The hockey world was shaken mere weeks before Christmas upon learning that Quinn Hughes had been dealt to the Minnesota Wild. First, because no one had even mentioned Minnesota as a potential Hughes destination. Second, because he’s one of the premier defencemen in the league, it was shocking that Vancouver acted so quickly.

But after learning that Hughes wasn’t going to re-sign three weeks ago, the Canucks acted quickly and secured a very solid package in return, while committing to a rebuild. How does this move affect the Flames, who find themselves competing with the Canucks for the bottom of the NHL standings?

How does this affect the Flames and Rasmus Andersson

While Hughes is a few echelons above Andersson and they play different sides, I think the Flames will benefit from having the premier defensive option off the board. Teams in need of a premier defensive upgrade will now have to turn to Calgary, as the trade market is quite thin.

I look at a team like Detroit—who I personally see as a fit for Andersson—checking in with Calgary after they missed out on Hughes. Edvinsson and Sandin-Pellikka emerging on the blueline have helped this season, but it still remains an area of weakness. Yzerman was quoted as saying he was looking at making moves to improve the blueline in the offseason, but hasn’t done so yet. The Red Wings have the futures available to complete an Andersson deal.

Of the teams that Pierre mentions, I really only see Detroit and Buffalo making sense, and we know the latter is likely on Andersson’s six-team no-trade list.

The arms race in the Central

From a Central Division perspective, there are a few teams that could ring up Calgary to inquire.

Dallas Stars

I wonder if this entices the Dallas Stars to make a play for Rasmus Andersson. Colorado looks unbeatable on any given night, while the Wild are creeping up behind them. After the Hughes trade, they look like one of the best rosters in the league if their strong goaltending tandem holds up.

Does Dallas, who has been connected to Andersson for a while, make a play to upgrade their defence in response? With Tyler Seguin on LTIR, they have the cap space to make something work. Insiders have been connecting the Stars and Flames quite a bit in recent weeks, even mentioning that the Stars have interest in Nazem Kadri and Blake Coleman alongside Andersson.

I don’t love the Stars’ asset pool, as I doubt they are keen on parting with young cost-controlled guys like Lian Bischel or Mavrik Bourque. They do hold their 2027 first-rounder and their 2026 and 2027 second-rounders, but the next available first after 2027 would be in 2029. They likely have the assets required to land Andersson or one of the mentioned forwards, but I don’t know how they make a trade for a forward and defenceman without including one of Bischel or Bourque.

Minnesota Wild

Turning back to the Wild, they are a team that could sure use a Nazem Kadri in their centre core now, if they could make the money work. Given the Wild’s pursuit of Brock Nelson at the last deadline, I can imagine that Kadri would fit a similar archetype they’re looking for. After moving Rossi, they definitely have a hole to fill behind Joel Eriksson-Ek.

Utah Mammoth

While Utah hasn’t had the best season, they’re building towards a playoff contender and are another team that makes a lot of sense for Andersson, assuming they can get him to agree to an extension before acquiring him. They are flush with draft capital and have shown interest in Andersson in the past.

They’re going to have to look at adding real impact players if they want any shot at competing in the Central. Could the Flames figure out a way to pry Tij Iginla out of Utah’s hands? Maybe there’s a bigger move to be made here. I certainly like the archetypes of Logan Cooley and Nazem Kadri as a one-two punch.

The race for the bottom

Losing Quinn Hughes definitely hurts the Canucks on any given night. But I wonder if they play a little bit looser with the trade chatter quieting down. The noise around the Vancouver market was deafening for the last number of weeks.

They put together a 2–1 win over the Devils on the back of a goal and an assist from newly acquired Zeev Buium. A healthy Marco Rossi should help to plug the Canucks hole at centre. The noise shouldn’t remain quiet for long, though, as names like Kiefer Sherwood and Evander Kane are heading out the door between now and the March 6 trade deadline. I don’t see enough on the roster to proclaim that they will take any big steps, so they are likely to land a top-three spot in the draft lottery.

Something I haven’t seen anyone talking about: Calgary holds Vancouver’s 2026 third-rounder from the Nikita Zadorov trade a few years back. If the Canucks stay this bad, that pick will basically be a late second-rounder in a deep draft. Not a bad spot for Calgary to find themselves in. You could add another late second-rounder if the Flames stay this bad, as well.

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