Flames have long list of teams interested in pending UFA defencemen: report
The Calgary Flames will have no shortage of suitors regarding trade interest in their pending UFA defencemen.
The Flames have three valuable defencemen expected to move ahead of the trade deadline in Noah Hanifin, Chris Tanev, and Nikita Zadorov. All three have been linked heavily to both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Vancouver Canucks, but according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the actual list of interested teams is likely far larger.
“I think there are a lot more teams in there than we realize on these guys,” Friedman said on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast. “We kind of focused in on Toronto and Vancouver because we’re Canadian supremacists, but I think there are a lot more teams looking at these guys.”
The Flames were believed to have been discussing extensions with Hanifin and Tanev but have backtracked after a slow start to the season. It is now believed that they are hoping to trade both for young players who can make an immediate impact at the NHL level. This is a different strategy than you see from many teams selling rentals, who instead opt to receive draft picks or prospects in return.
As for Zadorov, there hadn’t been much discussion on him regarding an extension or potential trade through the first few weeks of the season. That changed dramatically when his agent, Dan Milstein, announced on X that the 28-year-old had requested a trade. Though the Flames are said to be in no rush to move him, it seems almost a guarantee that he will be wearing a new sweater before the 2023-24 season comes to an end.
While the next few months will be busy for Flames GM Craig Conroy, they will also be quite exciting. With all the teams expected to show interest in several of the Flames’ pending UFAs, Conroy will have an excellent opportunity to begin shaping the team’s future.
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