Insider Drops Intriguing Noah Hanifin Trade Talk Update

As Noah Hanifin remains one of the top trade candidates around the NHL in the weeks and months to come, an intriguing new twist on what the Calgary Flames are planning has been revealed. 

According to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun, the Flames are hoping to pull off a sign-and-trade for Hanifin:

I still expect Hanifin to get dealt at some point. In his case, the idea from everyone involved is that he gets dealt as a signed player – that there's an extension in place for him wherever he ends up.

Indeed, the Flames and their workhorse blueliner were very close on an extension earlier in the season on an 8-year, $7.5M AAV deal, but they pulled it off the table after their very slow start and Hanifin's desire to hold off to see how the team performed going forward. 

Certainly, the Flames have vastly improved their stature over the last few weeks, losing only two of their last eight games, and now sitting at 9-10-3, potentially just one point out of playoff positioning. 

But LeBrun doesn't really think this recent run will change Calgary's decision to remake the roster, or to deal Hanifin:

"Why would it change between now and [the March 8 trade deadline]?," asked LeBrun, rhetorically. "Even if you make the playoffs, how deep in the playoffs is this Calgary Flames team going to go? You need to get assets back for some of these guys.”

Hanifin, along with fellow D-men Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov, are unrestricted free agents at the end of the season. But in this new Hanifin scenario, it seems like the two sides could revisit their contract negotiations, making for an easier path to getting a deal done with a team knowing they'll have the 26-year-old locked up long-term.

Photo: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports