldered top-nine minutes, primarily on the wing, and has averaged 19 goals and 43 points per 82 games while seeing 15:39 of action per night. His point per game pace decreased from 0.54 in his rookie season to 0.50 in 2024-25, however. He finished the year with a 13-14–27 line in 54 contests.
That platform year heavily favors Calgary’s ask. AFP Analytics’ projection at the beginning of the summer for a short-term deal was three years at around $3.42MM per season, right in the ballpark of the Flames’ offer. As such, it’s hard to envision general manager Craig Conroy moving the goalposts much further than they’re currently set.
Zary was not eligible for salary arbitration this summer. Since his age upon signing his first NHL contract was 18, he requires four years of experience with at least 10 NHL games played. That means he won’t be eligible for arbitration next offseason if he signs a one-year deal, either. He’d need at least a two-year contract to make him arbitration-eligible upon expiry, and a three-year deal would leave him just one year away from UFA eligibility.
Parekh's Lower-Body Injury Won't Keep Him Out Of Training Camp
- Earlier this week, the Flames announced (Twitter link) that defenseman Zayne Parekh wouldn’t take part in the World Junior Summer Showcase due to a lower-body injury. However, the injury isn’t believed to be significant and he’s expected to be a full participant in training camp. The 19-year-old scored in his NHL debut back in April and has tallied 33 goals in each of the last two seasons at the OHL level while amassing 203 points between 2023-24 and 2024-25. He’s still ineligible to play in the AHL but his offensive production with OHL Saginaw should give him a real chance to make Calgary’s roster in the fall.
Connor Zary, Flames Apart On Contract Negotiations
The Calgary Flames grabbed headlines yesterday after signing forward Martin Pospisil to a three-year, $7.5MM extension. Still, restricted free agent forward Connor Zary remains unsigned heading into August, and negotiations are reportedly moving more slowly than expected.
In a new article from Daniel Austin of The Calgary Herald, when asked about Zary’s status, the journalist quoted Flames General Manager Craig Conroy saying, “We’re talking. It’s been slow, though. Even with Pospisil, there comes a point where it heats up and you think ‘Now we’re close’ and then you’re able to get it done really quick. Pospisil was probably two, three months we were talking with (agent Dan Millstein).”
Much of the disagreement reportedly centers on the contract length, with the Flames favoring a bridge deal and Zary advocating for a long-term contract. In all seriousness, Zary likely hasn’t earned a long-term deal yet, unless he’s willing to take a below-market salary. Over the past two years, the former 24th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft has scored 27 goals and recorded 61 points in 117 games with the Flames, achieving a +5 rating while averaging 15:39 of ice time per game.
Flames Sign Martin Pospisil To Three-Year Extension
The Flames have signed Martin Pospisil to a three-year extension, according to his agent, Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey. The 6’2″ center/winger will earn an average of $2.5MM per season for a total value of $7.5MM, according to PuckPedia.
Pospisil, 25, began the 2024-25 season on the NHL roster for the first time. He was fresh off signing a two-year, $2MM extension that he signed amid his rookie campaign in 2023-24 that will still carry him through the upcoming season at a $1MM cap hit, but he now won’t be eligible for restricted free agency next summer. Today’s extension will take him to unrestricted free agency in 2029.
The heavy-hitting Slovak forward has been consistent ever since working his way into a regular NHL role. He appeared in all but one game for Calgary in 2024-25, recording a 4-21–25 scoring line while improving his discipline, bringing his PIM total down to 84 after logging 109 in 63 appearances in his rookie campaign. He still had a team-leading 301 hits, tied with William Cuylle for third in the league.
Pospisil averaged 13:48 of ice time per game last season, including a tad under a minute per game on the power play as a net-front presence. Without much turnover among the Flames’ forward group this summer, he’ll figure to slot into a similar role in his final season under his current deal before the extension kicks in for 2026-27. He saw more time at center in 2024-25, winning 40.8% of his 174 faceoffs, and that could continue if he continues to see primarily fourth-line deployment at even strength.
While his new cap hit is fair value for the production and overall impact he’s provided in Calgary’s lineup over the past couple of years, it is interesting to see them prioritize a multi-year deal for Pospisil over some other more pressing items. Restricted free agent Connor Zary remains without a contract for the upcoming season, while Calgary also has key players at each position – Mikael Backlund at center, Rasmus Andersson at defense, and pending RFA Dustin Wolf in goal, who need new contracts for 2026-27, although Andersson is more likely a trade candidate than an extension one.
Image courtesy of Jerome Miron-Imagn Images.