When we compiled our annual summer prospect rankings here at FlamesNation, Carter King didn’t crack the top 20.
That’s not meant as a slight against King. Far from it. the Calgary product was an exciting addition to the Flames organization when he signed his entry-level deal back in the spring, and we covered his first pro appearances with the Calgary Wranglers. He’s a quality prospect and someone that Flames fans should legitimately be excited about seeing progress towards the NHL level.
But the Flames have made oodles and oodles of draft choices over the past three years, to the point where once everybody arrives at the pro level, the Flames are going to have some tough decisions to make in terms of how to slot everybody in.
But at the 2025 edition of Flames prospects training camp, a lot of the players that slotted in ahead of King in our rankings weren’t in attendance. Especially the centres.
2025 first-rounders Cole Reschny and Cullen Potter? Preparing for their collegiate seasons. 2025 second-rounder Theo Stockselius? Already playing his regular season in Sweden.
And so when the Flames hit the ice for their two rookie camp games, King was one of four centres on the roster – along with AHL signees David Silye and Carter Wilkie, and invitee Nathan Brisson – and was given the plum position of first line centre. He played with Sam Honzek and Aydar Suniev on Friday, and Honzek and Matvei Gridin on Sunday.
He registered two assists and earned praise from Wranglers head coach Brett Sutter following Sunday’s game.
“He can slow the game down and find those guys flying down the lane because he’s really good at it,” said Sutter. “Another one of those guys, I thought he kind of controlled the pace of play and how he wanted to play. And again, he was one of those guys that took a big step in the checking side of it. From when he came up last year to the first game to this game, there’s noticeable difference. So it’s clear he’s buying in and then that’s what you want to see.”
King’s opportunity to showcase himself seems primed to continue as prospects training camp turns into main camp. Here are the established professional centres expected in camp: Nazem Kadri, Mikael Backlund, Morgan Frost, Justin Kirkland, Clark Bishop and Sam Morton. (Rory Kerins plays a bit of centre and wing depending on circumstances.) If you’re King, who just centred some strong prospects in rookie games, you might have a chance to centre some established NHL players during the pre-season.
You can’t control the circumstances you’re in, just how you respond to them. King was able to learn the Wranglers systems when he played with them in the spring. He received a big opportunity to play a big role during the two rookie games and performed well, and he’ll likely have an another opportunity when the pre-season begins.
Right now, opportunity is knocking for King. So far, he’s answering well. We’ll see if he can maintain his momentum when main camp begins later this week.
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When it came to the Calgary Flames’ special teams last season, it was bad no matter the situation. Any time the referee’s arm went up, it usually wasn’t good news for Calgary. The team likely preferred to stay five-on-five for the full 60 minutes.
We’ve already looked at their power play last season and how it shapes up heading into the new year. Now let’s dive into the penalty kill, the struggles that plagued it, and whether the Flames can build off a strong finish.
What went wrong?
Even with Dustin Wolf standing on his head most nights, it often wasn’t enough. Here’s a look at the penalty kill units most often deployed in front of him:
PK1
Backlund–Coleman
Bahl–Andersson
PK2
Sharangovich–Huberdeau
Weegar–Pachal
PK3
Rooney–rotating forward
What’s strange is that at even strength, Calgary was one of the NHL’s better defensive clubs. Yet on the penalty kill, they were on pace to set franchise lows.
One of the biggest issues — and one that bled into all areas of their game — was face-offs. Winning the draw is critical on the PK to clear the puck and kill time. But that rarely happened for the Flames, who finished 30th in the league in faceoff percentage at just 46.2. When you’re losing that many draws, you’re immediately on your heels and chasing.
Among the pairings, Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman remained a dependable duo. Backlund has long been one of the league’s best defensive forwards, and Coleman provided consistency.
Jonathan Huberdeau joined the PK mid-season and actually looked comfortable. His offensive instincts allowed him to anticipate plays and disrupt passes, and he scored three of Calgary’s seven shorthanded goals.
Beyond those three, however, the Flames lacked reliability. Yegor Sharangovich couldn’t find consistency in any area of his game, and Kevin Rooney — who logged the third-most shorthanded minutes among forwards — was serviceable but unspectacular. Others rotated through, including Justin Kirkland, Joel Farabee and Jakob Pelletier.
The struggles largely came down to effort and cohesion. Too often, the Flames were outworked, failed to close passing lanes, or couldn’t keep play to the outside. Clearing attempts regularly failed, giving opponents second and third chances — which NHL teams usually capitalize on.
How do the Flames fix this?
Fixing a struggling PK doesn’t require reinventing the wheel. It comes down to simplifying and executing: block shots, disrupt passing lanes, and clear the puck. Easier said than done, but that’s the formula.
Of course, the easier solution would be to simply take fewer penalties. But with frequent offenders like Pachal (88 PIMs) and Martin Pospisil (84 PIMs) on your team, that’s unlikely.
