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Rasmus Andersson

Latest On Rasmus Andersson

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Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson is eligible to sign a contract extension as of today but talks between him and the team showed that there is still a considerable bridge to gap.  While GM Craig Conroy has said they’re comfortable with having the blueliner in training camp without a new deal in place, the gap in discussions has certainly fueled trade speculation.

To that end, TSN’s Darren Dreger recently reported on Edmonton Sports Talk (video link) that the Kings were believed to have a trade in place to acquire the 28-year-old but Andersson made it known that he doesn’t want to play for them.  He only has a six-team no-trade list but presumably, Los Angeles would have found out about Andersson’s lack of desire to play there when hypothetically discussing what an extension would look like.

At the moment, it appears that Andersson has his eyes set on one trade destination in particular.  Pierre LeBrun reports in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link) that the team on the top of Andersson’s wish list is the Golden Knights.  He adds that there have been discussions between the two teams over the past week but Calgary hasn’t been excited about the offers on the table just yet.

There’s a logical fit for Andersson in Vegas, with Alex Pietrangelo’s playing days appearing to be over now.  Pietrangelo’s absence would open up a significant hole on the right side of their back end, one that Andersson would be capable of filling.

The 28-year-old has been an all-situations player for several years in Calgary and has reached at least 30 points in four straight years.  Andersson is coming off a quieter year but he still managed 10 goals and 21 assists in 81 games for Calgary last season while logging 23:59 per night of playing time.  While he wouldn’t be quite as impactful as a healthy Pietrangelo, he would certainly be a quality replacement.

Of course, fitting him onto the books for the upcoming season is a whole other challenge.  Vegas used the LTIR relief from Pietrangelo to acquire Mitch Marner from Toronto.  Even with the LTIR savings, that will put them over the cap by the time they fill the remaining open roster spots, meaning that some salary would need to be cleared to open up room for Andersson and his $4.55MM cap charge for next season.

Meanwhile, should Andersson get moved to his preferred team, it stands to reason that an extension would need to be worked out.  Given the contracts that have been handed out to some blueliners in recent days, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that he could come close to doubling his current price tag on a long-term contract.

With Vegas taking on Marner at $12MM per season and Jack Eichel expected to receive an extension at some point as well, that’s a lot of money to be adding to their future books so if the Golden Knights are able to land Andersson, they’re going to have to clear up some significant cap room – both present and future – to do so.

Pacific Notes: Andersson, Granlund, Seabrook, Juulsen, Chovan

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A few days ago, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned that the Vegas Golden Knights had attempted to acquire Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson last week. No deal came to fruition, and TSN’s Darren Dreger doesn’t believe that the Golden Knights were the only intra-divisional opponent to try to poach Andersson from Alberta.

Speaking on The Nielson Show, Dreger indicated that the Los Angeles Kings put together a formidable offer for Andersson at the 2025 NHL Draft. Dreger believes that the offer was compelling enough for the Flames that they brought it up to Andersson, but the nine-year veteran had no interest in playing for Los Angeles.

After being previously connected to Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram and now Andersson, it appears the Kings are under the impression that Vladislav Gavrikov won’t be back with the organization next summer. At any rate, General Manager Ken Holland is being aggressive in pursuing a replacement top-four defenseman in any way that he can.

Other notes from the Pacific Division:

  • Being one of several teams looking to add a second-line center from a thin pool tomorrow, the Vancouver Canucks have been connected to one of the top available options remaining in the free agent class. David Pagnotta from The Fourth Period reports that the Canucks are expected to aggressively pursue Mikael Granlund if he becomes available in free agency tomorrow. Pagnotta noted that Granlund is seeking a new contract with the Dallas Stars; however, it will be nearly impossible due to their limited salary cap space.
  • Back in Calgary, the Flames have added a three-time Stanley Cup champion to their player development staff. Earlier today, the Flames announced that they’ve hired Brent Seabrook as a player development coach. Despite having no prior affiliation with the Flames organization, he has been serving as a development coach for the WHL’s Vancouver Giants since retiring from his playing career.
  • Unsurprisingly, Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic reported that the Canucks aren’t expected to re-sign defenseman Noah Juulsen before he becomes an unrestricted free agent tomorrow afternoon. Coming off of arguably the worst season of his NHL career, Juulsen went completely scoreless in 35 games with Vancouver this past season, with a -12 rating before having his season cut short due to injury.
  • According to Ben Leeson of the Sudbury Star, Kings’ draft pick Jan Chovan has signed with the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves to continue his development. The Bratislava, Slovakia native was selected 184th overall in last week’s draft. The Wolves selected Chovan in the first round of the 2024 OHL Import Draft, and he’s coming off a year with the U20 SM-sarja’s Tappara, scoring 11 goals and 23 points in 39 games with a +7 rating.

