Rasmus Andersson traded to the Vegas Golden Knights, joining Mitch Marner

According to TSN's Darren Dreger, it was announced that pending the official trade call to the NHL, the Vegas Golden Knights have acquired star defenseman Rasmus Andersson from the Calgary Flames:

This puts an end to the Andersson sweepstakes rumors that picked up heavily over the last few days, with speculation that the former Flames defenseman had played his last game at home on Saturday.

While it took a little bit, we know the return for the Calgary Flames and it's a hefty one involving two 2027 draft picks including a first-rounder although Andersson's salary is 50% retained:

Calgary gets Zach Whitecloud, a towering defender who loves to block shots and throw hits; he's the younger replacement for Andersson.

They also get Abram Wiebe, another big bodied defender with some offensive touch who is current in the NCAA with the University of North Dakota; he was drafted 209th overall in 2022 by Vegas.

In addition, Frank Seravalli reports that the Golden Knights traded for Andersson without a contract extension in place -- a situation that could become fruitful or cataclysmic for Vegas if he eschews an extension for the open market in the summer.

It's not too surprising to see Vegas acquire Andersson however, given that they have pursued him for essentially two seasons now. There was talks about him heading there last season but Calgary wanted to see if they could work things out.

Well, now he gets to join a very potent Vegas squad who is on a tear lately, and gets to join the other superstars like Jack Eichel, Pavel Dorofeyev and Mitch Marner.

The Maple Leafs, a team who were long interested in Andersson, aren't going to have to wait long to see him as the team will face Vegas on Jan. 23 in Toronto where Andersson will likely factor into a very intense matchup.

Whether or not he signs an extension is certainly a story to keep an eye on but this gives Andersson his first legitimate shot at a Stanley Cup and with a team who has a ton of support. He won't be a focal point but he doesn't need to be.

It's a disappointment for teams like Boston and Toronto who could have used him but there are still a couple other big names left on the market and now focus switches to where they'll head to next.

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