On defence, Kevin Bahl will continue to play a major role. The bigger question is what happens once Rasmus Andersson is traded. Does Zayne Parekh see significant PK time, or does that responsibility fall to depth options such as Joel Hanley or Ilya Solovyov?
Up front, only three names seem certain: Backlund, Coleman and Huberdeau. Beyond them, it’s wide open. Sharangovich will likely get another look, while players like Kirkland and Farabee could see reps.
Pospisil is another intriguing option. First, he’ll need to stay out of the box. But his hard work in puck battles, willingness to block shots, physical edge and speed — he ranked in the 99th percentile in top skating speed, per NHL Edge — give him the tools to become a strong and potentially productive penalty killer.
Like the power play, a fresh approach from the coaching staff will be necessary. Last year’s formula clearly didn’t work. The silver lining is that Calgary actually finished strong, killing 90 per cent of their penalties over the final 10 games. If they can build on that momentum, improvement is possible.
Here’s a look at potential PK units to start the season:
PK1
Backlund–Coleman
Bahl–Andersson/Solovyov
PK2
Kirkland–Huberdeau
Weegar–Pachal
PK3
Sharangovich–Pospisil
If the Flames hope to play meaningful hockey in March and April, their special teams will need massive improvement from a year ago.
Do you think Calgary has what it takes to turn things around?
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It’s a brave new world in college hockey, folks.
The 2025-26 season is the first time in memory that players who have played in Canadian major junior hockey have been eligible to play in the NCAA. This development has led to six Calgary Flames prospects making the jump to college hockey: Cole Reschny, Luke Misa, Jaden Lipinski, Aidan Lane, Eric Jamieson and Henry Mews.
Oh, and four professional players, including former Flames prospect Jack Beck, have also moved to college.
That’s weird, right?
Especially considering that NCAA rules used to be so strict that players that attended NHL development camps had specific rules they had to follow so they didn’t accidentally lose their amateur status. So how come 2021 Flames draft choice Jack Beck, who played a full pro season in 2024-25, is allowed to play college with Arizona State University in 2025-26 as a 22-year-old?
Via our pals at College Hockey News, here’s the broad strokes of it:
Essentially, Arizona State would have had to petition the Eligibility Center that Beck should be eligible based on the precedent set by Thornton and McClennon.
Next, Beck’s age had to be addressed under the NCAA’s delayed enrolment rules:
Beck lost one year of eligibility for the games he played between his 21st and 22nd birthdays, and then was penalized six games for the six games he played in pro hockey after his 22nd birthday. He’ll have to sit until the Sun Devils’ seventh game of the season, but he’ll be allowed to play college hockey this season (and for up to two more seasons).
Beck was a sixth-round pick by the Flames in 2021, but his rights lapsed on June 1, 2023 after he and the Flames didn’t come to terms on a contract. But Beck’s situation is a great example of the very weird, wacky repercussions of the NCAA relaxing their former eligibility rules: not only can Canadian junior players play in college, but in very specific circumstances, pro players can, too.
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Following practice on Saturday afternoon, the Calgary Flames made their first roster moves of 2025’s training camp. Per an announcement from the club, forwards Nathan Brisson, Kadon McCann and Mael Lavigne have been released from their camp try-outs.
All three players were part of Team Black, the third skating group, and actually were skating together as a trio at Saturday’s practice.
Brisson, who turns 19 on Monday, went through the 2025 NHL Draft unselected after posting 24 goals and 72 points with the QMJHL’s Val-d’Or Foreurs, where he served as captain. He played in both rookie games against Edmonton and posted two goals and two assists during that pair of games – not bad for someone that was used in the bottom six. He’s headed back to Val-d’Or.
Lavigne, 20, went through the 2025 NHL Draft unselected in his third year of eligibility after splitting the 2024-25 season between the QMJHL’s Victoriaville Tigres and Rimouski Oceanic, posting 17 goals and 49 points. He served as captain in Victoriaville before the trade. He subbed in for Andrew Basha in the second rookie game against Edmonton and scored a goal. He’s headed to Blainville-Boisbriand this season.
McCann, 18, is a Cochrane product who went through the 2025 NHL Draft unselected. He posted 11 goals and 18 points last season with the Medicine Hat Tigers. He played in both rookie camp games and registered an assist. He’s headed back to Medicine Hat to start his junior season.
Brisson was probably the most impressive of the trio in rookie camp, but the Flames have oodles of prospects in camp and these three gentlemen are unfortunately the victims of the numbers game as the team tries to juggle everybody in camp.
After these roster cuts, the Flames’ camp roster is down to 55 players: six goaltenders, 18 defencemen and 31 forwards. The Flames will see 40 of those 55 players dress for a pair of split squad games on Sunday, as they’ll face the Edmonton Oilers in simultaneous games taking place at 6 p.m. MT in both Calgary and Edmonton to start their exhibition schedule.