Blue Jackets, Hurricanes Interested In Rasmus Andersson

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The Blue Jackets and Hurricanes are among the teams calling the Flames to have trade talks surrounding defenseman Rasmus Andersson, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports. Pagnotta mentioned the Senators as well – it’s not the first time in the past few months they’ve been tied to Andersson – but Ottawa is also reportedly on his six-team no-trade list.

Calgary and Andersson have already begun preliminary talks on an extension. He’s entering the final year of his contract at a highly team-friendly $4.55MM cap hit and becomes eligible to sign a new deal on July 1 to keep him in Calgary past 2025-26. However, those talks haven’t been particularly productive in their initial stages, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff last week. As a result, they’re listening to trade interest, but as has been the case for a while now, they’re in no particular rush to move him and could wait until next season’s trade deadline to get the value they want if they’re no closer to an extension.

That means defense-needy teams, particularly those looking for added puck-moving depth, will have Calgary general manager Craig Conroy on speed dial until Andersson’s situation is resolved. Carolina and Columbus fit that bill, with Andersson’s cheap initial cap hit before a potential extension kicks in still providing both clubs a fair amount of flexibility to pursue other avenues of roster improvement this summer.

The Hurricanes’ defensive depth will have a few notable changes next season, regardless of whether they successfully land Andersson or not. They’re not offering pending UFA Dmitry Orlov a new contract, and it remains to be seen if veteran Brent Burns, a top-pairing staple alongside Jaccob Slavin in recent seasons, will be back with the club. If he is, it’ll presumably be in a reduced role after a tough 2024-25 campaign for the 40-year-old. Rookie Alexander Nikishin has likely been penciled in as Orlov’s replacement on the left side with Slavin and Shayne Gostisbehere after looking good in limited postseason action, but rookie righty Scott Morrow is a less surefire insurance option for Burns, at least out of the gate. If they’re not yet ready to entrust the 22-year-old with regular NHL minutes, it would make sense to pursue Andersson.

Unlike the Blue Jackets, the Hurricanes might be willing to make a deal without a guarantee of an extension, particularly if it’s done this summer. They have Morrow coming eventually, even if it’s not next season, and are still firmly entrenched in win-now mode.

Columbus’ interest similarly stems from the unknown future of a pending UFA. While things appear close on a deal for top-pairing righty Dante Fabbro, the same can’t be said for lefty Ivan Provorov, who might be forced over to his off-side if he stays anyway with up-and-comer Denton Mateychuk positioning himself for top-four minutes in the near future. Andersson, a legitimate needle-mover, would give the Blue Jackets a highly intriguing right side with Fabbro and Damon Severson in the mix as well while coming in at a much cheaper cost than a new deal for Provorov would require, at least initially.

Regardless, it might behoove the Flames to wait until the season starts to see if Andersson can bump his value. He’s coming off his worst offensive campaign in four years, although he did still produce 31 points in 81 games while averaging 24 minutes per night. His -38 rating paired with career-worst possession impacts doesn’t do much to help his case either, although a few teams could have confidence in that showing being an outlier from the 28-year-old.

Flames Notes: Vladar, Andersson, Sutter

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Goaltender Daniel Vladar is arguably the most prominent pending unrestricted free agent that the Flames have and while Vladar said after the season that he’d like to re-sign, no deal is in place two months later.  Speaking with Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson, GM Craig Conroy noted that the two sides are still in discussions and are “continuing to plug away” at his file.  The 27-year-old started the season platooning with Dustin Wolf before the latter took over as the undisputed starter in the second half.  Vladar bounced back from a tough 2023-24 season, posting a 2.80 GAA and a .898 SV% in 30 outings this season.  At this point, he’s likely hoping for a raise from the $2.2MM he made over the last two seasons, especially since he projects to be one of the better options in what is a relatively thin free agent market for goaltenders this summer.

More from Calgary:

  • It appears that there’s a big gap to bridge in extension discussions with defenseman Rasmus Andersson. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports (Twitter link) that the two sides are not on the same page as things stand and while the team is content to have Andersson begin next season without an extension and potentially move him at the deadline, he could become movable now as well.  Andersson is entering the final year of a team-friendly deal that carries a $4.55MM AAV but he’s coming off a bit of a down year although he tied his career high in goals with 11 and averaged nearly 24 minutes a night of playing time.  It might make more sense for both sides to wait things out into the season to see if his early performance could shrink the gap with the potential to deal him increasing if they’re still not close at that time.
  • One of the AHL coaching vacancies has been filled as the Wranglers announced that Brett Sutter has been appointed as the third head coach in franchise history. The 38-year-old began his coaching career last season as an assistant with Calgary and will get his first chance to run a team in short order.  Sutter takes the place of Trent Cull who was promoted to a full-time assistant coaching role with the Flames earlier this offseason.

