The situation with Rasmus Andersson has some layers to it, to be sure.
The 28-year-old right-shot top-four Calgary Flames defenseman doesn’t have a full no-trade clause (he has a modified one), but the 2026 unrestricted free agent’s ultimate hammer is that he controls which team he would be interested in extending with as part of a trade-and-sign scenario.
And as of Monday, the team that tops his list, league sources told The Athletic, is the Vegas Golden Knights.
Which explains why Vegas and Calgary have had numerous discussions over the past week, but still no trade has been made, as the Flames clearly haven’t been excited yet with what the Golden Knights have put on the table.
It makes sense that the Flames believe they should get more in a trade if Andersson is signed to an extension as part of it (he’s got one more year on his deal). But Andersson appears to be a little picky in where he would sign, which is obviously his right, as he would be forgoing a chance at unrestricted free agency 12 months from now.
GO FURTHER
NHL rumblings: Knights talking Andersson trade and latest on Marner, Marchand, Kyrou