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The wider the range of skills you have on a roster, the more interesting the games. The Calgary Wranglers’ inaugural season roster in 2022-23 has many exciting games with a variety of skill sets, which are now benefiting the Calgary Flames at the NHL level. In the three short years since the team made the move, there have been many successes that prove the system for developing the Flames’ prospects is working.
Here’s where the first Wranglers are these days.
Dustin Wolf
This player is top of mind for many Flames fans and has earned attention across the league now. The Calder Trophy candidate last season, Dustin Wolf, has turned into the special player we expected him to be. Last year in his first full season in the NHL, he played 53 games, earned a .910 save percentage, a 2.64 GAA and finished with a 20-12-3. He was a main part of the reason the Flames were even in a playoff conversation.
Wolf has emerged as a franchise goaltender for the Flames and locked himself in to Calgary in a seven-year contract extension earlier this month valued at $53.5 million ($7.5 million per season). He has earned his era as the Flames’ starting goaltender for the next many years and wears that with pride and love for the city of Calgary.
Connor Zary
Connor Zary had a bit of injury trouble last season with knee injuries that kept him out for weeks at a time. His second flare-up towards the end of the season ended his season with the Flames on Mar. 27. Despite these setbacks, Zary still got 54 games in with the Flames and put up 27 points consisting of 13 goals and 14 assists.
This month, Connor Zary signed a three year extension through the end of the 2027-28 season. He’s earned his spot in the NHL and has played 117 games to date with 61 points in that time.
Martin Pospisil
Pospisil has been in the Calgary Flames’ system since the 2019-20 season. By the time he was on the Wranglers, he was pretty much on his way to being an NHLer. He only played in 20 games that season due to injury, but the following year, once he recovered, he spent most of the year at the NHL level. Since then, he’s played 144 NHL games and has 49 points to date.
Last season, he played in all the Flames games with the exception of one. His point totals last season were 25 points made up of four goals and 21 assists. Martin Pospisil was another off-season contract piece of business that took place. He signed a three year contract extension back at the end of July.
Adam Klapka
Adam Klapka turned heads with his 6’8” stature and emerging physical game after the Wranglers’ inaugural season. He got his first handful of NHL games, then last season had nearly an even split between the NHL and AHL. For the Wranglers, he had 26 points in 33 games and for the Flames, he had 10 points in 31 games.
He earned himself a two year contract extension in early June and status as a full-time NHL winger.
Brett Sutter
The Wranglers’ first captain in team history has hung up his jersey and picked up his suit to emerge into the coaching side of things. What started as an assistant coach role turned into an interim head coach role around the midway mark of last season and has now become a permanent head coaching role.
Clark Bishop
Clark Bishop remains as one of the AHL vets with the Wranglers. Once his linemate, Brett Sutter, moved on to coaching, he took the reins as captain of the team. He put up career totals last season and earned a six-game look with the Flames for his first NHL games since the 2021-22 season, and even put up a goal in his first game back at that level. Bishop was re-signed to a one year, two-way contract extension at the end of June.
Dryden Hunt and Ilya Solovyov
While these two play different positions, they feel like they’re in a similar spot between the Flames and Wranglers. A fringe spot, to be exact. They’re both reliable players with NHL experience and seem to be one of the first call-ups made when injuries or circumstances call for it up at the Flames.
Hunt serves as alternate captain when he’s with the Wranglers and played 49 games with them last season. He put up 49 points and was a key part of the top line. He spent some time with the Flames as an extra body as well and ended up getting into five games where he put up three assists.
Solovyov was a similar story but played 10 more games in the AHL. He had 28 points in the AHL and one assist in the 5 games he played in. Both these players had more NHL time in the season prior in 2023-24.
Hunt signed a two-year, two-way contract extension in June. Solovyov’s two-year contract extension was back in 2024, and he plays the last year of it this season.
Flames still hold NHL rights
Connor Zary, William Stromgren, Martin Pospisil, Adam Klapka, Rory Kerins, Dryden Hunt, Clark Bishop, Parker Bell, Ilya Solovyov, Jeremie Poirier, Yan Kuznetsov, Dustin Wolf, Daniil Chechelev
NHL rights held by another team
Cole Schwindt (Las Vegas), Walker Duehr (Winnipeg), Ben Jones (Minnesota), Dennis Gilbert (Philadelphia), Nick DeSimone (Utah), Jakob Pelletier (Tampa Bay)
Everyone else who played on the inaugural season roster, like Matthew Phillips, Emilio Petterson, Mitch McLain, Radim Zohorna, are either on AHL or ECHL deals, retired or playing in international leagues.
This team that came to Calgary from Stockton, CA, had an exceptional first season, earning the AHL regular season title and the Pacific Division title. Those banners can be seen during Wranglers games, and for how far most of that roster has gone in the seasons since, you can really tell how special that team was.
