5 teams that could be good trade fits for Rasmus Andersson

Gang, the future of Calgary Flames forward Rasmus Andersson is a bit fuzzy right now.

Okay, here’s what we know: Andersson is a damn good blueliner – his recent plus/minus rating notwithstanding – and he’s somebody that plays a big role with the Flames on and off the ice. But Andersson is entering the final year of his current contract in 2025-26 and he’s in line for a substantial raise over his current $4.55 million cap hit.

Given Andersson’s age, expected cap hit, and where the Flames are within their retooling process, there are reasons to think that moving Andersson in a trade could be more beneficial for the Flames than re-signing him to another long-term deal.

So… where might be good fits for Andersson?

Narrowing it down

There are 31 other NHL clubs, but we’re going to use a few criteria to narrow things down.

• Good Teams: Andersson has a limited no-trade clause and has some control over where he lands, and if you’re the Flames, you would probably like to send him somewhere he could win, if possible. (Andersson’s been a good Flame, so there’s some goodwill there and ideally you want to see him succeed wherever he ends up.) We’re limiting this to teams that made the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs.
• First-Rounders Available: If you’re the Flames, you would like to get a first-round pick back in the trade, so you’re probably looking at teams that have at least two first-rounders over the next three drafts. Nine of the 16 playoff teams from this year would fit here.
• Need Right Shots: There should ideally be a hockey fit for Andersson wherever he goes, rather than chucking him onto a team where there’s no obvious spot for him.

Cap space isn’t really a big concern, as Andersson’s cap hit could get as low as $2.275 million should the Flames opt to retain up to half of his deal.

5 teams worth considering

We narrowed things down to five teams that we think meet all three criteria that we set out above.

Los Angeles

The Kings are a divisional rival of the Flames, but they know how good Andersson is. They’re also light on the right side, with Drew Doughty under contract (after an injury-filled 2024-25 season), Jordan Spence and Brandt Clarke as restricted free agents, and Kyle Burroughs potentially on the way out as an unrestricted free agent. Andersson would be a key piece for them.

Ottawa

Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch floated the idea of Andersson heading to Canada’s capital last week, and it makes a lot of sense. Their right side boasts Artem Zub and then some question marks, including Finnish 4 Nations competitor Nikolas Matinpalo.

St. Louis

Man, the Blues were fantastic down the stretch this season, but fell short in the playoffs. They have Colton Parayko and Justin Faulk on the right side, but adding Andersson would give them a great amount of balance on the back end.

Washington

John Carlson is a pending free agent and, all due respect to him, adding Andersson to the Capitals blueline would be a pretty solid upgrade. They already have a pretty deep forward group, and this would fill out their blueline quite a bit.

Winnipeg

The Jets have Neal Pionk and Dylan DeMelo on their right side, with Luke Schenn and Colin Miller pending free agents. Adding Andersson would really help round out their defensive group.

Which team do you thing would be the ideal fit for Andersson, if a trade comes to fruition?