The time is ticking to deal away pending UFA Noah Hanifin, and the saga around Jacob Markstrom continues to play

It’s the final countdown to the March 8 trade deadline.

And despite all the Calgary Flames have done, there’s still more work to be done — namely something involving pending unrestricted free-agent defenceman Noah Hanifin.

As much as the Flames have been under the spotlight all season because of their slew of pending UFAs, the focus will become even greater — even after already dealing away Nikita Zadorov, Elias Lindholm and Chris Tanev this season.

Here’s a look at the latest speculation/rumours as the Flames hold out hope for a playoff push, sitting five points back of a spot with 22 games remaining and after Saturday's thrilling 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins:

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet noted the long-said rumour Hanifin’s preferred landing place is Tampa Bay and the clubs (and we assume his agent) are “working at it”. It is worth noting the Lightning have a limited prospect pool and are without their first-round picks in both 2024 and 2025, as well as this year’s second-round selection.

According to Kevin Weekes of ESPN, the Florida Panthers are pushing with the hopes of signing Hanifin to a contract extension. The Panthers, a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, have a handful of defencemen who are pending UFAs in Brandon Montour, Gustav Forsling, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Dmitry Kulikov (not to mention a whack of forwards, headlined by Sam Reinhart). It would be no shock the Panthers make a push for Hanifin, who could be a lynchpin for many seasons.

If the Flames can work out a deal that involves an extension first, Calgary would benefit with more in the return.

Goaltender Jacob Markstrom caused waves on Friday when he voiced his unhappiness with how his situation has been handled. Markstrom, who has two seasons beyond this campaign on his six-year deal was reportedly close to being dealt to the New Jersey Devils late last month, but that was reportedly quashed over expectations of the Flames retaining a chunk of his $6 million salary, and the belief is Markstrom did not like being approached about a potential deal only to have it pulled back.

Pierre LeBrun and The Athletic reported the Devils are now willing to absorb Markstrom’s entire cap hit, and have resumed their chase. (If you watched the Devils lose to Anaheim on Friday, you’d understand why.)  Friedman added the Devils may pursue a deal in the summer “if the Devils don’t acquire another goalie with team next week.”

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