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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 and Edmonton Oilers played twice on Sunday night. In the Edmonton portion of their split-squad home-and-home set, the Flames beat Edmonton in overtime by a 3-2 score.
The rundown
Neither team scored in the opening period, but Darnell Nurse lit the lamp early in the second period to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
A few minutes later, though, Morgan Frost scored, cutting through the slot and beating Matt Tomkins with a spin-and-shoot wrister to tie the game at 1-1.
Slick moves from Frosty in Edmontonpic.twitter.com/MhNumDwM6B
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) September 22, 2025
A few more minutes later, Joel Farabee buried a feed from Rory Kerins on a power play to give the Flames a 2-1 lead.
Sweet dish from Rory, perfect finish from Beezer.
You love to see itpic.twitter.com/TjCbCP5b5R
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) September 22, 2025
But before period ended, Matvei Petrov tied things up for the Oilers at 2-2.
The third period settled nothing and this exhibition game – already a form of bonus hockey in itself – produced additional hockey at no extra cost to the attendees. In extra time, Frost scored his second of the game to give the Flames a 3-2 victory.
How did it go?
Despite having a roster that was a bit leaner on NHL pedigree than their Edmonton counterparts, the Flames seemed to do a pretty capable job of hanging around. Were they out-shot? Yes, in all three periods, and by a 30-14 in the aggregate.
Let’s give a shout-out to Frost, who scored twice and won 54.5% of his draws, Kevin Bahl, who played a team-leading 23:37 and was on for zero goals by either team, and Ivan Prosvetov, who made 28 saves for the victory.
This and that
Flames lineup:
Farabee – Frost – Frk
Lomberg – Pospisil – Klapka
Hunt – Kerins – Ciona
Battaglia – Bishop – Bell
Bahl – Hurtig
Kuznetsov – Pachal
Solovyov – Miromanov
Ivan Prosvetov started for the Flames, backed up by Arsenii Sergeev. Prosvetov played the full game.
Edmonton lineup (via Jason Gregor):
Podkolzin – Frederic – Savoie
Janmark – Tomasek – Griffith
Pitlick – Hamblin – Lafrenière
Stonehouse – Marjala – Petrov
Nurse – Walman
Dineen – Regula
Millman – Stecher
Matt Tomkins started for Edmonton, backed up by Calvin Pickard. Tomkins went the distance.
Up next
The Flames return to exciting exhibition game action on Tuesday night when they host the Seattle Kraken at the Saddledome.
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It looks like the next few seasons are going to be long for the Boston Bruins.
After nearly two decades of contention, including a Stanley Cup and two other Stanley Cup Final appearances, the Bruins missed the playoffs for just the third time since the 2007-08 season.
Let’s take a look at how their 2024-25 season went, what they did over the off-season, and how the team stacks up heading into the new season.
How the season went
After just 20 games, they fired head coach Jim Montgomery, who almost immediately joined the St. Louis Blues. It was a bit surprising, as the Bruins had an 8-9-3 record the day he was fired, tied for the final Wild Card spot.
They were still in the hunt come Mar. 7’s trade deadline, as they had a 28-28-8 record with 64 points, just three points back (with three more games played). Despite that, they traded their captain, Brad Marchand, to the Florida Panthers. Marchand went on to have an incredible post-season, including being a key factor in the Panthers’ Stanley Cup victory.
Other trades saw the Bruins trade Trent Frederic to the Edmonton Oilers, Justin Brazeau to the Minnesota Wild, Brandon Carlo to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Charlie Coyle to the Colorado Avalanche. The latter move brought in Casey Mittelstadt, while they also acquired Henri Jokiharju from the Buffalo Sabres for a 2026 fourth-round pick.
By the end of the season, the Bruins plummeted to a 33-39-10 record, with their 76 points being tied for dead last in the Eastern Conference.
Drafted players
By finishing near the bottom of the league, the Bruins landed the seventh-overall pick, dropping two spots. They selected James Hagens with the pick, a Boston College player who was a potential number one pick entering the 2024-25 season.
With two picks in the second round, the Bruins selected centre Will Moore and defenceman Liam Pettersson. In the third round, the Bruins selected winger Cooper Simpson, followed by defenceman Vashek Blanár in the fourth round. Their final two picks were Cole Chandler and Kirill Yemelyanov, both centres.
Trades
The Bruins have made a handful of trades since the off-season started. On Jun. 13, they traded Ryan Mast and a 2025 seventh to the Chicago Blackhawks for Victor Söderström. During the draft, they exchanged some picks before trading a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Oilers for Viktor Arvidsson on Canada Day.
Free agent signings
On top of acquiring Arvidsson, the Bruins made a handful of free agent signings on the opening day of free agency. Their two major moves saw them sign Tanner Jeannot to a five-year deal worth $3.4 million annually and Michael Eyssimont to a two-year deal worth $1.45 million annually.