Snapshots: Islanders, Andersson, Hrabal, Jedlicka

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With the Islanders missing the playoffs this season, some wondered if new GM Mathieu Darche might look to make a big shakeup on the trade front.  If he does, their two top forwards won’t be involved.  In his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link), Pierre LeBrun relays that Darche has told forwards Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal that they will not be moved this summer.  Horvat would have been an intriguing name on the center market while Barzal, who has been more of a winger lately but is a natural middleman himself, also would have drawn a lot of interest but instead, they’ll remain the focal points of a New York group that Darche feels can get back into the playoff mix next season.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Extension talks between the Flames and defenseman Rasmus Andersson are expected to continue this week with the two sides exchanging numbers for the first time, reports Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli. Andersson is eligible to sign a new deal as of July 1st and it’s one that should carry a significant increase on his current $4.55MM price tag.  While he’s coming off a bit of a down year, he still managed 31 points in 81 games and as a right-shot rearguard who plays in all situations, he’ll be highly sought after should he hit the open market in 2026.
  • The Mammoth tried to sign goaltender Michael Hrabal after this season, his college head coach Greg Carvel stated in a recent Sick Podcast appearance (video link). The 20-year-old was the 38th overall pick back in 2023 and has spent the past two seasons at the University of Massachusetts.  Hrabal posted a 2.37 GAA with a .924 SV% in 36 games for the Minutemen which seemingly was enough for Utah to want to turn him pro.  Instead, Hrabal has decided to return for his junior year and seems like a strong candidate to sign after that.
  • While the Avalanche relinquished the rights to prospect Maros Jedlicka on June 1st, he’ll be remaining with the organization for now. Colorado’s AHL affiliate announced that they’ve signed the forward to a one-year contract for next season.  Jedlicka started this year playing at home in Czechia, collecting two assists in a dozen games for HC Kometa Brno before coming to North America in mid-November.  Jedlicka played in 18 games for the Eagles this season, picking up three goals and two assists and while that wasn’t enough to earn an NHL contract, it was enough for the Avs to keep him around in their system at least.

Snapshots: Islanders, Nabokov, Andersson, Hagens

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New Islanders GM Mathieu Darche met with the media today (video link) for the first time since being hired.  While he addressed the coaching situation, he was also asked about the upcoming draft.  New York now holds the number one selection following a surprising victory at the draft lottery, leading some to wonder if they might be open to moving it to help get back into the playoff picture for next season.  While he stopped short of ruling out the idea outright, he did his best to pour cold water on the idea, saying that “Someone would have to really knock my socks off to trade that pick.”  The Isles have only picked first overall twice this century, goalie Rick DiPietro (2000) and John Tavares (2009).  Barring an offer Darche can’t refuse, they’ll be adding to that count in a little under a month.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • The Avalanche appear to be likely to sign goalie prospect Ilya Nabokov to an entry-level contract, suggests Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette (Twitter link). The 22-year-old was a second-round pick last year after a breakout year with Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL.  This season, he was nearly as dominant, posting a 2.22 GAA and a .923 SV% in 49 games.  With Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood both signed for next season already, one scenario that could come into play is Nabokov signing with a European Assignment Clause which would allow him to return to Russia for the upcoming season and then make the move to North America for 2026-27.
  • Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson played through a fractured fibula at the end of the season and at the recently completed World Championship, relays Uffe Bodin of Hockey Sverige. The injury isn’t expected to require surgery so there shouldn’t be any issues heading into training camp when he’ll be beginning a contract year.  Andersson played in 81 games with Calgary this past season, notching 11 goals and 20 assists while logging nearly 24 minutes a night of playing time.
  • Speaking with reporters earlier this week including Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald, top prospect James Hagens hasn’t decided if he’ll return to Boston College for his sophomore year. The 18-year-old is likely to go in the top five in the draft next month and will be eligible to play in the minors if the team that picks him wants to start him there if he can’t make the NHL roster.  Alternatively, if he’s not deemed ready for pro hockey, he could return to school or go to OHL London, which holds his rights at the junior level.  Hagens had a solid freshman year as one of the youngest players in college hockey, notching 11 goals and 26 assists in 37 games for the Eagles.

