Calgary Flames defenceman Rasmus Andersson has been a regular in the trade-rumour mill for a while now.

A pending unrestricted free agent, it seems like a foregone conclusion that the 28-year-old Swedish defenceman will be playing for a new team before the end of the 2025-26 season.

So much so that Flames captain Mikael Backlund felt comfortable saying the quiet part out loud during the NHL’s European player media tour.

“Yeah, he’s getting traded. It’s obvious,” Backlund said about his teammate, per Michael Russo of The Athletic.

“He wants a big contract,” Backlund said, adding that the “team wants value.”

Backlund noted that Andersson doesn’t want to be a distraction for his teammates.

“It’s too bad it’s come to this. I don’t think that they’re close to getting an agreement or anything, but you never know. Things could change. We’ll see.”

Andersson’s point totals dipped for the third year in a row last season. A 50-point defenceman in 2021-22, Andersson posted just 31 points last season. And his -38 plus-minus rating was third-worst in the NHL.

Still, right-shot defencemen with his resume get paid handsomely, and that should be no different for Andersson in free agency. So expect a big raise from his $4.55 million salary.

While the Flames have prospects in the pipeline, replacing Andersson won’t be easy. An all-situations player, Andersson ranked second on the Flames in average ice time (23:59), including big minutes on the power play (2:02) and penalty kill (2:31).

Calgary is set to enter the season with a whopping seven pending unrestricted free agents, which include Andersson and Backlund. But while Andersson looks to be as good as gone, Backlund wants to stay.

The other pending UFAs are Ryan Lomberg, Justin Kirkland, Jake Bean, Daniil Miromanov, and Devin Cooley.

Meanwhile, restricted free agent Connor Zary is still unsigned for next season.

Calgary is the only NHL home Andersson has ever known since being drafted in the second round of the 2015 NHL Draft. He made his NHL debut during the 2016-17 season and became a fixture on the Flames’ blue line in 2018-19.

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