TAMPA — Noah Hanifin woke up in Tampa Wednesday morning as a member of the Calgary Flames.
He’ll practice this afternoon wearing red in preparation for a game tomorrow he likely won’t play in.
If he does suit up Thursday at Amalie Arena, there’s a better chance he’d do so as a member of the host Tampa Bay Lightning than the Flames.
If he isn’t traded by the Flames by Thursday afternoon, surely the Flames wouldn’t risk injury to their smooth-skating asset by playing him in the final game before Friday’s trade deadline.
There’s too much at stake.
What exactly those stakes are have been the focus of GM Craig Conroy’s attention for several weeks, as he has begrudgingly shopped the 27-year-old to all of the 24 teams that aren’t on Hanifin’s no-trade list.
Conroy would much prefer announcing Hanifin has signed an eight-year extension with the team, but once that was rejected by the defenceman, the Flames and Hanifin’s agent have worked hard at nailing down the perfect suitor.
Catch is, the two sides have differing views on what that looks like.
The Flames would simply like to maximize return, which isn’t easy when the player has a relatively small list of teams he’d consider signing a long-term extension with.
After all, the return diminishes if he’s traded as a rental.
It hurts more when the pool of teams still in the running have depleted resources with which to make a deal.
Which brings us back to Tampa, widely believed to be his most desired landing spot.
As the most versatile and desirable defenceman on the market, the Boston native also happens to be a perfect fit on a team that would very much like to fill the shoes (and LTIR space) of Mikhail Sergachev, who broke his leg last month.
Long term, who wouldn’t want to add a staple like Hanifin, who is having the best season of his career as he enters his prime as a veteran of over 600 NHL games already?
Problem is, the Lightning’s list of top prospects ranks amongst the league’s worst, and they don’t have a first- or second-rounder in this summer’s draft.
Nor do they have a first-round pick next year.
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If a deal between those two teams could work, a third team may have to get involved, which is becoming standard with big swaps.
Hanifin’s long-time pal, Matthew Tkachuk, has long touted the virtues of wearing flip-flops to work with a contender in a tax-free state, making the Florida Panthers another team in his sights.
They too have interest, but few attractive enough prospects to overcome the absence of their first two picks this year and being without their first in 2025.
Hanifin’s hometown Bruins need defensive help moving forward, but they too have mortgaged their future and are without any of their first three picks this year.
And so, Conroy pushes forward, in search of the package he hopes will include a first-rounder, top prospect and roster player.
Flames fans need to brace themselves for a return for Hanifin that pales in comparison to the windfall Elias Lindholm netted the Flames.
So why even bring Hanifin on this trip?
Many have joked it’s simply a free ride to the Sunshine State, where he could be dropped off here in Tampa, or Friday in Sunrise, where the Flames play the Panthers Saturday.
Forever striving for normalcy, Flames coach Ryan Huska will tell you it’s business as usual with Hanifin until told otherwise.
But surely management wouldn’t let Hanifin suit up for the Flames Thursday.
Would the Flames dare make a swap in time for Hanifin to dress for the Bolts?
Or do you wait out that awkwardness?
Let’s be clear, while Hanifin’s short list of long-term landing spots complicates Conroy’s quest, the player is by no means “holding the team hostage,” as some have put it.
Given the fact NHLers essentially have to wait until age 27 to call their own shot, only a fool would suggest he should have to sign long-term in a city he isn’t interested in.
As a former player, Conroy understands that.
And so, the search continues for the fit that best serves the Flames.
You can bet Hanifin packed several extra suits for the trip, you can bet he’s got another set of bags in Calgary that his fiancée is prepping to bring to his new destination, and you can bet this is as nerve-wracking a time for him as it is for Conroy.
Other than that, all bets are off.
