A report over the weekend from David Pagnotta indicated that the Tampa Bay Lightning are the latest team to enter the trade market looking to acquire a defenceman.
Enter: The Calgary Flames. With two pending unrestricted free agents in Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev, an interconference trade could be a digestible route to take.
Noah Hanifin
Despite the Calgary Flames lacking depth on the blueline due to the departures of Nikita Zadorov and Nick DeSimone via trade and waivers claim respectively, they still have two very intriguing defencemen who are expiring unrestricted free agents.
Noah Hanifin is the biggest name, of course, and though there has been smoke about a potential extension for Hanifin and not a trade, there was cold water thrown on that idea this weekend.
With the Flames going on a four-game losing streak and being just two points out of sixth last in the NHL, many believe the Flames will shift into sell mode soon, which would spell the end of a Hanifin extension in Calgary.
If so, Hanifin could be on the radar of the Lightning. He’s on a reasonable deal and adds an element to their blueline lost by Mikhail Sergachev. As a contending team tight to the cap, it would be tough for the Lightning to fit Hanifin in with the extension he’s looking for on his next deal, though, so this would probably be a pure rental.
Not sure if that would yield the package the Flames would want, but the Lightning haven’t been shy about ponying up for solid rentals in the past.
Chris Tanev
The player that seems more of a fit is fearless defenceman Chris Tanev. Lots of teams are interested in acquiring his services including the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators, but he could be the perfect addition to the Lightning.
Right now, teams are hesitating to up their packages to make the deal happen, and with the Lightning being bolder than most others in the league, they could easily swoop in and grab Tanev from under the nose of Brad Treliving, and other GMs.
Tanev is the perfect player to play a third pairing and top penalty kill role on a contending team. He’s also on a reasonable deal that the Flames wouldn’t hesitate to retain money on, and the Lightning could easily offer an enticing package considering Tanev won’t fetch a first-round pick.
As well, the Lightning have a good chance of extending him after this season if things go well. It makes a ton of sense.
Recouping assets
Craig Conroy’s asset management comes into play now and onwards until the trade deadline. Getting returns on pending UFAs is a surefire way to guarantee that players can’t walk for nothing by the season’s end.
In the wise words of Sportsnet’s Eric Francis: “Let the trading begin.”
Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire
