News Flames Team Notes

[Calgary Flames]

Instant Reaction: Flames tame toothless Sharks

Welcome to Instant Reaction, where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Calgary Flames game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

The Calgary Flames played a pretty good hockey game on Thursday evening. They’ve played a few lately. On several occasions they’ve played pretty well and found ways to lose. But man, the San Jose Sharks did their best to make life easy for the Flames on Thursday night when the visited the Scotiabank Saddledome.

The Flames were the better team, by a fair margin, and managed to make a single goal seem like an insurmountable lead en route to a 2-0 triumph over the Sharks to snap their three game losing skid.

The rundown​

The Sharks just couldn’t get anything going in the first period. They had the puck sometimes, but couldn’t do very much with it. The first Sharks shot on goal did not occur until 15:45 into the first period. (That chance, a golden shorthanded opportunity for Collin Graf, was a stick save for Dustin Wolf.)

Dustin Wolf had to make one save in the 1st period and it was a difficult one.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/qtNKBUsBgG

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 14, 2025

The Flames didn’t have a ton of scary-good chances, but they dominated play.

First period shots were 13-1 Flames. Via Natural Stat Trick, 5v5 scoring chances were 19-1 Flames and high-danger scoring chances were 8-0 Flames.

The Flames opened the scoring 5:46 into the second period. Sam Dickinson coughed up the puck just inside the Sharks’ blueline and an alert Blake Coleman snatched the loose puck away from the teenager, skated in and beat Sharks netminder Yaroslav Askarov. That gave the Flames a 1-0 lead.

FLAMES GOAL

Blake Coleman takes advantage of a brutal Sharks turnover and goes bar down! That's his team leading 7th goal.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/NVz5AUWCgC

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 14, 2025

The Sharks were a little better in the second than they were in the first, but the Flames still carried play.

Second period shots were 15-4 Flames. 5v5 scoring chances were 15-4 Flames and high-danger scoring chances were 5-2 Flames.

The Sharks generated more in the third period than they did in the rest of the game, but they couldn’t solve Dustin Wolf.

Sam Honzek scored on an empty net with 4.2 seconds left in regulation to give the Flames a 2-0 lead, and the win.

Third period shots were 10-9 Sharks.

Why the Flames won​

For the vast majority of this hockey game, San Jose was really fighting it offensively. The Flames were pretty good at using sticks and positioning to disrupt whatever the Sharks were trying to do offensively, but the Sharks did their best to make it easy for them.

This game was as much the Sharks being not especially good as it was the Flames being pretty decent.

Red Warrior​

Let’s go with Dustin Wolf, who pitched a shutout.

Turning point​

We’ll go with Coleman’s game-winning goal in the second period.

This and that​

Rory Kerins made his season debut, swapping onto Nazem Kadri’s line and bumping Yegor Sharangovich to the press box.

For awhile, it looked the Flames were going to flirt with the fewest shots they’ve allowed in a game – they’ve held a team to 12 shots on goal eight times, most recently in 2004.

After Burner​

Join Mike Gould and Robert Munnich right after the game for After Burner!

Up next​

The Flames (5-12-2) are back in action on Saturday night when they host the Winnipeg Jets.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a Presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the best warranty in the business with ten year warranties available. Check out the showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/instant-reaction-flames-tame-toothless-sharks

 

[Calgary Flames]

Report: Blake Coleman is garnering trade interest around the league

The vultures are beginning to circle this Calgary Flames team that, despite earning two points in Thursday night’s duel with the San Jose Sharks, still sits at the bottom of the standings with a 5-12-2 record.

Trade rumours have surrounded the Flames ever since they stumbled out of the blocks early on this season. Now, nearly a quarter of the way through the year, a new name has emerged.

On Thursday evening, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported on their Insider Trading segment that the player the Flames have received the most trade interest in is Blake Coleman.

“I was surprised to find out that the name that the Flames have actually gotten the most calls on so far this year is Blake Coleman. Not surprised because he’s not a good player, absolutely he is, but I also know that the Flames absolutely love his character. I think he’s a huge leader in that room, and frankly, they’re not shopping Coleman. What’s happened is that a number of teams have checked in with GM Craig Conroy and said, ‘If you ever get there closer to March 6, we’d love to have a chance to acquire Coleman.’”

As far as we know, the only player the Flames are willing to move out is pending UFA Rasmus Andersson, but that hasn’t stopped teams from calling about other players as well.

The report comes as a bit of a surprise; multiple Flames, namely Andersson and Nazem Kadri, have been the subject of trade rumours in the young season, but until now, there has been no mention of Coleman, who is under contract through next season and has a modified no-trade list.

LeBrun made it clear that the Flames are not currently shopping Coleman.

Based on the report, these calls have been more of the ‘kicking tires’ nature, rather than teams actually proposing offers for the fifth-year Flame. It seems other general managers are eager to express their interest in the 33-year-old, in case the Flames’ brass changes their minds and make him available down the road.

It’s unclear what Calgary would desire in return for Coleman, should they make him available, but it is clear that there would be a market for him.

Coleman, a two-time Stanley Cup Champion with the Tampa Bay Lightning, signed with Calgary in July 2021. He has 172 points in 342 games as a Flame.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/report-blake-coleman-is-garnering-trade-interest-around-the-league

 

[Calgary Flames]

Some familiar foes have begun to lap the Flames

The once frequent playoff battles between the Calgary Flames and their ’90s era expansion rivals have long ground to a halt.

The San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks — who entered the league in 1991 and 1993, respectively — have served as both a thorn in Calgary’s side and a stepping stone to greater heights since their introduction into the NHL’s Pacific Division. In recent years, however, their post-season duels have been nonexistent, with both the Sharks and Ducks embarking on a rebuilding process almost simultaneously in the late 2010s.

Those roster overhauls came after a long period of success for both California-based organizations. Anaheim missed the playoffs just three times from 2003 to 2018, a run that included five trips to the conference finals and a Stanley Cup championship in ‘07. For San Jose, they punched a post-season ticket in all but two years from 1998 to 2019, and made it past the first round 17 of 21 times in that span.

Calgary met each of them in the playoffs three times, winning one, their conference finals match-up with the Sharks in 2004, which propelled them to the Stanley Cup Final.

Needless to say, the Flames have been less fortunate. The ‘04 run — which came after seven straight playoff misses — was followed by round two exits in each of the next four seasons, and just two appearances in the second round since then.

The fall of the Ducks and Sharks coincided with the rise of a promising Flames core that included emerging stars in Matthew Tkachuk, Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm, and Sean Monahan.

What had the makings of a prosperous period of Flames hockey ended in heartbreak and mass exodus a few years later.

Now in the mid-2020s, Calgary continues to pick up the pieces from a disastrous 2022 off-season, highlighted by the departure of its top two forwards, Tkachuk and Gaudreau. Meanwhile, their Californian counterparts have slowly shrunk the gap in on-ice product by means of a staggering youth infusion through the draft, and now appear to have overtaken the ailing Flames once again, who currently dwell at the bottom of not only the Pacific Division, but league-wide standings as well.

Conversely, San Jose (8-7-3) and Anaheim (11-5-1) have both had promising starts to the season, and feature two of the most exciting young nuclei of players in the league, headlined by top-four NHL scorers Macklin Celebrini and Leo Carlsson.

It’s a stark reality for the Flames, who have accumulated nowhere near the amount of promising young players as the Sharks or Ducks over the last six seasons, and have just one more series victory to show for it.

The result? A vastly different makeup in terms of both age and production amongst the team’s best players. Calgary’s top three scorers, Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau, and Mikael Backlund, have combined for 28 points this season, and sport an average age of 34 years old. While Anaheim’s trio of Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, and Troy Terry have accumulated 67 points at an average age of 22.7, and San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, and William Eklund, sit at 54 combined points and average 20.3 years of age.

The Flames’ top players are on the 18th hole of their hockey careers and have already begun to regress. On the other hand, many of the top contributors down south are too young to buy a drink at a bar, yet are far more productive on the ice.

The chasm between them is an indication that the Flames have a long, long road ahead.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/some-familiar-foes-have-begun-to-lap-the-flames

 

[Calgary Flames]

Flames Game Day 20: A Saturday night clash with the Jets (8pm MT, CBC/SN/City)

On Thursday night, the Calgary Flames (5-12-2, 12 points) looked strong against a fairly listless San Jose side and shut them out 2-0. They’ll try to build on that outing when they host the Winnipeg Jets (10-7-0, 20 points), who are finishing off a six game road trip and are probably fantasizing about sleeping in their own damn beds at this point.

The Flames have won once in their last four games. The Jets have won once in their last five games. Somebody will leave the Scotiabank Saddledome happy. But who?

Today’s broadcast begins at 8 p.m. MT on CBC, Sportsnet’s national feed, City TV and Sportsnet 960 The Fan.

The Flames​

Projected lines via Daily Faceoff:

Jonathan Huberdeau – Morgan Frost – Matt Coronato
Rory Kerins – Nazem Kadri – Joel Farabee
Sam Honzek – Mikael Backlund – Blake Coleman
Ryan Lomberg – Connor Zary – Adam Klapka

Yan Kuznetsov – MacKenzie Weegar
Kevin Bahl – Rasmus Andersson
Jake Bean – Brayden Pachal

We’re projecting Dustin Wolf to start in net, backed up by Devin Cooley. The projected extra skaters look to be Joel Hanley and Yegor Sharangovich. We’re not anticipating any changes from the Flames’ lineup from Thursday night’s shutout win over San Jose.