Rasmus Andersson Reportedly Has Senators On No-Trade List

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While the Senators have been tied to the Flames’ Rasmus Andersson in their search to upgrade the right side of their defense this offseason, it appears he won’t be an option. Ottawa is among the six teams on his no-trade list as part of his modified no-trade clause, sources tell Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff.

Andersson, entering the final year of his contract at a $4.55MM cap hit, would have been the most needle-moving option available for the Sens in their price range. Pending unrestricted free agent Aaron Ekblad might be a more desirable pickup if he reaches the open market in a few weeks, but he’s projected to earn a seven-year deal north of $7.8MM per season, according to AFP Analytics.

Without a cap-clearing trade, that would be a tight fit for Ottawa, which enters the offseason with $16.627MM in cap space to spread across eight roster spots, per PuckPedia. While they could place right-shot rearguard Nick Jensen on long-term injured reserve to begin the campaign for increased spending flexibility if he’s not ready for the start of the year, he’s not expected to miss the whole 2025-26 season and they’d still need cap space to activate him when he’s ready to return.

Andersson’s inavailability will likely leave the Sens looking for some of the second-tier stay-at-home options on the free agent market to help steady the waters in Jensen’s projected absence and add depth when he returns. It’s not a very long list, but Cody Ceci and Dante Fabbro may be out there as potential impact second-pairing pickups and high-tier third-pairing options.

As for Andersson’s long-term future in Calgary, it remains uncertain a year away from a potential trip to unrestricted free agency. While the Flames have at least explored trading him multiple times in the past couple of years amid their retool, they’ve quickly pulled him off the market – either because they weren’t impressed by the offers they were getting, didn’t want to disrupt team chemistry amid a strong start to 2024-25, or had mutual interest in retaining the player.

It looks like they’re going through that same song and dance again. “After ’looking around’ the landscape of the NHL, keeping Andersson ’might make the most sense at the right number,'” DiMarco wrote.

With the salary cap slated to jump to $104MM for 2026-27, an Andersson extension, if agreed to this summer after he’s eligible to sign one on July 1, would likely be a seven-year deal in the $8.5MM range per season, AFP Analytics projects. Suppose his camp holds firm to that framework. In that case, it’s worth questioning whether that’s a deal general manager Craig Conroy is willing to sign following a season in which Andersson posted his worst offensive totals (31 points in 81 games) in four years, along with a career-worst -38 rating, worst on the Flames by double.

Team Sweden Announces 2025 World Championship Roster

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Team Sweden has announced their roster for the upcoming 2025 IIHF World Championships. The ’Tre Konor’ will look to finish higher than third place in the international tournament for the first time since 2018.

The team will look similar to the one Sweden brought to the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. Filip Forsberg, Lucas Raymond, and Mika Zibanejad will reprise their roles as Sweden’s top forwards, while Rasmus Andersson and Jonas Brodin will lead the defensive core.

Unfortunately, the team will be without forward William Eklund for the tournament due to offseason wrist surgery. Sweden is expected to announce Eklund’s replacement in the coming days. The rest of Team Sweden’s roster is as follows:

F Mikael Backlund (Flames)
F Anton Bengtsson (Rögle BK)
F Leo Carlsson (Ducks)
F Christoffer Ehn (Linköping HC)
F Filip Forsberg (Predators)
F Max Friberg (Frölunda HC)
F Jesper Frödén (ZSC Lions)
F Marcus Johansson (Wild)
F Elias Lindholm (Bruins)
F Isac Lundeström (Ducks)
F Lucas Raymond (Red Wings)
F Alexander Wennberg (Sharks)
F Mika Zibanejad (Rangers)

D Rasmus Andersson (Flames)
D Jonas Brodin (Wild)
D Gabriel Carlsson (EV Zug)
D Simon Edvinsson (Red Wings)
D Adam Larsson (Kraken)
D Marcus Pettersson (Canucks)

G Samuel Ersson (Flyers)
G Jacob Markström (Devils)
G Arvid Söderblom (Blackhawks)

Calgary Flames End Of Year Updates

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Despite not making the postseason, the Calgary Flames had a promising year. The team improved by 15 points compared to last season but narrowly missed out on the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference, losing to the St. Louis Blues based on the first tiebreaker, regulation wins.

After establishing a solid foundation, this offseason is crucial for the organization to continue progressing in the right direction. First and foremost, General Manager Craig Conroy and staff must determine which players they plan to keep around for the long haul.

