Source: Not Hearing Hanifin’s Name on NHL Trade Market

Noah Hanifin and the Boston Bruins may forever be connected in NHL trade rumours. The Calgary Flames blueliner played his college days at Boston College. And the Bruins are fairly desperate for some help on the back end.

But while the storyline of a glorious Hanifin return to Beantown might be grand over in Boston, it likely wouldn’t play the same here on the Rocky Mountain range.

In Boston Hockey Now on Friday, colleague Jimmy Murphy shared that an NHL source told BHN he hadn’t heard Hanifin’s name out there in NHL trade chatter lately. Considering all that Hanifin offers the Calgary Flames lineup, it shouldn’t be all that surprising.

Locked up for two more seasons at a reasonable $4.9-million AAV, dealing Hanifin would be a mistake for a team locked and loaded for a run at the Stanley Cup. They signed Jonathan Huberdeau to a long-term extension after wrangling him from the Florida Panthers in the Matthew Tkachuk trade.

The other headliner from the deal, MacKenzie Weegar, told the media on Friday that he’s still working on an extension with the Flames as well.

They inked a Cup winner from last year, Nazem Kadri, to a seven-year deal.

These guys are all in their late 20s and early 30s. The team had to offer that kind of term to lock in their competitive pieces. But it’s not about increasing their Cup chances down the road — it’s all about winning now.

Hanifin helps you do that. And unless you’re getting a piece back that is a true impact player, there’s no advantage to trading him.

So, barring some miraculous deal that makes David Pastrnak the Calgary Flames best right-winger since the departure of Jarome Iginla, the Bruins conversation is a non-starter.

At least when it comes to Hanifin.

But Murphy was right when it comes to the Calgary Flames defensive stock. It makes them a potentially big player on the NHL trade market during training camp. GM Brad Treliving confirmed even as late as the eve before camp that he’s still testing the waters on the NHL trade market.

They’ll be without Oliver Kylington indefinitely as last year’s breakout blueliner sits out the start to camp dealing with a personal family matter.

But they’ve got plenty of one-way blueliner contracts and an always-on-standby Michael Stone, who’s signed to a PTO right now. Even while waiting for Kylington, it’s a position of strength.

Chris Tanev is nearly back to 100 per cent after shoulder surgery. He’s been partnering up with Weegar early on. Nikita Zadorov is also healthy again following his playoff ribs injury. Big Z is paired with Nicolas Meloche in Group A. That pegs Meloche as the guy most likely to grab the seventh spot.

That leaves prospect Juuso Valimaki on the longer list of those likely to make the opening-night roster. Or become trade fodder for a team like the Bruins.

Would a prospect like Valimaki, who got his NHL shot too, be a guy the Bruins covet?

Because if they’re looking for a trade for a player with  a longer NHL resume, they’re busy on a Cup hunt at the moment.