So what worked against San Jose? Quite a bit. The Flames looked fast and played fast. They forechecked well. They didn’t make many puck management miscues. They got good goaltending. Heck, they held San Jose to just six shots over the first 40 minutes. The Flames were unlucky enough to only score once on Yaroslav Askarov, but that’s honestly a decent reflection of where they’re getting chances on the ice. If they can replicate Thursday’s effort but add in some additional screens and deflections in front of the net, perhaps they can start piling up goals.

In a related note, the difference between the Flames’ power play and the NHL’s average power play (which converts on 20.8% of its advantages) is 6.3 goals.

The Jets​

Projected lines via Daily Faceoff:

Kyle Connor – Mark Scheifele – Gabriel Vilardi
Vladislav Namestnikov – Jonathan Toews – Cole Perfetti
Nino Niederreiter – Adam Lowry – Alex Iafallo
Tanner Pearson – Parker Ford – Gustav Nyquist

Josh Morrissey – Dylan DeMelo
Dylan Samberg – Neal Pionk
Logan Stanley – Luke Schenn

We’re projecting Connor Hellebuyck in net, backed up by Eric Comrie. The projected extra skaters are Brad Lambert, Nikita Chibrikov and Colin Miller.

The Jets last played at home back on Nov. 1. Since then, they’ve made stops in Los Angeles, Anaheim, San Jose, Vancouver and Seattle… and won just a single game, beating the Canucks on Tuesday night. Winnipeg’s game just isn’t balanced right now, as they’re not scoring the way they’re used to, they’re not as defensively stout as they usually are, and their goaltending hasn’t been able to cover up for their miscues.

But the Jets have had some good showings against the Flames, and they’re probably looking to finish off their road trip on a positive note.

Unavailable players​

The Flames are without Martin Pospisil and Zayne Parekh.

The Jets are without Haydn Fleury, Morgan Barron and Cole Koepke.

The numbers​

Flames	Jets
5	Wins	10
12 (.316)	Points (%)	20 (.588)
55.1% (3rd)	xGF%	41.9% (32nd)
10.9% (32nd)	PP%	22.8% (11th)
78.5% (18th)	PK%	84.9% (5th)

Head to head​

This is, somehow, the finale of the three-game season series. Yes, in the 20th game of the season. The Jets won each of the first two meetings. They’re going for the sweep on Saturday night.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the industry-leading 10-year, 160,000-kilometre powertrain warranty. Check out their showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca.

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/flames...-night-clash-with-the-jets-8pm-mt-cbc-sn-city

 

[Calgary Flames]

Instant Reaction: Flames earn a point in shootout loss to Jets

Welcome to Instant Reaction, where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Calgary Flames game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

The Calgary Flames had a pretty up and down evening of ice hockey when they hosted the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night. They never led during regulation and they lost a key player to injury. But, to their credit, they battled for three-plus periods against a pretty strong Jets side.

The Flames lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Jets.

The rundown​

Neither team scored in the opening period as they seemed to go through a feeling-out process during the frame. Both teams had some decent looks – Gustav Nyquist and Morgan Forst both had breakaways – but neither team was able to capitalize.

First period shots were 12-8 Flames. Via Natural Stat Trick, 5v5 scoring chances were 10-6 Jets and high-danger scoring chances were 5-4 Jets.

As the midway mark of the second period neared, we started seeing some goals.

Mikael Backlund collided with Sam Honzek at the Jets blueline, losing the puck and creating some confusion on the red team’s side. To add insult to injury, the Jets collected the puck, moved up ice, and Kyle Connor found Mark Scheifele unattended on the right wing with a pass. Scheifele’s wrister beat Dustin Wolf to give the Jets a 1-0 lead.

What a disastrous sequence for the Flames.

Backlund destroys Honzek by accident and then the Jets go down and score their first goal of the game.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/tqaDy0dibk

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

But on the very next shift, the Flames answered back. After a couple passes following a face-off win, Jake Bean’s shot beat Connor Hellebuyck high short-side to tie the game at 1-1.

FLAMES GOAL

Jake Bean's point shot fools Connor Hellebuyck and he ties this game!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/k9ZSdozSl4

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

But on the very next shift (again), the Jets answered back. A Luke Schenn point shot hit a crowd in the slot in front of Wolf. Tanner Pearson grabbed the loose puck and fired it past the crowd and Wolf to give the Jets a 2-1 lead.

Brutal luck for the Flames on the Jets second goal of the game.

The puck goes off Bean and Frost right on to the tope of Tanner Pearson and he buries it.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/HJbumCZEcG

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

The Flames tied the game later in the period, though. Matt Coronato and Morgan Frost worked the puck to the point, where Kevin Bahl fired the puck towards the net. His shot changed direction off Logan Stanley and beat Hellebuyck to tie the game at 2-2.

FLAMES GOAL

Kevin Bahl ties this game for the Flames!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/qFjggmy9SH

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

Second period shots were 10-10. 5v5 scoring chances were 12-5 Jets and high-danger scoring chances were 5-3 Jets.

Connor Zary subbed in for Honzek and immediately took a minor penalty in the Jets zone. On the subsequent Jets man advantage, Wolf made a save on a one-timer from Connor, but the puck trickled through him and laid in the crease, and Cole Perfetti jammed in the puck to give the Jets a 3-2 lead.

Winnipeg takes a 3-2 lead after this power play goal.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/FGtHCVQWXa

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

The Jets took a penalty with less than three minutes left in regulation, and the Flames pulled Wolf for the extra attacker and cashed in. With 1:14 left in regulation, Coronato grabbed a rebound off a shot from Rasmus Andersson and slid it past Hellebuyck to tie the game at 3-3.

FLAMES GOAL

Matt Coronato ties this game late in the 3rd period!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/zqv1mdEMC5

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 16, 2025

Third period shots were 10-4 Flames. 5v5 scoring chances were 4-2 Jets and high-danger scoring chances were 1-0 Jets.

Off to overtime they went! MacKenzie Weegar drew a holding penalty with 1:29 left in overtime, but the power play couldn’t cash in and so this game went to the shootout. (Scheifele did not like the penalty call.)

Gabe Vilardi was the lone scorer in the shootout for the Jets, while Frost, Jonathan Huberdeau and Andersson all failed to score for the Flames, and the Jets won this one 4-3 in the shootout.

Why the Flames got a point​

The Flames didn’t play badly. But the problem is that the Jets gradually got better throughout the game and found their confidence with the puck. Meanwhile, the Flames were perfectly fine, but just didn’t look dangerous with the puck. And they seemed to lose a lot of their rhythm at five-on-five when Honzek was injured, as their lines were thrown into the blender for awhile.

We’ll give the Flames credit, though: they kept battling. When the Jets took a minor late in the third, they made them pay. They couldn’t earn another one, but they did a good job grinding for the one they got.

Red Warrior​

Morgan Frost had a couple assists and looked really poised and confident in the offensive zone.

Turning point​

Be honest: there probably wasn’t much expectation that the 32nd-ranked power play in the NHL would tie the game and force overtime. But that’s precisely what they did. When the Flames really needed their special teams group to come through in a key moment, they did.

This and that​

Honzek left the game after his collision with Backlund and did not return.

The Bear star Ebon Moss-Bachrach was in attendance for this game. He’s won two Primetime Emmy Awards for his role on the show.

COUSIN

Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who stars in @TheBearFX, is taking in the @NHLJets vs. @NHLFlames game tonight! pic.twitter.com/QAXUZ4ducD

— NHL (@NHL) November 16, 2025

After Burner​

Join Mike and Jordan from the In The Dome podcast right after the game for After Burner!

Up next​

The Flames (5-12-3) are headed back on the road. They face the Chicago Blackhawks in the Windy City on Tuesday night.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a Presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the best warranty in the business with ten year warranties available. Check out the showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/instant-reaction-flames-earn-a-point-in-shootout-loss-to-jets

 

[Calgary Flames]

Flames forward Sam Honzek out week-to-week with upper-body injury

The Calgary Flames will be without the services of one of their top young players for a little while.

On Saturday, forward Sam Honzek left the Flames’ game against the Winnipeg Jets following a second period collision with teammate Mikael Backlund. Honzek didn’t return to the game.

On Sunday morning, following practice at the Saddledome, Flames head coach Ryan Huska provided a brief update about Honzek’s injury status.

“So he’s going to be an upper body injury and we’re going to, I guess, classify him as week to week,” said Huska.

Honzek’s injury, off a bit of a freak play, comes as he’s quietly become a key part of one of the club’s most important lines. He had found a home on the left side of the checking line alongside Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman, and had found a way to use his size, speed and skill to help augment the skills of his veteran linemates.

Honzek’s absence during a season where he was cementing himself on the NHL roster is obviously disappointing to see.

“I mean, anybody that’s going to miss a little bit of time with an injury you feel for, for sure,” said Huska. “He’s done a lot of great things for us. And I think a better understanding of what he has to be like to play at the NHL on a consistent basis. So, you know, we were really pleased with where his game was trending and I know he’s going to pick up right where he left off.”

This injury continues a stretch of rough injury luck for Honzek dating back to his draft year. That season, 2022-23, he missed a bunch of time after suffering a cut from a skate during the World Juniors. The following season, he suffered an abdominal injury in NHL pre-season that kept him out for awhile, and he subsequently played wearing a facial bubble for several weeks that season after suffering a fractured sinus cavity. Last season, 2024-25, he suffered a concussion in an NHL game against Chicago. Later, after he had return to AHL action, he missed some time dealing with a lower body injury.

The Flames’ first-round pick in 2023, Honzek has managed to overcome these injuries and build his game to the point to where he’s a pretty effective NHL player. We’ll see if he can return to action before too long and remain that effective for the Flames going forward.

Honzek joins Zayne Parekh (upper body) and Martin Pospisil (undisclosed) on the sidelines for the Flames. For the time being, Honzek has not yet been placed on the injury reserve list, though, while Parekh and Pospisil are on it.

The Flames are back in action on Tuesday when they visit the Chicago Blackhawks.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the industry-leading 10-year, 160,000-kilometre powertrain warranty. Check out their showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca.

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/flames-forward-sam-honzek-out-week-to-week-with-upper-body-injury

 

[Calgary Flames]

Recap: Martin Frk’s hat trick and William Stromgren’s three point night lead Wranglers to 6-4 win

A solid Calgary Wranglers debut for Justin Kirkland, a three point game from William Stromgren and a historical night for Martin Frk led to a high scoring game for Calgary against the Henderson Silver Knights. They controlled the lead for the majority of the game and followed up their homestand closing win earlier this week with another win to kick off their 10 game road trip. The final score in Henderson was 6-4.

Lineup notes​

Justin Kirkland joined the team to kick off this road trip after clearing waivers earlier this week. He took a spot on the top line centring Dryden Hunt and Matvei Gridin. The centre he bumped out from last game was David Silye.

Wranglers lines​

Dryden Hunt – Justin Kirkland – Matvei Gridin

William Stromgren – Clark Bishop – Martin Frk

Parker Bell – Sam Morton – Aydar Suniev

Alex Gallant – Carter King – Andrew Basha

Daniil Miromanov – Artem Grushnikov

Nick Cicek – Hunter Brzustewicz

Etienne Morin – Simon Mack

Ivan Prosvetov

Game at a glance​

The Wranglers went back to Ivan Prosvetov to start this series against the Silver Knights. On Henderson’s side, Jesper Vikman got the start between the pipes. The Wranglers scored their fastest opening goal of the season when Martin Frk beat Vikman on the first shot of the game just 18 seconds in. His shot deflected off two Henderson players and went past their netminder. Hunter Brzustewicz and William Stromgren picked up the assists.

wasted no time!!! pic.twitter.com/9qVNR4EppF

— Calgary Wranglers (@AHLWranglers) November 16, 2025

The Wranglers built off this start and had the early edge in shots and goals through the first half of the opening frame. At 10:12, the first penalty of the game went against the Wranglers when William Stromgren was called for hooking. Just over a minute into this home team power play, the Silver Knights evened up the score with a goal from Raphael Lavoie at 11:13.

By 11:25, the Wranglers were in the box again when Alex Gallant was called for delay of game. This penalty kill was cut short by a call against the Silver Knights and Calgary regained the lead on the power play off a deflection shot from Justin Kirkland.

deflection perfection from Justin Kirkland pic.twitter.com/TpHgjHhKZz

— Calgary Wranglers (@AHLWranglers) November 16, 2025

The Silver Knights went to the box again just over a minute later, but that didn’t turn into any other special teams markers before the period came to a close. At the end of 20 minutes, Calgary had a 2-1 lead and a 10-9 edge in shots.

Early into the second period, Artem Grushnikov was called for tripping and just five seconds into this penalty kill, Henderson scored off a slap shot from Dylan Coghlan. This goal came at 1:22. Calgary was in the box again shortly after, when Sam Morton was called for hooking at 2:27. They managed to barely kill this penalty off, in a very scrambled penalty kill. However, the Silver Knights still used this momentum to earn their first lead of the game.

At 5:57, Jonas Rondbjerg scored on Prosvetov off a shot that deflected back on his blocker. Calgary let this lead last all of 57 seconds before William Stromgren scored his first goal of the season off a hard low wrist shot at 6:54. This marker was assisted by Simon Mack.

thank you for William Stromgren, !! pic.twitter.com/5BIxekHX3T

— Calgary Wranglers (@AHLWranglers) November 16, 2025

The next goal wasn’t far behind when Martin Frk scored his second of the night off a shot off the far post at 10:22. This was a milestone goal for Frk, being his 200th AHL goal. This goal was unassisted and put the Wranglers up 4-3.

Martin Frk notches his 200th AHL Career Goal pic.twitter.com/LysyyFPb1A

— Calgary Wranglers (@AHLWranglers) November 16, 2025

At 15:34, the Wranglers scored once again with an extremely sharp angled shot from Matvei Gridin that deflected off the Henderson netminder and in. This was Gridin’s first goal in five games and it was assisted by Dryden Hunt.

Matvei Gridin finds it pic.twitter.com/cvQqPQBF6M

— Calgary Wranglers (@AHLWranglers) November 16, 2025

With just over a minute and a half left in the period, the Silver Knights got back within one with a goal from Tuomas Uronen that beat Prosvetov glove side. By the end of the second period, the Wranglers were up 5-4 and Henderson led in shots through the middle frame 16-10.

The scoring slowed way down in the third after a very eventful second period. These teams exchanged penalties and rushes of opportunities in the offensive zone and time started to run out for a potential home team comeback. Henderson pulled Jesper Vikman at 17:35 and at 19:33, Martin Frk completed his sixth career hat trick with an empty net goal.

That pretty well wrapped up this game and the Wranglers won 6-4. Shots finished 34-28 in favour of Henderson. Two Wranglers ended up on the three stars with Martin Frk getting the first for his three goal and four point night and William Stromgren for the second star for his three point night.

Scoring stat summary​

William Stromgren – 1G, 2A

Dryden Hunt – 2A

Matvei Gridin – 1G

Justin Kirkland – 1G

Martin Frk – 3G, 1A

Simon Mack – 1A

Hunter Brzustewicz – 1A

Next up​

It’s possible the Wranglers see Carter Hart in net next game as he was announced as a conditioning loan from the Las Vegas Golden Knights Saturday morning and backed up Jesper Vikman for this game. These two teams meet again before the week comes to an end with a Sunday evening match up coming up next. Their rematch goes at 6:00 p.m. MT as Calgary looks for the sweep and their third straight win.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/recap-...s-three-point-night-lead-wranglers-to-6-4-win

 

[Calgary Flames]

Why doesn’t Craig Conroy have a contract extension?

One of the more under the radar storylines to come from this season is the future of Craig Conroy. The Calgary Flames general manager is in the final year of his three year contract he signed in May of 2023. Why hasn’t he signed an extension? His head coach Ryan Huska just signed a two year contract extension prior to the start of the 2025-26 campaign.

Wouldn’t it make sense to sign Conroy first, and then his head coach?

That leads us to the questions, should the Flames sign Conroy to a multi year extension? And why hasn’t he been signed yet?

My answer to the first question is yes, the Flames should give Conroy a contract extension.

Conroy walked into one of the most dysfunctional situations in modern NHL history, thanks in large part to years of mismanagement by Brad Treliving and the divisive off-ice moves made by Darryl Sutter in the 2022-23 season which led to the collapse of the team culture.

Treliving left behind an aging roster, seven key pending UFAs, a group of veteran players who said they didn’t want to be in Calgary anymore, large contracts for older players, and a bottom ten prospect system in the NHL.

For the most part, Conroy has done a nice job dealing with that mess. He was able to turn his pending UFAs into an impressive collection of draft picks, prospects, and young NHLers. He was a major player in turning Calgary into a place where players wanted to stay long term. And he’s rebuilt his prospect system from one of the worst, to one of the best in the NHL.

It takes time to implement a plan into action and Conroy is still in the beginning stages of doing just that. If he can add an elite prospect or two to an already deep group, then he will truly be on his way to turning this ship around in a positive direction.

To me and I would assume the overwhelming majority of the fan base, Conroy should already have a contract extension in place.

So why isn’t he signed? Why has Murray Edwards, Robert Hayes and Don Maloney not put pen to paper with their GM?

One explanation could be that Edwards wants to see how this season goes and review Conroy’s plan before re-signing him in the offseason. For example, Brad Treliving signed his second contract with the Flames in May 2017, just two months before his first deal was to expire. Could Conroy be in for the same treatment? He might be. But what if there is another reason for not being signed?

One thing I wonder about is what does ownership and Maloney think of the job Conroy has done so far? What was Edwards’ mandate for Conroy when he took over as GM almost three years ago?

If the mandate from ownership was to rebuild this team and turn it into a contender within a 5-6 year period, then you would think Conroy would have signed a contract extension by now. He still needs time to execute on his vision. You can’t just give up on him after only three years if you have a long term mandate.

But what if the mandate was to do a very quick re-tool on the fly while keeping this team competitive every single year that Conroy is in charge.

If that is the case, I can see why Edwards might want to wait and see how this season goes. If Edwards truly wants this team to be in the mix for the playoffs over the next 2-3 years, being in 32nd place is an unacceptable result from his perspective 20 games into this season. And let’s be honest, this Flames team as currently constructed is in for at least two or three years of being in the mix for the draft lottery, not the postseason.

Based off reports from local and national media, the Flames ownership group has no interest in bottoming out. They always want to be in the mix and ice a “competitive” roster.

With that in mind, are there concerns from the very top of the organization about the job Conroy is doing?