The Bruins picked up a few depth players, namely Sean Kuraly, Matej Blumel, Jordan Harris, and Jonathan Aspirot, but they didn’t replace the talent they traded at the trade deadline.
Before free agency began, the Bruins re-signed Morgan Geekie to a six-year deal worth $5.5 million, as well as Jokiharju to a three-year deal worth $3 million. Mason Lohrei and Söderström also re-signed.
Joe Sacco was let go after serving as the interim coach after Montgomery was let go, but the Bruins replaced him with Marco Sturm.
Departures
After gutting their depth at the trade deadline, there weren’t a whole lot of departures. Jakub Lauko, who fought Ryan Lomberg last season, signed in his home nation of Czechia. Parker Wotherspoon signed with the Penguins.
What the team looks like heading into 2025-26
That begs the question: how do the Bruins look heading into the 2025-26 season? Down the middle, the Bruins will deploy former Calgary Flame Elias Lindholm, as well as Mittelstadt, Matthew Poitras, and Kuraly. Their top six wingers consist of Geekie, David Pastrňák, Pavel Zacha, and Arvidsson. In their bottom six, they’ll have Jeannot, Marat Khusnutdinov, John Beecher, and Eyssimont, not particularly strong.
A big reason for their second-half struggles is because of Charlie McAvoy’s injury. He should be good to go heading into the 2025-26 season. Lohrei, Hampus Lindholm, Jokiharju, Nikita Zadorov, and Andrew Peeke make up the rest of their defence core.
In net, Jeremy Swayman looks to have a bounce-back season, but if he can’t, he’ll split the crease with Joonas Korpisalo. Time will tell if this is a retool or a full-on rebuild for the Bruins.
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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Following Sunday’s pair of split squad exhibition contests, the Calgary Flames have made a roster assignment to trim down their training camp group. On Monday morning, the club announced that they’ve assigned defenceman Mace’o Phillips to the United States Hockey League’s Green Bay Gamblers.
The move is not unexpected. Phillips, committed to attend the University of Minnesota in the fall of 2026, is in his gap year. He had the choice between playing the 2025-26 season with either the Western Hockey League’s Portland Winterhawks or the USHL’s Gamblers, and he opted to suit up in the USHL – he played a good chunk of the 2024-25 season in the USHL as part of the U.S. National Development Program’s under-18 team’s schedule, so he’s familiar with the league. Because he’s not currently attending college, he was allowed to attend Flames training camp since it wouldn’t conflict with school.
A product of Wayzata, Minnesota, Phillips is a 6’6″, 234 pound left shot blueliner. He was selected by the Flames in the third round, 80th overall, in the 2025 NHL Draft. A physical, defence-first shutdown type, Phillips posted six points during his draft year with the National Development Program. That said, the things he brings to the table were on full display in a pair of pretty impressive performances during the two rookie games with the Edmonton Oilers.
In short: man, he made the Oilers absolutely bonkers. Phillips used his size, reach and positioning to do a great job of (a) keeping the Oilers’ attackers to the outside and (b) shoving players around if they got in-between the dots in the Flames’ zone. And while he’s still pretty raw and needs some time to refine his game a bit, you can see the attributes that made the Flames excited about drafting him.
Phillips is expected to suit up this weekend for the Gamblers in the second weekend of the USHL schedule.
With Phillips’ assignment to Green Bay, that trims the Flames’ camp group down to 54 players: six goaltenders, 17 defencemen and 31 forwards. The Flames return to exhibition action on Tuesday night when they host the Seattle Kraken.
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After an off-day on Monday, the Calgary Flames are back in action! And they continue their eight game exhibition schedule when they welcome the Seattle Kraken, or a reasonable facsimile, to the Scotiabank Saddledome.
In keeping with traditional pre-season protocols, the Flames are dressing a veteran-laden group while Seattle is bringing a group that more closely resembles the hated Coachella Valley Firebirds, their minor league affiliate and perennial thorn in the Wranglers’ side.
Either way, things get going just after 7 p.m. MT, streaming on the Flames website and over the airwaves on Sportsnet 960 The Fan!
The Flames
The Flames are coming off a split squad, well, split, against Edmonton on Sunday. They lost 3-0 at home but won 3-2 in overtime up in Edmonton. They’ll be seeking to look a little bit more connected and like themselves at home, after engaging in some fairly poor puck management on Sunday in their shutout loss.
Lines, via Sportsnet 960 The Fan’s Pat Steinberg:
Huberdeau – Frost – Coronato
Zary – Kirkland – Klapka
Gridin – Kerins – Sharangovich
Stromgren – Morton – Honzek
Bahl-Parekh
Solovyov-Pachal
Kuznetsov-Brzustewicz
Wolf
Say
Via Steinberg, Parekh looks to be quarterbacking the top power play unit, with Brzustewicz doing so for the second unit. This group, overall, is a nice mix of prospective NHL players with top AHLers that could be pushing for NHL duty this season.
