Top 5 potential trade suitors for Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson

Calgary Herald

2 days ago

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As they try to scratch their way past the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference, Andersson could be an intriguing fit in Carolina. He offers more offensive oomph than most of their current blueliners — he equalled a career-high with 11 goals this winter — and can provide the sort of snarl that would be helpful in a future playoff run-in with the Panthers.
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The Hurricanes have long been frontrunners in analytics, so it would fascinating to hear their internal assessment of a guy who posted a cringe-worthy minus-38 rating during the 2024-25 campaign.
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They have more cap space than any other contender and, with a mighty mid-season swing on Mikko Rantanen, Hurricanes honcho Eric Tulsky showed he is willing to be aggressive.
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OTTAWA SENATORS
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Social-media general managers are often trying to play matchmaker between the Senators and Flames, but that's usually a case of fans in Ottawa hoping to bring MacKenzie Weegar back to his hometown.
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That's not gonna happen.
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Is Andersson a more realistic target?
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While it has been reported that Ottawa is one of his undesired destinations on his six-team no-trade list, he wants to be a playoff regular and the Senators are trending toward contender status. Their core pieces — a list headlined by Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Jake Sanderson — are mostly in their early- to mid-20s.
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Andersson could also appeal as a mentor to Calgary Hitmen standout Carter Yakemchuk, a fellow right-hander and Ottawa's first-round pick last summer.
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The Blue Jackets and Flames had similar storylines this past season — both teams overachieved, and did so while playing with heavy hearts, but ultimately missed the playoffs.
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The late Johnny Gaudreau was one of Andersson's close buddies, so you can bet he paid attention to what was happening in Columbus. The Blue Jackets and Flames both deserve major kudos for the way they honoured a superstar gone too soon.
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There is no need for a No. 1 defenceman in Columbus — Zach Werenski, who finished as runner-up in Norris Trophy voting, has that locked down — but they could use a strong second fiddle and that explains why they're rumoured to be interested in Andersson.
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The Blue Jackets hold a pair of first-round picks for this weekend, at Nos. 14 and 20, so that could spark the conversation.
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So isn't Andersson an ideal contingency plan as Ekblad's potential replacement for next season? Perhaps he and Gustav Forsling could even showcase themselves as a could-be combo for Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
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