The Flames are dead last in the NHL standings. They’re last in goals scored. They’re last in power play percentage. They don’t have an elite prospect or player to build their next core around outside of Dustin Wolf. And this current veteran core hasn’t made the playoffs since being put together in 2022, and they’re start to get into the downside of their careers based off their age.

Things are trending in the wrong direction if you want to make the playoffs in the next few years.

The majority of die hard Flames fans want this team to bottom out so they can acquire the elite talent to help turn them into a true contender one day.

But ownership doesn’t want that to happen.

Could ownership look at the job Conroy has done and say “He’s had 3 years to turn this team around and it’s led to us being in last place. That’s not good enough”? Or will ownership take a longer term outlook and see that this team is heading in the right direction?

We don’t know what the answer is right now. Ownership, Robert Hayes, and Don Maloney almost never speak to the media so it’s difficult to know where their heads are at when it comes to the work done by Conroy.

But the longer it takes to get Conroy signed, the more I wonder what the future will look like for the fan favourite player and executive.

My two cents​

If I were in charge I would have signed Conroy to a new contract extension already. It doesn’t make sense to keep him unsigned for next season on a team that is about to embark on a rebuild. Commit to your GM now and show that you trust his long term plan.

It shows a lack of confidence in the GM if ownership and upper management don’t commit to him soon.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/why-doesnt-craig-conroy-have-a-contract-extension

 

[Calgary Flames]

The Flames’ special teams have struggled in the first quarter of 2025-26

On Saturday night, the Calgary Flames did something they had not yet done in the month of November.

They scored a power play goal.

Matt Coronato’s goal, scored at six-on-four with a Winnipeg player in the penalty box and Dustin Wolf on the bench for the extra attacker, tied the game at 3-3 and allowed the Flames to earn a point against a strong Jets team. It was their first power play goal since Oct. 30. (The Flames ended up losing the game in a shootout.)

Through 20 games, the Flames have scored eight power play goals. Their 11.9% conversion rate on their power play opportunities sits dead-last in the NHL. If they had a league average power play, they would score just under 14 goals – six more than they currently have.

Their penalty kill has had challenges of its own, though not to the extent of the power play. Through 20 games, the Flames have allowed 15 power play goals, and they’re killing opposition advantages at the 23rd-based rate in the NHL. Based on the number of power plays they’ve faced, they’ve allowed about 1.5 more power play goals than a league average penalty kill.

Including shorthanded goals in both directions, the Flames’ special teams goal differential is minus-8, third worst in the NHL. Simply put, the Flames’ special teams units have not been a net positive for the club thus far this season: their power play has out-scored their opponents just twice this season.

With the Flames heading on a two game road trip, and playing just one of their next eight games at the Saddledome, they’ll need a turnaround from their special teams units to create and maintain momentum.

“Our five-on-five game is coming along,” said Flames head coach Ryan Huska after Sunday’s practice at the Saddledome. “That is one thing that you can see it from the eye test. We’re not giving up nearly the chances that we were before. I think we’re doing a much better job of denying shot attempts right now. The areas that we have to get better at for this road trip would be both sides of special teams. Of course, we scored a great power play goal [Saturday] night, one that we really needed, one that allowed us to get the point [Saturday] night. But we have to make sure we build off of that, and our penalty kill has to raise its level as well.”

Huska discussed the progress the penalty killing group is making with the new approach on that side of special teams this season.

“You know, it’s one step forward, two steps back some nights,” said Huska. “Up until recently, I felt like it was two steps forward, one step back, which to me is going in the right direction. You have to have everybody on the same wavelength when you’re killing penalties. You want to be more aggressive, and it’s a matter of reading off the people that you’re on the ice with, and that’s something we can do a better job with.”

Huska thought the power play was dangerous overall against Winnipeg.

“Yeah, you know, the beginning of the year for the first 12 to 14 games, I thought our power play was dangerous and it had some chances, some quality chances that we weren’t finishing on,” said Huska. “Then it went very dry where I didn’t like the way it was performing at all. Not a lot was happening. As a matter of fact, we were giving up more opportunities to the opponent than we were generating for ourselves. Last night, I thought their attitude, swagger was different when they went over the boards. They were two power play units that gave me the feeling that they’re going out there to get the job done, and that’s what we need. So if it’s not scoring, it needs to generate momentum for you, and last night I think they did a really good job in both places.”

The Flames begin the second quarter of their 2025-26 schedule on Tuesday night in Chicago.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the industry-leading 10-year, 160,000-kilometre powertrain warranty. Check out their showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca.

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/the-flames-special-teams-have-struggled-in-the-first-quarter-of-2025-26

 

[Calgary Flames]

NHL Notebook: Adrian Kempe signs eight-year extension with Kings

One of the top free agents in the 2026 off-season is off the market.

On Monday, it was announced by the Los Angeles Kings that they’ve extended Adrian Kempe to an eight-year deal worth $10.625 million annually.

Kempe, drafted 29th overall by the Kings in the 2014 draft, is a consistent 30-goal scorer. In 2022-23, he scored a career-high 41 goals, as well as 67 points, which was then a career-high. His goal scoring dropped in 2023-24, potting just 28 goals in 77 games, but he finished the year with a career-high 75 points.

Last season, the Swede finished the season with 35 goals and 73 points in 81 games, along with four goals and 10 points in six postseason games. Although the Kings seemingly can’t get past the Edmonton Oilers in the first round, it’s not on Kemp,e as he has 15 goals and 29 points in 24 games the past four postseasons.

Kempe is one of many top-tier players to have extended with their team in recent times. Connor McDavid signed a two-year extension with the Oilers, Jack Eichel signed an extension with the Vegas Golden Knights, and Kirill Kaprizov signed an extension with the Minnesota Wild.

As it stands, Artemi Panarin is the top unrestricted free agent in the 2026 class.

Senators and Flyers make a trade​

It’ll still be a bit of time before the big trades come, but a minor trade was made on Monday. The Philadelphia Flyers sent Dennis Gilbert to the Ottawa Senators for Maxence Guenette, with the Flyers extending Guenette immediately.

Gilbert, 29, was drafted 91st overall in the 2015 draft by the Chicago Blackhawks and is a former Calgary Flame, playing 57 games with them between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. He’s also played National Hockey League games with the Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Buffalo Sabres, and Senators in his career, where he has three goals and 20 points in 111 games.

Guenette, 24, is a right-shot defenceman that the Senators drafted in the seventh round of the 2019 draft. He played eight NHL games with the Senators, including seven with them in 2023-24. The L’Ancienne-Lorette, Québec native spent all of the 2024-25 season with their American Hockey League team, scoring nine goals and 23 points in 58 games. He’s yet to play this season.

Chris Tanev hits long-term injured reserve​

A former Calgary Flame is out for the foreseeable future, as the Toronto Maple Leafs placed Chris Tanev on the long-term injured reserve on Monday.

Tanev was injured on Nov. 1 after a scary collision with Flyers’ forward Matvei Michkov, needing to be taken off on a stretcher. It’s the second time Tanev has been on the injured reserve this season, as that game against the Flyers was his first game back from an injury sustained on Oct. 21.

Due to the two injuries, Tanev has played just eight games with the Leafs in 2025-26, picking up two assists. It’s the second season as a Leaf, as he scored three goals and 18 points in 75 games last season.

Tanev isn’t the only right-shot defenceman out of action for the Maple Leafs, as they also placed Brandon Carlo on the injured reserve on Nov. 17, retroactive to Nov. 13. They could really use Rasmus Andersson right about now.

---

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/nhl-notebook-adrian-kempe-signs-eight-year-extension-with-kings

 

[Calgary Flames]

Instant Reaction: Mistakes and bounces cost Flames in loss to Chicago

Welcome to Instant Reaction, where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Calgary Flames game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before.

The Calgary Flames visited to Chicago on Tuesday night to face an opponent that, on paper, they were out-matched by. The Flames, however, battled and hustled and did their level best to make a game of it. But as has become too common this year, the Flames stuck around but managed to find ways to lose a close game.

A puck-handling miscue by their goaltender, a bad bounce off a defender’s skate and some very nice execution by Chicago at key times paced the Flames to a 5-2 road loss to the Blackhawks.

The rundown​

The first 10 minutes of the game were pretty even, but Chicago got some momentum and scored in the latter half of the period.

The two teams exchanged power plays midway through the period. Chicago scored 20 seconds after the Flames’ penalty ended to take a 1-0 lead. Ryan Donato’s shot was blocked by Jake Bean, then Louis Crevier’s shot was blocked by Nazem Kadri, and Donato collected the bouncing puck and fired it past Dustin Wolf to give the home side the lead.

The Flames challenged the goal for goalie interference due to Sam Lafferty hanging around the crease area, but the goal was upheld.



First period shots were 6-5 Blackhawks. Via Natural Stat Trick, 5v5 scoring chances were 11-5 Blackhawks and high-danger scoring chances were 4-2 Blackhawks.

The Flames were on their heels for a good chunk of the second period, including a brief five-on-three penalty kill after Jake Bean and Kevin Bahl took minors right after each other.

The Blackhawks added to their lead on, frankly, a weird play and a bad break for Wolf. The Flames, after being on their back foot for much of the period, were pressing in the offensive zone in an effort to tie things up. Sam Rinzel collected a loose puck and threw a high pass into the Flames zone, where it trickled towards the net, pursued by Connor Bedard. Wolf went to play the puck away from Bedard… and missed the puck. Bedard whacked the loose puck through Wolf’s legs and into the open net to give Chicago a 2-0 lead.