The Kraken
Seattle beat Vancouver by a 5-3 score at home on Sunday to kick off their six game pre-season schedule.
Here’s Seattle’s group for this evening:
- Forwards: Avon, Catton, Gaudreau, Goyette, Kartye, Marchment, Melanson, Rehkopf, Stephens, Stephenson, Tolvanen and Winterton
- Defencemen: Evans, Fleury, Hammell, Mahura, Ottavainen and Price
- Goalies: Grubauer and Murray
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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!
On Sunday, the Calgary Flames played an exhibition game at home against Edmonton. They didn’t look particularly good. On Tuesday, they played a game against the Seattle Kraken and looked much better than they did on Sunday.
The Flames skated well, made some nice plays and managed to out-score their opponents, beating the Kraken by a 4-1 score.
The rundown
The Flames opened the scoring in the first period, as Yegor Sharangovich deflected a Hunter Brzustewicz point shot past Kraken netminder Philipp Grubauer to give the Flames a 1-0 lead.
Sharky's hands are in midseason form! He tips home a Hunter Brzustewicz point shot!
: FlamesTV pic.twitter.com/DdPxCIeAXO
— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) September 24, 2025
Shortly after that goal, though, Mitchell Stephens received a pass from Mason Marchment in the offensive zone, and beat Dustin Wolf with a backhander to tie the game at 1-1.
In the second period, though, the Flames grabbed the lead again off a pretty nice little play. Rory Kerins carried the puck into the Kraken zone on a power play rush, but lost the handle on it. Connor Zary nudged the puck back to Kerins, and Kerins beat Grubauer to make it 2-1.
Early in the third period, the Flames added some insurance. Morgan Frost made a gorgeous cross-zone pass down low to Matt Coronato, who fired the puck over top of Kraken netminder Matt Murray to give the Flames a 3-1 lead.
Sam Morton added an empty-netter to make it a 4-1 victory.
How did it go?
The Flames looked much closer to the team we expect to see this season, and they seemed to get better as the game went along. They dressed five first-round picks and several NHL regulars, yeah, you’d expect them to look halfway decent. But the players you would hope to stand out did.
Zayne Parekh, in particular, made a lot of really smart little plays in all three zones. He made a couple passes that led to reactions from his teammates that were along the lines of “Hey, I didn’t know you could do that.” He’s still got some yips in his game – he was a bit too much of a spectator on Seattle’s first period goal – but the shape of his game seems to be progressing nicely.
This and that
Flames lineup:
Huberdeau – Frost – Coronato
Zary – Kirkland – Klapka
Gridin – Kerins – Sharangovich
Stromgren – Morton – Honzek
Bahl – Parekh
Solovyov – Pachal
Kuznetsov – Brzustewicz
Dustin Wolf started in net, backed up by Owen Say. Say came in to relieve Wolf to begin the third period.
Seattle lineup via Deep Sea Hockey:
Tolvanen – Stephenson – Marchment
Kartye – Gaudreau – Melanson
Winterton – Catton – Rehkopf
Goyette – Avon – Stephens
Evans – Fleury
Ottavainen – Mahura
Price – Hammell
Philipp Grubauer started in net, backed up by Matt Murray. Murray came into the game midway through.
Up next
The Flames are headed to Abbotsford on Wednesday to visit the Vancouver Canucks.
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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!
Well, that wasn’t all that good, was it?
On Wednesday evening, the Calgary Flames sent a group of players to Abbotsford, B.C. to face the Vancouver Canucks. The Flames didn’t send their aces. Neither did the Canucks. It was more akin to AHL lineups for both groups, with some NHLers sprinkled in.
The youthful Canucks looked pretty solid. The Flames? Much less so. After a pretty disjointed opening period that left them chasing, the Flames just couldn’t muster much offensively en route to a 3-1 pre-season road loss.
The rundown
The Flames gave up a pair of goals in the first period.
With Jeremie Poirier in the box of punishment for roughing, Tom Willander’s initial shot hit the post behind Ivan Prosvetov, and then Nils Hoglander jammed in the rebound to give the Canucks a 1-0 lead.
A little later, the Canucks took advantage of some bunched-up Flames in their own zone to score again. That time, the Canucks moved the puck well along the wall, which drew additional Flames over and created some gaps in their coverage. That created space for some passing, as Linus Karlsson fed the puck to a wide-open Victor Mancini, and he walked in and beat Prosvetov to make it 2-0.
The two teams exchanged power play goals in the second period.
With Joel Hanley in the box, Filip Chytil fired a puck past Prosvetov to make it 3-0. A little later on, the Flames got on the board on a power play, as Connor Zary batted in a loose puck off an initial chance.
But that’s all she wrote, as the saying goes, and the Canucks were content to play smart structural hockey once they got their lead and cruised to victory.
