Calgary Flames News

Home

Quizzes

Newsletter

Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

Flames and Sabres are Perfect Trading Partners for Rasmus Andersson

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Rupert McDonald | Last updated May 29, 2025 4:20 PM ET

The Calgary Flames and Rasmus Andersson are going to be parting ways. It may not come right away, but all signs are pointing towards the 28-year-old being traded by the only NHL organization he’s known to this point in his career. Some believe the deal will take place this offseason, while others have suggested it may not come until the 2026 Trade Deadline.

By no means are the Flames doing this out of frustration with Andersson. In fact, both parties appear to be quite happy with one another. The issue is that the Swedish defenceman is seeking out a long-term deal, and giving him that type of lucrative contract doesn’t make sense for the Flames with where they are as an organization.

Andersson is a player many teams would love to have, which should allow for the Flames to garner a sizable return. His $4.55 million cap hit for the 2025-26 season would also make him an easy add for many teams, including Stanley Cup contenders. That said, the Buffalo Sabres, who are far from a Cup contender, are needing to make a big push to turn things around, and could wind up being the next home for Andersson.

Sabres Need Blue Line Upgrade

While the Sabres do have some impressive young talent throughout their lineup, including the back end, they need an upgrade on their blue line if they hope to have any sort of success in 2025-26. They ended last season with Connor Clifton playing top-four minutes on their right side, and, with no disrespect to the 30-year-old, Andersson is a clear upgrade. In fact, most would agree Andersson is a better player than Mattias Samuelsson, who was playing top-pairing minutes for the Sabres this past season.

Andersson could immediately join the Sabres and play alongside fellow countryman Rasmus Dahlin on the Sabres’ top pairing for next season. It would not only give them a major upgrade in terms of on-ice play, but would add a veteran presence to a very young and inexperienced locker room.

Andersson, who has logged 536-career NHL games and an additional 27 in the playoffs, would bring a ton of experience to the Sabres. He has also served as a Flames alternate captain for the past three seasons, proving he has excellent leadership qualities.

Sabres Desperate to Make Moves

What makes the Sabres a great trading partner for the Flames is that there isn’t a franchise in the NHL more desperate to turn things around. They’ve now missed the playoffs for 14 straight seasons, which is the longest a team has gone without a postseason appearance in NHL history.

Sabres management, along with several other management groups around the NHL, is aware of how much Andersson could help in their goal of getting the organization back on track. That desperation could see them outbid all other teams, meaning the Flames could land an absolute premium for the two-way defenceman.

One name the Flames could be looking at in a trade with the Sabres is Bowen Byram, who is believed to be on the trading block heading into the summer. The 23-year-old, who was taken fourth overall in the 2019 NHL Draft, is set to become a restricted free agent this offseason.

Byram has a ton of potential, and is coming off a career season in which he had seven goals, 38 points, and a plus-11 rating in 81 games. His 22:42 per game ranked second amongst all Sabres players to only Dahlin, making that plus/minus all the more impressive on a team that finished 26th in the league standings.

The Sabres also have plenty of draft picks at their disposal, including their first-round pick in the next three upcoming drafts. They are slated to pick ninth overall this June, a pick which the Flames would love to grab as they continue their search for a future number-one centre.

Flames Waiting Patiently for Big Offer

The Flames hold all the cards for the time being, as they can hold onto Andersson into the 2025-26 season in hopes he can bounce back from an off 2024-25 campaign and raise his value even higher. That said, a team as desperate as the Sabres may be willing to make them an offer they can’t refuse this offseason, and it could be one that makes Flames fans even happier with the job general manager Craig Conroy has done since taking over two years ago.