But the Flames managed to answer back late in the period. Connor Zary drew a penalty in the offensive zone and after the Flames won the face-off in the offensive zone, Matt Coronato converted a back-door pass from Nazem Kadri to cut Chicago’s lead to 2-1.



Second period shots were 9-7 Blackhawks. 5v5 scoring chances were 9-7 Blackhawks and high-danger scoring chances were 3-0 Blackhawks.

Early in the second period, the Flames tied things up. The fourth line did a nice job hemming Chicago in with a dogged forecheck, and eventually Mikael Backlund (who joined the shift mid-cycle) found Rasmus Andersson pinching from the point. Andersson beat Arvid Soderblom to tie the game at 2-2.



But shortly after that, Chicago retook the lead. Ryan Greene entered the Flames zone and made a really nice cross-zone pass to Bedard on the opposite wing. Bedard’s shot eluded Wolf to give Chicago a 3-2 edge.



The Flames kept pressing in an attempt to tie the game. But Chicago stole the puck and headed up ice on an odd-man rush. Frank Nazar attempted to cut to the front of the net. He lost control of the puck and it bounced off Bahl’s skate and past Wolf to give Chicago a 4-2 lead.

https://twitter.com/RingOfFireCGY/status/1990994451964309953

The Flames pressed late and pulled Wolf for the extra attacker, but they weren’t able to get anything more past Soderblom. Bedard completed his hat trick with an empty-netter late to give Chicago a 5-2 win.

Third period shots were 9-9.

Why the Flames lost​

Let’s give the lads credit: they battled hard and played a pretty good road game. This was a rematch against a team that beat the Flames on home ice recently, and you could tell that the Flames were dialed in. The Flames played their game, for the most part, kept this as a low-event hockey game, but still lost.

The big reasons are pretty simple: they made just enough mistakes in their own end to lose and weren’t able to overcome them, while Chicago’s star players made big plays at key times.

Red Warrior​

Man, Rasmus Andersson was really good in this game. He’s been pretty good, and consistently, for the bulk of this season, but he was really noticeable every time he hit the ice in this one.

We’ll also give a shout-out to Sam Morton. The Flames claimed John Beecher off waivers earlier in the day, and so Morton’s ostensible replacement was waiting in the wings when this game began. But Morton was really effective in this game.

Turning point​

The Flames tied the game in the third period. And then less than two minutes later, Connor Bedard scored to retake the lead for Chicago. After clawing their way back from a 2-0 deficit, it was a bridge too far for the road team.

This and that​

The Flames made two lineup changes from Saturday night, sending Rory Kerins to the Wranglers and Sam Honzek to the injury reserve. They were replaced by Yegor Sharangovich and Sam Morton.

The Flames claimed John Beecher off waivers earlier on Tuesday; per Sportsnet’s Jon Abbott, he’s expected to meet the team in Buffalo and could debut on Wednesday against the Sabres.

After Burner​

Join Cami Kepke and Mike Gould right after the game for After Burner!

Up next​

The Flames (5-13-3) are headed to Buffalo. They visit the Sabres on Wednesday evening.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a Presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the best warranty in the business with ten year warranties available. Check out the showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/instant-reaction-mistakes-and-bounces-cost-flames-in-loss-to-chicago

 

[Calgary Flames]

Flames prospect Theo Stockselius probably won’t be available for the World Juniors

An injury will likely keep a Calgary Flames prospect from appearing at this year’s World Junior Championship tournament over the winter holidays. Per a report from HockeyNews.se, all indications are that forward Theo Stockselius won’t be available to represent Sweden at the upcoming World Juniors in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, running Dec. 26 to Jan. 5.

Efter olyckan – DIF-talangen tros missa JVM https://t.co/OGovXrQymz

— HockeyNews.se (@HockeynewsSe) November 19, 2025

One of the youngest players in his draft class as a July birthday, the 18-year-old Stockselius was a second-round selection by the Flames in last June’s NHL Draft. Despite dealing with a thyroid cancer scare a few years back, Stockselius has emerged as one of the most exciting young players in Swedish hockey based on his size, skill and versatility.

Based on his prior experience with Sweden’s national under-18 team at last spring’s Under-18 Worlds it seemed like Stockselius would have a good shot at their World Junior roster. He appeared at the 5 Nations international event in August and impressed, but he suffered a cut from a skate in a U20 Nationell game back on Oct. 8 and was forced to miss the November instalment of 5 Nations action, typically used by the Swedish national team as a preparation camp for World Juniors.

Here’s some of what HockeyNews.se’s Mattias Ek reported, via Google Translate:

Stockselius, who was drafted by NHL club Calgary, is reported to be doing well during rehab training.

– Pretty okay, I think. He got that nasty injury and after that he had to turn down the junior national team, which was unlucky for him. He is rehabilitating and slowly but surely getting better and better, says Djurgården’s sporting director Niklas Wikegård to Hockeynews.

According to Wikegård, there will probably be no JVM game for Theo Stockselius, who was born in 2007. Given his young age, he may get another chance next season.

(JVM is the Swedish translation WJC, the English acronym for the World Junior Championship.)

In other words: Stockselius is progressing in his recovery, but it’s unlikely that he’ll be back playing games with his club team prior to Sweden’s World Junior camp in early December.

It’s disappointing. But given that Stockselius will also be eligible for next year’s World Juniors, coincidentally being held in Alberta, he’ll have another chance at representing his country in the future.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the industry-leading 10-year, 160,000-kilometre powertrain warranty. Check out their showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca.

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/flames...bably-wont-be-available-for-the-world-juniors

 

[Calgary Flames]

Instant Reaction: Flames bounce back to beat Buffalo

Welcome to Instant Reaction, where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Calgary Flames game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

The Calgary Flames entered the third period against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night with the game tied 2-2 after two. They were playing the second half of a back-to-back after losing a tough one in Chicago on Tuesday evening.

With the game up for grabs, the Flames opted to grab it, pulling away from the Sabres for a hard-fought 6-2 road victory to split their two game road back-to-back set.

The rundown​

The Flames went up 1-0 just shy of six minutes into the game following a successful power play. Nazem Kadri’s line pressed in the Sabres zone. Colten Ellis made the initial save on Yegor Sharangovich, but Rasmus Andersson snuck down from the point and buried the rebound.

FLAMES GOAL

Rasmus Andersson scores in back to back games!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/YFYSge3w8d

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

Awhile later, the Flames scored again. Kadri made a nice play on the zone entry with the puck, leading to a cycle passing play that gave Joel Farabee a great scoring chance out front. He put the puck past Ellis to give the Flames a 2-0 lead.

FLAMES GOAL

The Kadri line combines for a nice goal to put Calgary up 2-0!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/tu1qllAq9i

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

A couple minutes later Rasmus Dahlin fired a puck past Devin Cooley. But the Flames called a timeout, reviewed the play and then challenged for goaltender interference. It was ruled that Tage Thompson, cutting across the crease before Dahlin’s shot, impeded Cooley’s ability to play the position and the goal was disallowed.

There was goalie interference by Tage Thompson. No goal. It's still 2-0 Calgary

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/qmexGJTWqu

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

First period shots were 11-5 Flames. Via Natural Stat Trick, 5v5 scoring chances were 5-4 Flames and high-danger scoring chances were 2-0 Flames.

The Sabres pressed for the first half of the second period, the managed to break through with two goals in slightly more than a five minute span.

First, Yan Kuznetsov chased down a puck in the Flames end and threw a pass up the wall to Sharangovich. The puck went through Sharangovich’s skates and was stolen by Mattias Samuelsson, who took a couple strides to the face-off dot to Devin Cooley’s left and wired a shot into the Calgary net to cut the visitors’ lead to 2-1.

Buffalo cuts the Calgary lead in half.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/21xuJ7nC71

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

Awhile later, the Sabres won a face-off in their own zone and headed up ice. Once in the Calgary zone they got a nice cycle passing play going, ending with Tage Thompson blasting a shot post-and-in past Cooley from the right point to tie the game at 2-2.

Tage Thompson rips a shot past Devin Cooley. This game is tied.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/aMSo4ZjxwO

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

Second period shots were 12-10 Sabres. 5v5 scoring chances were 10-9 Sabres and high-danger scoring chances were 4-3 Sabres.

The Flames grabbed the lead back a couple minutes into the third on a great rush play. Jonathan Huberdeau carried the puck in along the left wing, while Matt Coronato went to the front of the net, taking a couple defenders along with him. Coronato’s net drive opened up some space near the far post for Morgan Frost, who received a back-door pass from Huberdeau and beat Ellis to give the Flames a 3-2 lead.

FLAMES GOAL

Jonathan Huberdeau makes a beautiful pass to find Morgan Frost for his 4th goal of the season!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/LoYhsc3duu

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

Awhile later, the Flames got some insurance. The Flames cycled the puck to the point for Andersson. His shot was stopped by Ellis, but Mikael Backlund was parked in front and buried the rebound to give the Flames a 4-2 lead.

FLAMES GOAL

The Flames score four goals on the road for the first time this season! The Captain puts them up by two!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/lWpuB6zDPx

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

A little later, the Flames made it 5-2. This time, Andersson threw a flip pass through the neutral zone and sprang Farabee in alone against Ellis. He fired the puck past Buffalo’s goaltender to give the Flames a three goal lead.

