NHL Trade Rumors: Flames & Golden Knights Linked to Blockbuster

The NHL's trade market is frozen at the moment, but once the holidays are over, look for a slew of moves to come before the Olympic break. January's going to be a busy month of transactions, and one player you can expect to see traded is Calgary Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson.

Andersson recently admitted the Flames haven't approached him about a contract extension, cemented the writing on the wall that a deal is coming. He's a pending UFA, having a monster season for the Flames, and is likely sticking in the Western Conference.

The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun sees the Flames moving Andersson to the Vegas Golden Knights. A team that is always in the middle of the big-fish sweepstakes, and has pulled of multiple bold trades. 

There’s always a chance that the Flames re-sign the pending UFA, top-four right-handed defenseman. But it’s not the likeliest outcome at this point.

Why a trade to Vegas? Well, to start, it came pretty close to happening in June. And in my mind, the Knights still have a hole in their lineup from Alex Pietrangelo missing the season. The problem is that Vegas would have to find a new way to entice the Flames, as the Knights have traded away some of the players who were in the June trade discussion (such as Nicolas Hague to the Nashville Predators).

But here’s another reason I like Vegas as a fit: The Flames know that in a perfect world, they trade Andersson with an agreement that he’ll sign an extension with his new team, to augment the trade return. Andersson was willing to extend with Vegas in the summer as part of a potential trade. Let’s see both clubs revisit this scenario then.

Andersson is owed $4.5 million AAV this season, and holds a six-team no-trade clause. He's posted 25 points in 37 games this season for the Flames, and leads the team in minutes played. Vegas is a contender, and adding Andersson would be a huge boost to their lineup.

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