Hanifin eager to get to town and get settled
Newest Flame excited about Calgary move after signing six-year deal
While TJ Brodie and Mark Giordano were reacquainting themselves this summer, Travis Hamonic reached out to Noah Hanifin to welcome him to the Calgary Flames.
And to start to get to know his new, potential, defence partner.
“I’ve actually talked to Travis quite a few times over the summer,” Hanifin said on Friday after landing in Boston from Florida to finish packing his things before heading to Calgary to meet his new teammates later this weekend. “He’s a great guy and is a great teammate. Obviously he’s a great player as well. I think he’s going to be someone, if I do end up playing with him, I think it’ll be great.”
Keep in mind that the Flames don’t drop the puck until Sept. 15 in Shenzhen, China, their first exhibition game, so the lineup is still to be determined.
But after officially inking a sixyear deal worth an average annual value of $4.95-million, there’s a natural tendency to pencil Hanifin — a left-shot defenceman — with Hamonic on the right side.
It only makes sense given that Giordano and Brodie are expected to play together this season. With Hamonic’s careful, stay-at-home qualities and Hanifin’s flair for offence, the two could be a match. Plus, head coach Bill Peters understands Hanifin’s game having coached him for his first three seasons in the National Hockey League.
“I think we’ll form chemistry right away,” said Hanifin. “I think our games complement each other pretty well and he’s a great guy. He’s already made me feel welcome.”
With Flames general manager Brad Treliving finally reaching an agreement with Hanifin’s agent Pat Brisson, the two sides completed the deal prior to the Flames’ training camp which gets underway next week.
It was a busy summer for Treliving who had a pile of restricted free agents with arbitration rights, contracts that needed attention before Hanifin’s.
According to the 21-year-old Boston, Mass., native, it was never in doubt.
“It was obviously a bit of a process this summer,” Hanifin said. “But most of that was due to Brad having a busy off-season with all of the things going on. The whole time, I knew the deal was going to get done. Obviously it’s a bit late into the summer but I’m happy it’s all done with and go out to Calgary and get settled.”
The deal keeps Hanifin in Flames’ colours through the 202324 season and makes him the second-highest paid defenceman on the team’s roster.
“I knew I wanted to do a longterm deal,” he said. “Six years is pretty ideal and something we wanted to do. It’s a long time but I’m pretty excited about it. I just want to get there and get settled as quickly as I can and get on the ice with the guys and figure out the city. I’m excited to get out there and learn more about it. I think it’s going to be a great place to live for the next six years.”
He’s also thrilled with the moves Treliving made this summer which, along with the trade that also saw his Hurricanes teammate Elias Lindholm join the Flames, includes signing fellow Hurricane Derek Ryan and James Neal to the mix of Sean Monahan, Gaudreau, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Mark Jankowski among others.
“I believe in the strong core they have in Calgary and I think they have a bright future,” Hanifin said. “We’re going to be a pretty dangerous team in the league so I was glad both sides reached an agreement.”
At the moment, Hanifin has plans to move into the same condo building as Johnny Gaudreau, a guy he’s familiar with, having played at Boston College with his brother Matty.
Last season, Hanifin averaged 18:52 in icetime which was fourth among Hurricanes defencemen, and was a minus-20 but led all of Carolina’s defencemen with 10 goals and 22 assists. He had 18 goals and 65 assists for 83 points during those 239 career appearances.
It’s a long time, a big commitment to the Flames. But after playing his first three NHL seasons, the former fifth overall pick from the 2015 NHL draft is ready to take the next step.
“I’m coming around 300 games this coming year and I think it’s just about experience in the league,” said Hanifin, who will arrive in Calgary on Sunday. “I know things about myself I can work on and I can flourish at in the league. My first few years were a good stepping stone to the next step I want to take in Calgary. I want to play more minutes and play against tougher guys. I’m excited about it. I think I learned a lot about me as a player in the league in my first years. It’s a great development curve for me.
“But I’m ready to take it to the next level and excited to do it in Calgary.”