How did it go?
The Flames were not all that good in the first period. They were struggling to connect on breakouts, their defensive zone coverage was spotty, and consequently, they couldn’t get much going at all through the neutral or offensive zones. It was a bad period.
From there, it was just a boring stretch of hockey. The young Canucks seemed happy with a two goal lead and they just avoided mistakes that fed into the Flames’ attack. And so in the last 40 minutes we saw occasional offensive flurries from the Flames, but nothing really of consequence at even strength.
Prosvetov was easily the best player in red. Among the skaters in front of him, Dryden Hunt’s line (with Andrew Basha and Clark Bishop) was rock solid and Sam Morton had some nice stretches, but aside from Prosvetov this was a tough game to glean a lot of positives from.
This and that
The Flames’ lineup, via Derek Wills:
Zary-Kerins-Pospisil
Farabee-Morton-Honzek
Basha-Bishop-Hunt
Suniev-King-Laing
Hanley-Brzustewicz
Bean-Poirier
Morin-Miromanov
Ivan Prosvetov started in net, backed up by Devin Cooley. Prosvetov played the full 60.
Vancouver lineup via Jeff Paterson:
Bains – Sasson – Karlsson
Höglander – Chytil – MacEachern.
Kravtsov – Räty – Stillman.
Alriksson – Åman – LaBate.
M.Pettersson – Willander
Kudryavtsev – Myers.
Knyzhov – Mancini.
Thatcher Demko started in net, backed up by Nikita Tolopilo. Demko played the first two periods and then Tolopilo played the third.
Up next
The Flames have a bit of a gap between games, so we’ll likely see some trimming down of the camp roster. They’re back in game action on Saturday night when they visit the Winnipeg Jets.
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In the aftermath of their flurry of pre-season games since the weekend, the Calgary Flames made a single roster move on Thursday. On Thursday morning, they announced that they’ve assigned unsigned prospect Hunter Laing to the Western Hockey League’s Saskatoon Blades.
The roster move reduces the Flames’ training camp roster to 51 players: six goaltenders, 16 defencemen and 29 forwards.
The 19-year-old Laing is a right shot forward who plays centre and the wing, but primarily lined up on the right side for the Flames during prospects camp and training camp. He was a sixth-round pick by the Flames in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Laing was the last unsigned junior player standing at Flames camp and dressed in Tuesday’s game in Abbotsford – we’re guessing he stuck around so that he could get a game in, likely as a reward from management and the coaching staff for a good camp.
The son of former Abbotsford Heat captain Quintin Laing, Laing is a Kelowna kid and worked with Flames special assistant Jarome Iginla when he was younger – Iginla coached at the Rink Academy in Kelowna, where Laing played – and spent time in the Western League with the Prince George Cougars before being traded to Saskatoon midway through the 2024-25 season.
As far as draft choices go you can easily get why the Flames liked him. Aside from the Iginla connection, there’s the physical attributes: Laing’s listed at 6’6″ and 209 pounds, and as a right shot forward that can play centre, he ticks a lot of boxes for what teams want.
He’s also progressed fairly well after a quiet offensive start to his career in the Dub. He had 11 goals and 25 points in 2023-24 as a 17-year-old, then 25 goals and 48 points in 2024-25 as an 18-year-old. He’s expected to be leaned on heavily by a pretty young Blades team, but that’s the rub: he’ll be given the opportunity to play a ton. And that means he has the opportunity to potentially improve upon last season’s offensive numbers.
The Flames have until June 1, 2026 to sign Laing to an entry-level NHL contract or lose his rights, so it’s going to be an important year for him. We’ll see how he does in the Dub.
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Last season was quite the impressive year for Calgary Wranglers captain Clark Bishop. He put up career numbers and made his first NHL appearance in three seasons. On top of that, he also scored his first NHL goal in over six years. As we approach a new season, is it possible we’ve seen the best we’re going to get out of him? If so, is that such a bad thing?
Meets expectations
The expectations for Bishop are similar to what they were last year. Most of his value is tied to his leadership capabilities, experiences winning a Calder Cup and playing over 50 games in the NHL. He will be a guy to motivate the team in the highs and lows they face over the course of a season and won’t be afraid to be the difference maker if given the opportunity. Bishop finished last season with 38 points in 66 games, split between 19 goals and 19 assists.
He has the potential to do similar numbers as last year but that’s not necessarily what is expected of him. If he is able to lift up players like Sam Honzek and provide opportunities for young guys, the production numbers are a secondary priority.
Exceeds expectations
If Bishop is to exceed expectations, he would either match his 2024-25 production or improve it. Clark Bishop is on a two-way deal so the realm of possibility of playing in the NHL is not impossible. He might be able to play some more games with the Flames again.
The chances of him being an everyday NHLer are very slim at this point but he could be sent for stretches of time if the Flames are running low on centres. He could be useful for them to be a fourth line grinder or a penalty killer. Last season, he played in six games with the Flames, generated one point and finished with a -2 rating.