FLAMES GOAL

Rasmus Andersson springs Joel Farabee in on a breakaway and he makes no mistake! 5-2 Calgary!

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/rU3dha5f8G

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

Coronato added a weird one late in regulation, whacking at the puck on a broken play in the slot. The puck went high off the glass, then bounced back into the Sabres crease and glanced in off the back of Ellis’ right pad. That gave the Flames a 6-2 lead.

FLAMES GOAL

Matt Coronato scores a crazy goal. The puck goes off the glass, off Ellis and in.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/8Ydne7e10V

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 20, 2025

The Sabres tried to claw back, but to no avail, and the Flames held on for the victory.

Third period shots were 13-13.

Why the Flames won​

Let’s give the Flames credit: given the circumstances – within their season, within the back-to-back segment of their schedule, and within the game with the blown 2-0 first period lead – this was a game they had every opportunity to lose.

But rather than fold up in the third period, they did a great job of generating chances, both primary and secondary, and took the game away from the Sabres. The Flames carried play in the first and the Sabres responded in the second. But with the game up for grabs in the third, the Flames responded back and won.

Red Warrior​

Let’s give this one to Rasmus Andersson, as he had three points and was superb overall.

But let’s also give stick-taps to Sharangovich, Farabee and Kadri, who were strong as a unit, and Cooley, who made a ton of saves when the game was close.

Turning point​

We’re going to go with the first 10 minutes of the third period. They scored three times and looked really poised.

This and that​

After being claimed off waivers from Boston on Tuesday, forward John Beecher debuted with the Flames on Wednesday. He played on the fourth line with Sam Morton and Adam Klapka, as well as on the penalty kill.

This was Devin Cooley’s first win with the Flames.

Flames president of hockey operations Don Maloney joined Sportsnet’s Brendan Parker at the first intermission.

Don Maloney gives his thoughts on the first period tonight, the first 21 games of the season, and the #Flames young players.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/kwgTuyFeeR

— FlamesNation (@FlamesNation) November 20, 2025

After Burner​

Join Robert Munnich and myself right after the game for After Burner!

Up next​

The Flames (6-13-3) are headed home. They host the Dallas Stars on Saturday night in the first half of another back-to-back set.

This article is brought to you by Platinum Mitsubishi​

This article is a Presentation of Platinum Mitsubishi, family owned and operated by lifelong Calgarians. Home of the best warranty in the business with ten year warranties available. Check out the showroom at 2720 Barlow Trail NE or online at www.mitsu.ca

Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/instant-reaction-flames-bounce-back-to-beat-buffalo

 

[Calgary Flames]

Throwback Thursday: Looking at the Joe Nieuwendyk trade with the Stars

Everyone loves a win-win trade.

In last week’s edition of Throwback Thursday, we looked at the Miikka Kiprusoff trade between the Calgary Flames and San Jose Sharks. The Flames host the Dallas Stars on Saturday, and those two teams have an important win-win trade in their past as well.

On Dec. 19, 1995, the Flames sent Joe Nieuwendyk to the Stars. Drafted 27th overall in the 1985 draft, the Hall of Famer found tons of success with the Flames, scoring 314 goals and 616 points in 577 games. Nieuwendyk scored 51 goals and 92 points in 75 games in his first full season, en route to the Calder Trophy.

That wasn’t his only award he’d win with the Flames, as he scored 10 goals and 14 points in 22 games during the 1989 post-season, helping the Flames win their first and only Stanley Cup (so far).

Over the course of his nine seasons with the Flames, Nieuwendyk was a four-time All-Star and even won the King Clancy trophy in 1994-95. The forward had two 51-goal seasons, followed by two 45-goal seasons. Overall, he reached the 30-goal plateau with the Flames six different times.

Nieuwendyk found success after the Flames as well. In 1997-86, his third season with the Stars, the Oshawa, Ontario native scored 39 goals and 69 points in 73 games, his best season in the National Hockey League away from the Flames. The following season, he won it all with the Stars, as he scored 11 goals and 21 points in 23 games, earning the Conn Smythe Award.

In seven seasons with the Stars, Nieuwendyk scored 178 goals and 340 points in 442 games. The Conn Smythe was Nieuwendyk’s lone award, as he didn’t earn any other type of hardware, nor earn an All-Star appearance in his tenure with the Stars. That said, he finished 12th in Hart voting in 1997-98.

The Stars nearly won back-to-back Stanley Cups, but fell short to the New Jersey Devils in 2000. During the 2001-02 season, Nieuwendyk was traded to the Devils, playing a season and a half with the team. The Devils fell in six games to the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round.

In Nieuwendyk’s lone full season with the Devils, he scored 17 goals and 45 points in 80 games, helping the Devils earn the second seed in the Eastern Conference. They beat the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning in five games before beating both the Ottawa Senators and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in seven games to earn their third Stanley Cup in history.

For the 2003-04 season, Nieuwendyk returned home to the Greater Toronto Area to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 64 games, he scored 22 goals and 50 points in 64 games, as well as six goals in nine post-season games, the last time he’d play in the playoffs.

Nieuwendyk signed with the Florida Panthers after the 2004-05 lockout, scoring 26 goals and 56 points in 65 games, his final full season in the league. In 2006-07, he played 15 more NHL games before being forced to retire due to back pain.

The Flames traded away a player who went on to win two more Stanley Cups and enter the Hockey Hall of Fame, so how was this trade a win for them? Well, the prospect they received for Niuewendyk was none other than Jarome Iginla (also receiving Corey Millen).

Starting with Millen, he played parts of two seasons with the Flames, scoring 15 goals and 40 points in 92 games before spending the rest of his career in Germany. Iginla, as you likely know, went on to become arguably the best Flame player of all time.

Iginla never played for the Stars, but made his NHL debut in 1996-97. He ended up scoring 21 goals and 50 points in 82 games, earning an All-Rookie appearance and finishing second in Calder voting. Iginla played two post-season games in 1996, scoring a goal and picking up an assist. It wasn’t until 2003-04 that he’d play another playoff game.

In between his two playoff appearances, Iginla established himself amongst the league’s best power forwards, scoring 188 goals and 380 points in 463 games between 1997-98 and 2002-03. It wasn’t until the 2001-02 season that Iginla truly broke out, scoring a league-high 52 goals and 96 points, winning the Rocket Richard Trophy, the Art Ross, and the Ted Lindsay.

The 2003-04 season saw Iginla lead the league in goals for the second time, potting 41 of them and picking up 32 assists for 73 points in 81 games. On top of his second Rocket Richard Trophy, Iginla also picked up the King Clancy Trophy.

More importantly, Iginla led the Flames to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals in his first season as their captain, scoring a playoff-leading 13 goals, as well as 22 points in 26 games. The Flames never reached the second round again in Iginla’s tenure, either being knocked out in six or seven games.

Still, Iginla was productive for the rest of his Flames’ career, scoring 275 goals and 592 points in 593 games. He finished as a finalist for the Hart Trophy for the third time in his career in 2007-08, and earned votes in 2006-07, 2008=09, and 2010-11.

With the Flames out of contention in the twilight of Iginla’s career, they traded their captain to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Kenneth Agostino, Ben Hanowski, and a 2013 first-round pick that turned out to be Morgan Klimchuk.

In his return to the postseason, Iginla scored four goals and 12 points in 15 games with the Penguins, as they were swept by the Boston Bruins in the Eastern Conference Finals. Iginla joined the Bruins the following season, scoring 30 goals and 61 points in 78 games, but they fell in seven games to the Montréal Canadiens in the second round. That happened to be the last time Iginla played in the post-season.

During the 2014 off-season, Iginla signed a three-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche, where he scored 59 goals and 124 points in 225 games. Midway through the 2016-17 season, Iginla was traded to the Los Angeles Kings, where he played his final 19 NHL games, scoring six goals and nine points in 19 games as the Kings fell eight points short of making the playoffs.

Iginla retired in the 2018 off-season and made the Hall of Fame two years later. He was teammates with Nieuwendyk in the 2002 Olympics, and assisted on the game-winning goal in the 2010 Olympics to earn Canada the Gold Medal. Iginla’s son, Tij, was drafted sixth overall by the Utah Mammoth in 2024, while his other son, Joe, is a top prospect eligible for the 2026 draft.

It’s not often you see two Hall of Famers traded for one another, but it’s hard to argue that either the Flames or Stars lost this trade.

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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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[Calgary Flames]

The Flames and Sabres share an eerily similar story over the last 25 years

The Sabres hosted the Calgary Flames in Buffalo last night for a bout between two squads who have struggled mightily this season. Calgary posted its highest goal total yet, winning convincingly by a score of 6-2. The red team improved to 6-13-3, but remains in the basement of league standings along with Buffalo.

Both teams have had a rough go of it, not just this season but in the 21st century as a whole. As a result, the Sabres have garnered a fairly regrettable reputation around the NHL, but there are actually quite a few parallels between Calgary and Buffalo over the last 25 years.

The Sabres are widely regarded as somewhat of a cursed franchise due to their lack of success since the turn of the century, and a cautionary tale of what can go wrong when embarking on a full-scale rebuild, that is, digging a hole you can’t pull yourself out of.

It’s no secret that Buffalo has had minimal playoff success. They’ve missed the playoffs in each of the last 14 seasons and had little to be proud of prior to their current drought. The Flames aren’t riding a schneid quite like the Sabres; nobody is, but Calgary’s recent track record in the playoffs is equally disheartening.

