Right-shot defenceman who can log big minutes behind Moritz Seider. Yzerman clearly didn’t anticipate bringing Axel Sandin-Pellikka along this season because he was calling on a number of righties. Namely, Erik Karlsson and Dougie Hamilton at the time. Now, though, Detroit is linked to a right-handed defenceman yet again, and this time it’s a slightly bigger fish.

If you’re interested in checking out how these mock trades impact the teams involved, check out Box Score Junkie and the trades posted there.

Why Would Detroit be Interested in Andersson?

Like I said, right shot to play behind Seider. But more than that, Andersson can be the kind of player who is a top-four staple throughout the entire contention window. Andersson is effective on both ends of the ice; he’s able to take on solid competition while being effective, and he contributes well in the offensive end as well.

More than that, it gives Detroit a true top-pair calibre defenceman that can man the second pair. It’s fun to talk about how well-off Detroit is with Seider as the best defender on this team, but if he goes down, the right side needs help. It gives you options in a way that Detroit hasn’t had in a long time. Despite his stellar play, Seider still could use a bit of relief against the NHL’s elite players, and Andersson provides that.

It isn’t all sunshine and rainbows though. Andersson has long been rumoured to have a short list of teams that he wants to sign with in free agency. Headlined by Vegas and Dallas by most rumours, it seems like he wants a no-tax state that is in their cup window. Detroit certainly isn’t that.

Even if Detroit does convince him to stay, he’s still going to be very expensive, and they are due to pay Edvinsson a hefty payday this offseason as well. I don’t think Detroit is at the point where cap constraints would come into play, but I think the future outlook of it is cause for concern.

Another thing to look out for is the roadblocking of Axel Sandin-Pellikka. It depends on how you view his ultimate ceiling. If you view Sandin-Pellikka as a Shane Ghostisbehere type at his best, I’m sure you’d be comfortable getting Andersson to heavily shelter him and help him rack up points. If you view him as a Makar-lite, then I’d imagine you would want him on the second pair as someone who can dominate minutes through moving the puck.

The TLDR of this is that Detroit likely isn’t desperate for Andersson, but would sure love his services.

Mock Trade #1 *Extension In Place

Calgary Receives: 2026 1st round pick, Anton Johansson, Michael Rasmussen

Detroit Receives: Rasmus Andersson, 2026 3rd round pick, 2028 3rd round pick

Both sides largely come away from this deal with a handful of things they would like. Detroit gets Andersson with an extension in place, so their blue line is set for the contention window, and they can stock up elsewhere.

Calgary gets the first round pick that can push the rebuild forward. With that, they add Anton Johansson, a solid right-shot defensive prospect with great size. Ideally, he could fill out a bottom-pair role in the future. They also add Rasmussen, a big body who has been much improved as of late. They can flip him or keep him as a strong penalty killer with the ability to chip in offensively.

Because Calgary is likely to lose Andersson this offseason, Detroit has a bit more say in this deal. In return, they nab a pair of mid-round picks that they can use as either ammo in a trade or for more pieces. I think both sides come away from this deal fairly content with their results, given the context of both teams.

Mock Trade #2 *No Extension

Calgary Receives: Albert Johansson, 2026 2nd round pick, 2026 6th round pick (becomes a 2028 2nd if Detroit makes the second round)

Detroit Receives: Rasmus Andersson

Now, I don’t think Yzerman would make a trade without an extension, but if he were to grab Andersson for a rental, this is what it would probably look like. It would require Calgary knowing they can’t get a good deal for Andersson and confirmation that he won’t stay in the offseason for it to happen. So, I don’t exactly think either side is going to be too keen on this.

But, in the situation it gets to it, I could see this happening. Calgary gets a young defenceman who has been pretty ho-hum in Detroit. They also nab a solid pick in the second round and likely a late-round pick as well. The conditional second is fair, if Detroit makes it past the first round with Andersson on the team, they’re likely comfortable giving up a better pick.

Mock Trade #3

Calgary Receives: Jacob Bernard-Docker, Carter Mazur, 2026 2nd round pick (conditional pick, becomes a 2027 first round pick if Andersson re-signs with Detroit)

Detroit Receives: Rasmus Andersson

This is the middle ground right? Detroit trades away something of little value in the case that Andersson walks. Again, this depends on the conversations. If Yzerman believes that Andersson and his agent can be swayed into signing in the offseason, they’ll take the gamble.

Detroit puts themself in a position where they’re fine either way. Without staying, Andersson is just an upgrade on Bernard-Docker, whose contract was set to expire anytime. They also part ways with a second-round pick, which is the kind of deadline addition rental that might spark something in the locker room if Larkin’s comments had any validity.

Calgary again gets put into a spot where they don’t believe a better offer is out there, and Andersson won’t give a team assurance on where he wants to go. They receive two decent players and a solid pick, and they can see if there is anything there.

Again, it’s unlikely Yzerman makes a move without an extension in place, but if there isn’t one, it’s going to need to be a trade that he is comfortable with the team making.

Wrap Up:

I know, I know this is my third consecutive piece like this. I promise this isn’t all that is to come, but with the rumours being out, I might as well grab the views while they’re out there.

I considered talking about Dougie Hamilton, and if something else comes out about him, maybe I’ll do a similar piece about it, but I think Andersson is more realistic than he is. I don’t know that Yzerman wants Hamilton to be the guy who breaks Larkin’s internal cap number, especially with the Edvinsson contract being due at the end of the season. We’ll give it more discussion on the podcast as we get closer to the deadline for sure, but for now, I’m going off rumours.

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