The return on Rasmus Andersson is woven into the fabric of the answer to whether or not the Calgary Flames can reach 97-plus points and ultimately secure a playoff berth next season.

What exactly will the package for Andersson look like? This question is perhaps the most integral to the Flames’ playoff pursuit. I don’t mean to get too philosophic, but there are layers to this conundrum, like an onion’s worth of layers.

When will Andersson be moved between now and the deadline? And how will the market have fluctuated in that period?

How will Andersson fare this season? And can he remain healthy?

Which teams is he willing to sign an extension with? And how many?

How will the team fare as a whole? And how will that impact the nature of the assets they’ll seek in return?

I know I’m supposed to be answering questions instead of posing them, but I think it’s important to emphasize the many variables at play here.

Anyways, let’s get down to brass tacks.

Every good trade starts with the right trade partner. The candidates interested in Andersson will all be contending teams, and what are contending teams seemingly always willing to shell out? Picks, prospects, and occasionally a young player. Those kinds of future assets certainly float Craig Conroy’s boat as he’s continually acquired them for aging players, as any rebuilding manager should do.

Hence, Andersson for picks/prospects is the most likely scenario by a landslide. But what will that mean for “the chase”? Nothing good, unfortunately.

The other scenario, and one that’s more conducive to making the playoffs, is that the Flames deal Andersson in a so-called “hockey trade” and acquire an impact player or two.

The issue is that whoever is willing to trade for the Swedish blueliner likely isn’t too keen on giving up good players to do so, in what could be seen as a lateral move.

There’s Jordan Kyrou of the St Louis Blues, a perennial 30-goal scoring right-shot winger. But Kyrou carries risk as a 27-year-old who’s on a hefty contract ($8 million AAV) into his mid-30s.

Others that wouldn’t be hard to pry from their respective NHL clubs include Bowen Byram, Jonathan Marchessault, Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson, etc.

But does Andersson actually want to go to any of these teams? And does a player-for-player trade even make sense for the Flames? Only if their sole focus is getting into the post-season, and that’s probably not a good philosophy at this stage of a rebuild.

All things considered, it’s hard to see a scenario in which Andersson’s eventual departure doesn’t hurt Calgary’s odds at a playoff spot.

As the longest tenured Flame behind captain and fellow Swede Mikael Backlund, Andersson is more than just a formidable defenceman; he’s quite possibly the heartbeat of the team and locker-room.

That said, parting ways seems to be the best option for both sides. And who knows, maybe the subtraction of Andersson leads to a breakout season for one of the many defensive prospects waiting in the wings.