Since the year 2000, both teams have each won just five playoff series.

For what its worth, Calgary has had more regular-season success, two 50-win campaigns and three division championships, but Buffalo has trailed closely behind with just one fewer of each milestone.

The Flames can hang their hat on their 10 playoff appearances to the Sabres’ five, but that’s the lone category in which they’ve separated themselves over the last quarter-century.

Neither team has been able to sustain much relevance within the league at any point throughout the last couple of decades.

But the similarities go far beyond a lack of success on paper. The nature in which these organizations have gotten to where they are now virtually mirrors each other.

Calgary’s mishandling of Matthew Tkachuk starkly resembles that of the Jack Eichel debacle in Buffalo. Both players represented a beacon of hope for their ailing franchises at one time or another. Both players forced their way out in search of greener pastures and subsequently became the focal point of their new club’s successful pursuit of Stanley Cups.

In fact, neither club has had much success in retaining talent that they have found in the draft, or getting anything of substantial value back for them.

In 2022, the Flames dealt Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers for Jonathan Huberdeau, Mackenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt and a conditional first-round selection. In 2021, Eichel, along with a third-rounder, went to the Vegas Golden Knights in return for Peyton Krebs, Alex Tuch, a first and a second-round pick. Though both returns seemed satisfactory at the time, neither haul has equated to much, with the Panthers and Golden Knights reaping the most benefit from the deals.

Both Calgary and Buffalo have had their fair share of difficulty attracting free agents, with poor facilities and investment into the team being key factors.

They also share a similar head coaching history since the 2000-01 season, employing countless faces behind the bench. Outside of Lindy Ruff’s 16-year reign in Buffalo from 1997 to 2013, neither team has had the same head coach for longer than four years.

Darryl Sutter, former Calgary head coach and Ruff, the Sabres’ current bench boss, both returned for renaissance tenures with their respective clubs in the 2020s. Hoping to reclaim some of the success they had in their initial stints, in which they reached the Stanley Cup Finals and fell short.

Sutter’s second term didn’t amount to much, resulting in his firing in 2023, and Buffalo continues to spin its wheels under Ruff, who may be on the hot seat once again, sooner rather than later.

The parallels really are jarring. As far as professional hockey goes, Buffalo could be considered Calgary’s sister-city in the east, with the only real difference between them over the last two and a half decades being the conferences they reside in.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/the-fl...n-eerily-similar-story-over-the-last-25-years

 

[Calgary Flames]

Sam Honzek out up to six months following surgery for upper body injury

Calgary Flames forward Sam Honzek is set to miss up to six months after undergoing surgery this week, the team announced on Friday.

Sam Honzek (upper body) underwent surgery this week.

Will be out up to six months. #Flames

— Pat Steinberg (@Fan960Steinberg) November 21, 2025

Honzek sustained an upper-body injury in last Saturday’s contest against the Winnipeg Jets. Following a collision with teammate Mikael Backlund in the second period, he left the game and did not return. On Sunday morning, head coach Ryan Huska classified him as “week-to-week,” but now it appears the 21-year-old will miss months, and possibly the remainder of the season. With the 2026 Winter Olympics looming in February, it seems unlikely that he’ll be back in time to represent Slovakia at that event.

Through 18 games with the Flames so far this season, Honzek scored two goals and added two assists, averaging 12:21 TOI per night. His first career NHL goal came at the end of October against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Honzek was selected 16th overall by the Flames in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. A native of Trencin, Slovakia, he began his playing career in his home country before joining the WHL’s Vancouver Giants for two seasons. Honzek then made his NHL debut last season, playing five games with the Flames in October without registering a point. He then spent the remainder of the season in the AHL with the Calgary Wranglers, scoring eight goals and adding 13 assists in 52 games played.

The young forward also boasts a number of international appearances, including at the World Juniors and last year’s World Championships, where he contributed a goal and an assist.

Following the conclusion of last season, he landed #11 on FlamesNation’s 2025 summer prospect rankings. He had been working hard at his NHL emergence this season, but unfortunately now faces a setback with this injury. Honzek’s entry-level contract runs through the 2027-28 season, giving him plenty of time still to cement a place in Calgary moving forward.

Along with Honzek, the Flames are currently without rookie Zayne Parekh, who landed on IR this month after suffering an upper-body injury, and forward Martin Pospisil, who was injured late in training camp. Parekh is currently listed as week-to-week with no specific timeline for his return. No specific timeline has been shared for Pospisil’s return.

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[Calgary Flames]

How can the Flames make 2025-26 a successful ‘failure’?

The Calgary Flames opened the 2025-26 National Hockey League season with a clear goal: to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

22 games into their schedule, it’s become abundantly clear: they’re going to fail to reach that goal.

The Flames are off to a 6-13-3 start, with their 2-8-2 October seeming to sink their playoff hopes before they really got out of the starting blocks. A .600 points percentage is the cut-off for a playoff spot in the Western Conference presently; the Flames are 11 points off the pace. The Athletic‘s projections have the cut-off for the post-season around 94 points, which would require the Flames to play at a .658 pace for the balance of the season. That’s probably not happening.

But that does not mean that the 2025-26 campaign cannot be a productive endeavour for the hockey club.

Following the success of the Apollo 13 feature film, HBO released a miniseries entitled From the Earth to the Moon, which told the broader story of the Apollo program and how they worked towards the moon landings. The entire narrative thrust of the mini-series that there were a lot of productive failures that taught the Apollo team key lessons that led to the successes of the moon landings. A handful of guys went to the moon, but it was a lot of hard work and hard lessons for a lot of people that got them there.

A similar process happens in the years leading up to a Stanley Cup.

You don’t need to go far on social media to see Flames fans calling for some veteran players to be traded away to recoup assets – picks and prospects primarily. However, my thought process is more along the lines of using the remaining games as a sandbox to experiment. What can the Flames learn from the remainder of this season that can help them move their retooling project along? What productive growth can occur, either for individual players or segments of the team, that they can carry forward?

You could argue that we’ve already seen the beginning of the “sandbox” approach when Yan Kuznetsov was recalled and put into the lineup. Through eight outings he’s played on every single pairing and seen a lot of different game situations. So far, it seems like there’s an NHL player there. Sam Morton was recently called up from the AHL and given a couple games and so far, he seems like he’s got some promise, too.

There may be a temptation to throw the proverbial baby out with the bathwater, to trade away everyone over a certain age and start from scratch. But you can also understand the temptation to not do that. We’ve heard Ryan Huska and Craig Conroy talk about wanting to put young players into positions to succeed. And guess what? It can work. Kuznetsov has been playing with a strong partner in MacKenzie Weegar and performed well. Sam Honzek, prior to his injury, looked strong alongside Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman.

So over the last 60 games, if playoffs aren’t in the cards, how can management and the coaching staff create similar opportunities for the organization’s younger players? We’ve already learned quite a bit about Kuznetsov and Honzek at the NHL level. We seem to be starting to learn about Morton. Who else can they work into the lineup?

It’s incumbent to use the remainder of the season to learn as much as possible about as many key young players as possible so that the 2025-26 campaign still be viewed as a productive year of Flames hockey.

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[Calgary Flames]

NHL Notebook: Jets will be without Connor Hellebuyck for four to six weeks

The reigning Presidents’ Trophy winners will be without their best player.

On Friday morning, numerous sources reported that netminder Connor Hellebuyck will be out of action for four to six weeks to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery.

Anyway you slice it, this is a big blow for the Winnipeg Jets. Not only did Hellebuyck win his third Vezina Trophy last season, but he also became the first netminder in a decade to win the Hart Memorial Trophy, just the third goalie to do so since the turn of the millennium.

That was thanks to a .925 save percentage and 2 goals against average in 63 games, helping the Jets win the Presidents’ Trophy, the first in their history. Of course, the netminder had a rough post-season, as he has the last three seasons, but he’s still among the league’s best netminders in 2025-26. So far this season, the 32-year-old has a .913 save percentage and 2.51 goals against average in 14 games played.

The Jets will turn to Eric Comrie for the foreseeable future. Comrie, 30, was drafted in the second round of the 2013 draft by the Jets and bounced around the league for half a decade before returning to the Jets. Last season, he played a career-high 20 games with a .914 save percentage and 2.39 goals against average in 20 games. Thus far in 2025-26, Comrie has an .899 save percentage and 2.84 goals against average.

So far this season, the Jets are 12-8-0 through 20 games, occupying the final Wild Card spot.

Alex Ovechkin moves into 10th all-time in points​

Alex Ovechkin’s historic career continues, as he passed Joe Sakic to move into 10th all-time for points in a career.

The Washington Capitals’ captain was able to do so with a four-point night in the Capitals’ 8-4 win over the Montréal Canadiens on Thursday. He opened the game with a power play goal, added an assist in the second period, and scored two more goals in the third for his 34th career hat trick.

As it stands, Ovechkin now has 1,643 points in 1,512 games. Next up on the list for the “Great Eight” to pass is Sidney Crosby, who has 1,708 points. For non-active players, Ovechkin has the chance to pass Mario Lemieux’s 1,723 point mark, but it’d take quite the effort with only three quarters of the season remaining.

