Will Noah Hanifin Stay with the Calgary Flames?

The Calgary Flames have been the subject of frequent trade speculation this season, with much of the focus on Noah Hanifin. 

Slated to become a UFA on July 1 along with Elias Lindholm and Chris Tanev, the 26-year-old defenseman could draw plenty of interest if he becomes available leading up to the March 8 trade deadline.

Back in October, it appeared that Hanifin and Flames were closing in on a contract extension. However, the club's slow start to this season put those talks and those with Lindholm and Tanev on hold. By December, there was trade speculation linking Hanifin to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils.

On Saturday, however, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported those talks between Flames management and Hanifin's representatives could be back on. Friedman had felt there was no chance of the two sides renewing those discussions, but he now believes they might pick up where they left off.

Earlier in the week, Friedman's colleague Eric Francis made the case for the Flames to revisit efforts to sign Hanifin to an extension. He indicated that they had been close to an eight-year extension worth an average annual value of $7.5 million before talks were shut down.

Francis pointed out that the defenseman is only 26 and wants to stay in Calgary. He also believed it would make sense for the Flames to retain their No. 3 defenseman.

Friedman isn't ruling out the possibility of the two sides reaching an agreement, but he's not putting any odds on it. Nevertheless, the fact both sides are willing to at least revisit those talks offers a glimmer of hope to Flames fans that at least one of their key pending UFAs could stick around beyond this season.