Outside of phenom netminder Dustin Wolf, there is no more important extension candidate in Calgary than defenseman Rasmus Andersson. If nothing changes this summer, Andersson will enter the 2025-26 season on the last year of a six-year, $27.3MM contract signed with the Flames in 2020. As long as the Flames are interested, an extension should be completed sooner rather than later, as Andersson indicated back in January that he hopes to remain in southern Alberta.

Not being extension eligible throughout the 2024-25 season, Andersson will start actively contemplating an extension after playing for Team Sweden at the 2025 IIHF World Championships, per Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg. It’ll be the first time Andersson has played in the World Championships, having last played for Team Sweden during the 4 Nations Face-Off in February.

It is somewhat surprising that Andersson will continue playing throughout the summer, considering he played the final few weeks of the regular season with a broken fibula, according to Wes Gilberton of Postmedia. Still, it gives important context to Andersson’s slow finish to the regular season, scoring one goal and three points in 11 games with a -12 rating.

Andersson certainly wasn’t alone in being injured. TSN’s Salim Nadim Valji reported that captain Mikael Backlund tore his oblique and maintained rib and back ailments throughout the regular season. Furthermore, Steinberg shared that forward Yegor Sharangovich broke his foot in the team’s final game on Thursday, which landed him in a walking boot at today’s press availability.

The injuries aren’t expected to carry into next season, but they’ll preclude Backlund and Sharangovich from participating with their native countries in the World Championships. Still, the Flames will have plenty of participation, as Matthew Coronato will play for Team USA (Twitter Link), MacKenzie Weegar will play for Team Canada (Twitter Link), and Daniel Vladař will play for Team Czechia (Twitter Link). Dissimilarly, Steinberg shared that Jonathan Huberdeau won’t play for Team Canada, indicating that he denied an invitation from the team.

Circling back to Calgary’s devisement of strategy heading into the offseason, a few players indicated they’d love to re-sign with the Flames if afforded the opportunity. Defenseman Joel Hanley (Twitter Link) and Vladař  (Twitter Link) were adamant on their desire to remain with the organization, with the latter having had contract talks throughout the regular season.

Sportsnet’s Logan Gordon reported that pending restricted free agent Morgan Frost wants to remain with Calgary, but the team hasn’t engaged in conversation regarding a new contract. Frost’s contract situation could become convoluted through the summer, given his lackluster play with the team after being acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers. Still, he’ll only require a $2.4MM qualifying offer to retain his rights, which the Flames can do comfortably.

Before going through a full offseason, Calgary doesn’t appear ready to compete for a top-three spot in the Pacific Division. Still, if this year wasn’t an apparition, and the Flames can repeat their performance from last year and the younger players continue to raise their games, it wouldn’t be a major surprise for Calgary to become a legitimate postseason contender for next season.

West Notes: Flames, Wedgewood, Emberson, Guenther

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Heading into the season, many expected the Flames to be selling before the trade deadline.  Instead, they made a move to add, picking up Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost from Philadelphia.  But that hasn’t stopped teams from calling Calgary GM Craig Conroy about his top veterans, center Nazem Kadri and blueliners Rasmus Andersson and MacKenzie Weegar.  However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported on Saturday that Conroy is telling inquiring teams that he doesn’t plan to move those players.  Kadri and Weegar are signed to long-term contracts but Andersson’s expires in 2026, making him extension-eligible as of July 1st.  Friedman adds that Calgary is getting more confident that they can get a new contract in place with the 28-year-old who will be eyeing a sizable raise from his current $4.55MM AAV.

More from the Western Conference:

  • Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury, mentions Evan Rawal of The Denver Gazette (Twitter link). He will, however, accompany the team on the road so he shouldn’t be out for too long.  The 32-year-old has a 2.40 GAA and a .910 SV% in his first nine games with Colorado after being acquired from Nashville at the end of November.  Trent Miner is already up on recall so the Avs won’t need to bring anyone else up.
  • Oilers defenseman Ty Emberson played in his 80th career NHL game last night, meaning he will become a restricted free agent this summer, notes Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal. Had he not reached that mark, he would have been a Group Six unrestricted free agent.  Emberson has nine assists, 70 blocks, and 78 hits in just under 15 minutes a night through 50 games with Edmonton this season.  Leavins suggests a three-year deal worth $1.5MM per season might be a reasonable contract for the sides to come to although some of the recent comparables have come in a little below that.
  • Utah winger Dylan Guenther has been upgraded as out day-to-day, relays Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). The 21-year-old has missed a little more than three weeks with a lower-body injury.  Before getting hurt, Guenther was scoring at pretty much the same rate as last season, tallying 16 goals and 18 assists in his first 40 games after putting up 18 tallies and 17 helpers in 45 outings in 2023-24.

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