Another way he could overachieve would be to be an impact point producer at the AHL level. He proved in the first half of last season that he can be the guy when the game is on the line. He scored three game-winning goals in a row in the last week of October and finished the year with seven game-winning goals. If some of the regular top liners make the Flames, go down with injuries or if the new guys have shaky starts, all of a sudden your captain could be one of the guys on the ice the most. With more ice time comes more opportunities to score.
Below expectations
To underperform this year, Bishop would have to pretty much fall off the radar on the team. I can’t see him neglecting his leadership role at any point so that isn’t a consideration but being passed over by prospects is something that could happen on the ice. Bishop will get playing time regardless of his output, but maybe he sits some games out or falls to the fourth line if he is not able to help the team as much as some of his other teammates.
Overall, the Clark Bishop extension from the summer was the right move and a good signing for both Calgary and Bishop. He wants to win and knows how to motivate his group and will certainly be ready to do that again in his fourth year with the team and second year as captain.
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Friends, we’re headed towards the start of the regular season and some of our friends across the hockey media landscape are inviting us to chat about the Calgary Flames.
On Friday, FlamesNation managing editor Ryan Pike joined Tyler Yaremchuk and Liam Horrobin on OilersNation Everyday to help preview the Pacific Division by discussing the Flames.
Among the topics touched on including Craig Conroy’s busy summer of re-signing players like Dustin Wolf, Kevin Bahl and Matt Coronato, the future of Rasmus Andersson, the potential of Zayne Parekh, whether the Flames will make the playoffs in 2025-26, and whether or not Pike will be sleeping at the OilersNation studio when he visits in Edmonton for the season-opener.
Check out the full discussion over at the OilersNation YouTube feed. Or head over to the FlamesNation channel for, y’know, significantly more Flames-related content!
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Coming off a career year in 2023-24 in which Yegor Sharangovich scored 31 goals and 59 points, he was rewarded with a new five-year contract that carried hopes he would continue developing into one of the Calgary Flames’ top forwards for years to come.
After getting off to a late start last season due to an injury in a pre-season game, Sharangovich never really seemed to catch up. Consistency was the issue all year. He’d put together strong two- or three-game stretches where he contributed offensively and all over the ice, only to disappear for several games and look more like a burden than an asset.
Surely Sharangovich wants to prove to the Flames that he’s deserving of the hefty contract and capable of being the consistent producer we saw a couple of seasons ago. That’s why expectations heading into this season are high and hopes of a bounce back are almost expected. So what should we expect of him?
Meets expectations
Sharangovich is going to get opportunities to play from the coaching staff. He’ll likely bounce around the top nine until he finds some chemistry different line mates.
After being demoted from the top power-play unit a year ago, he’ll probably start this season on the second unit while trying to earn his way back. He had 17 power-play points two years ago — if he can replicate anything close to that, it would be a welcome boost to a struggling Flames power play.
He’ll also see plenty of time on the penalty kill. Remember, he finished just one point shy of the league lead in shorthanded points two seasons ago (seven). Providing solid defence on the PK along with chipping in a few extra short handed points can make the difference to winning or losing some games.
Production-wise, it would be encouraging to see him flirt with the 50-point mark, ideally split fairly evenly between goals and assists. He has the shot to fool goaltenders, but he needs to use it more. Last year he had just 128 shots, his lowest total aside from his 54-game rookie season (114).
A consistent approach in all areas should help Sharangovich re-establish himself as a reliable forward for Calgary. That means steady linemates and contributions on both sides of the puck. A healthy, productive pre-season could help him get off to the strong start he needs.
Below expectations
Anything short of his first season in Calgary will likely fall into this category. That year, he played well and earned his contract. Last season, he didn’t back it up.
If Sharangovich once again fails to make a consistent impact, he risks losing his place in the lineup — and potentially his spot in Calgary altogether.
You could call his first season an anomaly, as he had averaged only about 30 points otherwise. But that isn’t what he was brought in to do. The Flames need top-six forwards who can score 30-plus goals, not depth players producing third-line numbers. If he looks invisible again, it will be a major disappointment.
Above expectations
The talent and potential are there. Sharangovich has a lethal shot — he just needs to use it more. Best-case scenario, he comes out of the gate firing, looking confident with the puck and earning the trust of his coaches and teammates. In that case, he could even challenge Matt Coronato for top-line minutes and a role on the first power-play unit.
If he plays his best hockey, could he push 40 goals? Even 30 would be huge for this team. Add 30 assists to that, and the Flames suddenly have another 60- to 70-point player, something only Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri achieved last season.
Sharangovich is a key piece. With his involvement on both special teams, he plays a huge role in the Flames’ success. A healthy, confident Sharangovich deepens the lineup and helps turn close games into wins.
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