Pair of teams are "primary suitors" for a Hanifin trade with Flames: report
If there are ever any guarantees with the Calgary Flames, it’s that they’re going to have no shortage of headlines around them basically every single offseason.
Defenceman Noah Hanifin, who has been the target of trade rumours for virtually his entire career, has “multiple teams” interested in trading for him, per a recent report.
In an article co-authored by The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, Michael Russo, and Eric Duhatschek, the trio speculated about a pair of Atlantic Division teams as the “primary suitors” for the Flames defenceman.
“Noah Hanifin (No. 5 on the trade board) could be the first of the group out the door. Multiple teams have shown interest,” The Athletic wrote. “The primary suitors appear to be Buffalo and Florida, two teams in need of a defenceman who can give them 20 steady minutes per game. And it helps that the 26-year-old is on an attractive contract ($4.95 million).”
The Flames are coming off a disappointing season where they missed the postseason by two points, finishing fifth in the Pacific Division and ninth in the Western Conference.
Hanifin has one season remaining on his six-year, $29.7 million deal. Hanifin had seven goals, 31 assists in 81 games this season, averaging 22:39 of ice time per game.
Joining the team in the 2018-19 season following a trade from Carolina centred around Dougie Hamilton, Hanifin has 31 goals, 125 assists and a plus-minus of +33 in 359 games for the Flames in his career.
But it seems like it’s only a matter of time before he’s shipped elsewhere in a trade.
According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on an episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast last week, Hanifin has “made his decision” about moving on from the Flames.
“In Calgary, we already know about Hanifin,” Friedman said. “He’s in a situation where at some point in time they’re probably going to move him.”