Insider Trading: Could Noah Hanifin be headed to an American team? (And some Tanev tidbits, too)

First up: Chris Johnston with a bit of intel on Hanifin:

Well, the Flames have made a concerted effort to sign the pending unrestricted free-agent defenceman. And look, they may still have another push to try to get that done. But with a little bit more than two weeks to go before the deadline, it’s seeming increasingly likely that the 27-year-old defenceman will be moved elsewhere. And he’s got some say in the matter. He’s got eight teams on a no-trade clause – a limited no-trade clause. I’m told that they’re not all Canadian teams and that there’s maybe an open destination there. But the feeling is he’s going to end up south of the border because it is believed to be his preference to sign his next contract somewhere in the U.S. And as we look for destinations where he might land, there’s a number of teams with interest, but keep your eye on the Tampa Bay Lightning. They’re always the stealth operators at the deadline and they’re believed to be looking at him with Mikhail Sergachev out injured.

The storyline of Hanifin preferring to go back to the United States dates back to June, and both Elliotte Friedman and our pal Frank Seravalli have discussed it extensively in the intervening months. Recently, Seravalli has connected Tampa Bay with Hanifin, and it makes a lot of sense given basic geography – Tampa is in the United States – and how damn good the Lightning are.

Hanifin does hold a bit of sway due to his limited no-trade clause, and the Flames probably would get more out of a trade if the acquiring team thought it could be more than a rental. (Case in point: last season Boston paid big-time to get Hampus Lindholm, and signed him to an extension the day after the trade.) We shall see who else emerges as a contender for Hanifin’s services, both in the short and longer terms, between now and the deadline.

Oh, and here’s Darren Dreger connecting the impressive Dallas Stars – who acquired heart-and-soul blueliner Kris Russell from the Flames in 2016 – with heart-and-soul blueliner Chris Tanev:

They’d like to add an experienced right-shot defenceman, a lot of teams would like to add that, so they’re looking at some of the usual suspects. Chris Tanev ticks a lot of boxes because the Dallas Stars would also like to add a key penalty killer, and we know that Tanev can provide that.

Dreger also noted that Detroit and New Jersey are also searching for blueliners.

The 2023-24 NHL trade deadline is 1 p.m. MT on Friday, March 8.