Rasmus Andersson named NHL First Star of the Week

[BACKCHECK!!!]

Originally Posted by dino7c

What? I thought they were idiots for not trading him last week, or last month, or last summer

Yes.

If they end up trading him for a bigger haul than Carlo got last trade deadline (which is a reasonable estimate of his value at that time), then I will gladly admit that they were right and I was wrong.

That hasn’t happened yet.

But for now he’s brought no return, other than helping bump us from 32nd to 31st place.

[PepsiFree]

Hope he re-signs in Calgary for 8 years. Great leader, great player.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Hope he re-signs in Calgary for 8 years. Great leader, great player.

Ya it would be great to sign him longterm. Something all Flames fans can get behind, solidifying our backend and then work on the forwards. If they can’t sign him then trade him for futures. Either one is a victory for the franchise.

[jaikorven]

Originally Posted by Aarongavey

Ya it would be great to sign him longterm. Something all Flames fans can get behind, solidifying our backend and then work on the forwards. If they can’t sign him then trade him for futures. Either one is a victory for the franchise.

I have no issue signing him long term, just not that long term. I prefer 5 or 6 years, but he likely won't accept that.

[Roko]

Re-signing him would be a mistake.

[BACKCHECK!!!]

[Burning Beard]

I like Rasmus. It isn't ideal if he re-signs but it's not the end of the world either.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Hope he re-signs in Calgary for 8 years. Great leader, great player.

The way we deal with Andersson is a win-win in my eyes. I love the guy and hope we can come to an agreement on an 8 year extension as a reasonable $ value.

*If* we do extend him though, I would hope we figure out a way to trade Brzu+ for an upgrade on forward. Brzu deserves a top 4 RD spot down the road and Andersson/Parekh would take that away. Weegs can go left side.

[Goriders]

Better trade him right f’ing now!

[traptor]

Yeah let's lock down this d-core so we can keep missing the playoffs while picking jn the teens. Fun times.

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by traptor

Yeah let's lock down this d-core so we can keep missing the playoffs while picking jn the teens. Fun times.

That is the risk when you have good players, sometimes the team wants to keep them.

[PepsiFree]

Watching good players is fun.

[Rhett44]

Keeping him would be a disaster.

[musth]

Originally Posted by ForeverFlameFan

as a reasonable $ value.

Well, that's the rub, isn't it? It was reported a long time ago that the difference between what the player wanted at this stage of his career, and what the team offered at the stage of their rebuild, is vastly different. I can't imagine, especially since Backs said 'he's going to be traded', that its gotten appreciably closer.

[Bend it like Bourgeois]

Originally Posted by Rhett44

Keeping him would be a disaster.

He’ll kill puppies. For sure.
If not you should, just to make it true.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Oh man...

I love Rasmus, I truly do. While Backlund has the letter of "captain" I really think Rasmus is the heartbeat of the team. If and when he goes, it will leave a gaping hole.

But...here are your options Flames fans.

Option 1: Sign a fan favorite and very good two-way defenseman to an 8 year deal, which kicks in at the age of 30. You will get 3-4 really good years from him, but they will be spent during a period of bottoming out in the standings, and it will have no meaningful impact for regular season or playoff success. By the time the team is good, he will be declining, and will be relegated to a secondary or tertiary role. His contract will not be good value and may prevent them from signing some young RFAs to a long term deal, or block them from getting key UFAs to push them over the top.

Option 2: You trade him at his career peak for a massive haul of assets, let's say a 1st round pick that turns into a 2nd line winger...or perhaps, a 2nd pair defender on the level of Andersson. In addition, you get a good B-level prospect that turns into a good depth or role player. You also get a roster player in return that is a bit of a cap dump who helps to fill the role of "veteran" on a rebuilding team. The contract that you did NOT sign him to leaves plenty of cap space to keep the young core together long term, or sign a key UFA to push the team over the top and make a major playoff run.

I'm all for emotional attachment to good players who bleed Flames colors, but the smart play is option 2 every time.

[Groot]

Originally Posted by Cali Panthers Fan

Oh man...

I love Rasmus, I truly do. While Backlund has the letter of "captain" I really think Rasmus is the heartbeat of the team. If and when he goes, it will leave a gaping hole.

But...here are your options Flames fans.

Option 1: Sign a fan favorite and very good two-way defenseman to an 8 year deal, which kicks in at the age of 30. You will get 3-4 really good years from him, but they will be spent during a period of bottoming out in the standings, and it will have no meaningful impact for regular season or playoff success. By the time the team is good, he will be declining, and will be relegated to a secondary or tertiary role. His contract will not be good value and may prevent them from signing some young RFAs to a long term deal, or block them from getting key UFAs to push them over the top.

Option 2: You trade him at his career peak for a massive haul of assets, let's say a 1st round pick that turns into a 2nd line winger...or perhaps, a 2nd pair defender on the level of Andersson. In addition, you get a good B-level prospect that turns into a good depth or role player. You also get a roster player in return that is a bit of a cap dump who helps to fill the role of "veteran" on a rebuilding team. The contract that you did NOT sign him to leaves plenty of cap space to keep the young core together long term, or sign a key UFA to push the team over the top and make a major playoff run.

I'm all for emotional attachment to good players who bleed Flames colors, but the smart play is option 2 every time.

Alternative scenario
Option 1: Sign a fan favorite and very-good 2-way defender to an 8-year contract. He follows current trends of players being effective into their mid-30's but by that time Parekh and Brzustewicz have pushed him to 3rd pairing, making him one of the best 3rd pair defenders in the league. With Weegar, Bahl, Kuznetsov on the left side, the D core is locked for years, with the added punch Parekh and Brzustewicz bring. We now have a surplus of defensive prospects to address offensive holes, plus a deep forward prospect pool. Flames still get a top-5 or top-3 draft pick this season for an elite offensive weapon, plus the Vegas pick and a high 2nd. Gridin and Coronato keep developing, and Reschny develops into a legit NHL center. The Flames are already trending upwards when the new arena opens.

Option 2: You trade away a fan favorite for magic beans. Neither of the picks play more than 10 NHL games, and the Flames RD is stunted because you're pushing your top D prospects too far up the lineup too quickly. Even with a series of top picks, the development of Flames D is stifled and while we can score a bunch, our atrocious defense keeps us in the bottom of the league for a failed rebuild.

Not saying the above would happen, but there is no crystal ball to predict the future.

[cam_calderon]

Do rebuilding teams often sign good but not exceptional D who are about to turn 30 to an eight-year deal?

[Rhett44]

Originally Posted by cam_calderon

Do rebuilding teams often sign good but not exceptional D who are about to turn 30 to an eight-year deal?

Not a team that is smart, nope.

[cam_calderon]

I echo a lot of the sentiment here, it's been great to see him hit a hot run of form, and I didn't even realise how many points he'd amassed so far this season. Together with Cooley's infectious attitude, and stringing some Ws together, there is less misery around the team recently.

But to let sentiment cloud managements' judgement and extend Rasmus would be a complete disaster.