Even if Ovechkin can’t surpass Lemieux (it’s the final season on Ovechkin’s contract), the Russian forward will go down as the most prolific goal scorer in NHL history. Through 21 games this season, Ovechkin has 10 goals and 20 points as a 40-year-old. Last season, he broke Wayne Gretzky’s record for most goals in a career, and he’s continued to build on it as he now has 907 career goals.

Mikko Rantanen fined​

Another notable goal scorer has been in the news lately, but not for the right reasons. Mikko Rantanen was fined $2,000 for embellishment.

This fine came on an incident in Nov. 11’s game against the Ottawa Senators, where the Dallas Stars’ forward ran into the goalie, dove, and took the goalie to the ice with him in an attempt to draw a penalty.

NEWS: #TexasHockey F Mikko Rantanen has been fined $2,000 for embellishment during Nov. 11 game vs #GoSensGo.

Rantanen was previously given a warning for embellishment during Oct. 16 game against #Canucks. pic.twitter.com/9fYHrfPSXt

— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) November 21, 2025

That’s not the only thing Rantanen has been in the news for, as he received a five-minute major for boarding New York Islanders’ defenceman Alexander Romanov on Tuesday. No disciplinary action came from that incident.

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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/nhl-no...thout-connor-hellebuyck-for-four-to-six-weeks

 

[Calgary Flames]

Will Mikko Rantanen face a suspension for hit on Flames forward Matt Coronato?

For the second time this week, Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen was ejected from a game after receiving a major penalty for boarding (and a game misconduct). Will he face supplemental discipline stemming from an incident in Saturday night’s game against the Calgary Flames?

Late in the second period, Rantanen delivered a forceful hit to Flames forward Matt Coronato as he was playing the puck along the boards in the Dallas zone. Coronato had his back to Rantanen and took the hit in the numbers, falling forward face-first and then leaving the ice bleeding heavily from his face.

Mikko Rantanen throws one of the dirtiest hits you're going to see this season.

He has been given a 5 minute major and a game misconduct.

: Sportsnet | #Flames pic.twitter.com/LfTj5qlOlQ

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 23, 2025

Jonathan Huberdeau jumped into the fray, engaging Rantanen in a fight following the hit.

When the dust settled, Rantanen received a boarding major and a game misconduct, along with a fighting major. Huberdeau, for his part, received a fighting major, an instigator minor and a 10-minute misconduct.

The Flames ended up beating Dallas by a 3-2 score after a shootout.

Flames head coach Ryan Huska was asked his opinion of the hit after the game.

“I thought it was a terrible hit,” said Huska. “We’ve seen it. Didn’t we just see that on TV? I didn’t think it was a good hit at all.”

It was the second time this week that Rantanen had received a major penalty for boarding. Late in Tuesday’s game between the Stars and New York Islanders, Rantanen was ejected for a hit on Islanders defenceman Alexander Romanov. Romanov was injured on the sequence and hasn’t played since.

Mikko Rantanen ejected (5-minute major + game misconduct) for boarding #Isles Alexander Romanov. #TexasHockey pic.twitter.com/YndyuTclpD

— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) November 19, 2025

Coronato received several stitches to close the cut on his nose and returned to the game early in the third period.

Hockey guy. pic.twitter.com/oDw1UX0TM4

— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) November 23, 2025

“Kent [Kobelka, head athletic therapist] came in between periods, said they were working as quick as they could on him,” said Huska. “It was a pretty big cut that he had, and they had to do a lot of repairs to it. So he’s a good hockey player, is the way I can put it. He wanted to get back on the ice, try to help the team win.”

The big question following the game, particularly given that Rantanen had been involved in a similar incident this week, was whether Rantanen will be facing any supplemental discipline for the hit on Coronato. Earlier this season, Tampa Bay’s J.J. Moser was suspended for two games for boarding Florida’s Adam Boqvist on a somewhat similar play – Boqvist was playing the puck along the end-boards and Moser hit him from behind in a vulnerable position.

The justification for not giving Rantanen a suspension or fine would probably be something along the lines of “Hey, Coronato changed body position before the hit.” That being said, Rantanen was pursuing Coronato for several seconds before the hit and was looking at his numbers for awhile, Coronato’s body movement didn’t substantially change while Rantanen was throwing that hit, and as the person initiating contact, it’s up to Rantanen not to blast a player in the numbers.

The league’s stance seems to be: you’re allowed to throw hits, but if a guy is in a vulnerable position along the boards it’s up to the guy throwing the hit not to cause a dangerous situation with a hit.

Based on the nature of the hit, and Rantanen’s week featuring a similarly scary-looking hit already, we think Rantanen will get a couple games for this one.

Do you think Mikko Rantanen should be fined or suspended for Saturday’s hit on Matt Coronato? Let us know in the comments!

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/will-m...n-for-his-hit-on-flames-forward-matt-coronato

 

[Calgary Flames]

A Flame From the Past: Reggie Lemelin

Do you remember Reggie Lemelin?

Every once in a while, we take a look at a player who once played for the Calgary Flames in a series called “A Flame From the Past”. This player has to have played a significant number of games for the Flames. I’ll put every Flames’ season into a Wheel of Names, and this time, it landed on the 1980-81 season, the first season the Flames played in Calgary.It dawned on me before writing this that I’ve yet to do a goalie for A Flame From the Past, so let’s buck that trend and get to know Reggie Lemelin.

Born Réjean Lemelin in Québec City in 1954, Lemelin began his junior career with the Sherbrooke Castors of the Québec Maritimes Junior Hockey League in 1972-73. That season, he posted an .874 save percentage and 5.06 goals against average in 36 games, along with an .836 save percentage in two post-season games. In 1973-74, Lemelin had an .866 save percentage and 4.68 goals against average in 43 games.

In the seventh round, the Philadelphia Flyers selected him 125th. The World Hockey Association’ s Chicago Cougars selected Lemelin 209th. Originally, Lemelin played for the Philadelphia Firebirds of the North American Hockey League, where had a 3.48 goals against average in 43 games in 1974-75. In 1975-76 with the same team, Lemelin finished with a 3.63 goals against average in 29 games, helping the Firebirds win the league’s trophy.

The 1975-76 season also saw Lemelin play seven games with the Richmond Robins of the American Hockey League. Lemelin had an .895 save percentage and 3.61 goals against average in 51 games in the NAHL in 1976-77, the final year of that league’s existence. The Firebirds transferred to the AHL, where he had an .893 save percentage and 2.96 goals against average in 60 games in 1977-78.

Lemelin began his National Hockey League career with the Atlanta Flames in 1978-79, posting an .882 save percentage and 3.33 goals against average in 18 games. He also played an additional 13 games in the AHL that season. In the Flames’ final season in Atlanta, Lemelin played just three games in the NHL, instead playing for the Central Hockey League’s Birmingham Bulls, where he had an .884 save percentage and 3.76 goals against average in 38 games.

The 1980-81 season was Lemelin’s final season playing in minor league hockey, playing 13 games with the Bulls. Instead, most of his season was spent with the Flames, who by this point had moved to Calgary. That season, he had a .901 save percentage and 3.24 goals against average in 29 games played.

Lemelin served as the team’s backup in 1990-81 and 1981-82, and split the crease in 1982-83. Between the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons, Lemelin had an .882 save percentage and 3.94 goals against average in 73 games.

He finally earned the starter’s role in 1983-84 and excelled in it. That season saw him post an .893 save percentage and 3.52 goals against average in 51 games, finishing second in Vezina Trophy voting and eighth in Hart Trophy voting. His strong play continued in 1984-85, as Lemelin had an .888 save percentage and 3.47 goals against average in 56 games played, finishing third in Vezina Trophy voting.

The 1985-86 season saw the Flames make it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. In the regular season, Lemelin had an .872 save percentage and 4.09 goals against average in 60 games. He lost his starter spot to the younger Mike Vernon in the post-season, essentially ending his tenure as the Flames’ starter.

Lemelin played just one more season with the Flames, authoring an .885 save percentage and 3.23 save percentage in 33 games during the 1986-87 season. During the 1987 off-season, Lemelin signed with the Boston Bruins, the team with which he’d finish his career.

In 1987-88, Lemelin had an .889 save percentage and 2.93 goals against average in 49 games played. He and the Bruins would play an additional 23 games in the 1988 playoffs, as Lemelin had an .895 save percentage and 2.64 goals against average in 17 postseason games, with the Bruins falling to the Edmonton Oilers in the finals. Lemelin got revenge on the Montréal Canadiens, the team that beat the Flames in the 1986 Stanley Cup Finals. Lemelin also received Vezina votes in 1987-88, finishing seventh.

The only time Lemelin was named an All-Star was in 1988-89, posting an .887 save percentage and 3.01 goals against average in 40 games, finishing seventh in Vezina Trophy voting for a second consecutive season. In 1989-90, he had an .892 save percentage and 2.80 goals against average in 43 games, finishing fourth in Vezina voting and winning the Jennings Trophy for the team with the fewest goals against.

That was the final time Lemelin played more than half his team’s games, and the 1990-91 season was his final season with any significant number of games played. He posted an .868 save percentage and 3.64 goals against average that year, and played just 18 games over the next two seasons before retiring.

Since retiring, Lemelin served for nearly a decade and a half as the Flyers’ goaltending coach, the team that originally drafted him all the way back in 1974. Interesting, his daughter, Steohanie Lemelin, is an actress who was a regular in the show Young Justice, as well as doing voice work in video games, such as Red Dead Redemption 2, the best video game of all time.

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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/a-flame-from-the-past-reggie-lemelin