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[Calgary Flames]

FN’s 2025 Flames summer prospect rankings: honourable mentions Mace’o Phillips and Jérémie Poirier

The Calgary Flames have a plethora of defensive prospects.

This is the second day of looking at players who received votes. Last time, we looked at Carter King and Trevor Hoskin, who ranked 21st and 22nd, respectively. In this article, we’ll look at two defencemen who also received votes in our mid-season prospect ranking.

Let’s dig in!

Mace’o Phillips​

Mace’o Phillips is a left-shot defenceman who was selected in the third round (80th overall) by the Flames in the 2025 draft. He appeared on three ballots, with his highest vote being as the 17th-best Flames’ prospect. He came in at 23rd spot on our balloting.

The Wayzata, Minnesota native stands at 6’6”, 228 lbs, something that you can’t teach a player. Phillips spent the past two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in the United States Hockey League, picking up four assists in the 33 games in 2023-24. In his draft season, Phillips scored two goals and three points in 25 games, along with 67 penalty minutes. With their under-18 team, Phillips scored two goals and six points in 60 games, with 103 penalty minutes.

Phillips will play for the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers in 2025-26, before attending the University of Minnesota to start the 2026-27 season.

Jérémie Poirier​

Another left-shot defenceman who was selected in the third round, but just missed ranking on our top 20 list, is Jérémie Poirier. Although he was picked in the same round as Phillips, Poirier was selected back in 2020 with the 72nd overall pick by the Flames. He received two votes in our top 20, his highest being 15th. He came in at 24th spot on our balloting.

After spending four seasons with the Québec Maritimes Junior Hockey League’s Saint John Sea Dogs, Porier began his professional career in 2022-23 with the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers, scoring nine goals and 41 points in 69 games. In the post-season, the left-shot defenceman added two goals and eight points in nine games.

Due to a nasty wrist injury at the beginning of the 2023-24 season, Poirier only played 23 regular season games with the Wranglers in 2023-24, scoring three goals and 13 points in 23 games. In the post-season, he scored a goal and picked up three assists in six games. The 2024-25 season was a nice bounce-back year for Poirier, as he scored five goals and 42 points in 71 games.

A few weeks ago, Poirier signed a one-year, two-way deal. It’s expected he’ll start the 2025-26 season with the Wranglers, but could earn an opportunity with the Flames later in the season.

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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.

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/fns-20...e-mentions-maceo-phillips-and-jeremie-poirier

 

[Calgary Flames]

FN’s 2025 Flames summer prospect rankings – #20: Ethan Wyttenbach

The Calgary Flames had themselves another fine couple of days at the 2025 NHL Draft, adding eight more prospects into their already robust pipeline and generally strengthening their ranks at every position (except in net).

While most of the headlines in the days and weeks after the draft had to do with the infusion of three top centre prospects in Cole Reschny, Cullen Potter, and Theo Stockselius, the Flames deserve more credit than they’ve gotten for adding a couple more intriguing options on the wings.

We’ve already covered sixth-rounder Aidan Lane, whose name appeared on one ballot submitted by our writing and on-air teams. And now, with the Top 20 countdown officially kicking off today, it’s time to talk a little bit more about Ethan Wyttenbach, a future Quinnipiac Bobcat whose strong 2024-25 season earned him the USHL’s inaugural Gaudreau Award.

Ethan Wyttenbach​

Left wing, shoots right
Born Feb. 10, 2007 (age 18) in Roslyn, N.Y.
5’10”, 180 pounds
Drafted in the fifth round (144th overall) by Calgary in the 2025 NHL Draft

Wyttenbach appeared on three separate ballots, and the three writers who voted for him all ranked him between No. 13 or 16 overall on their respective lists. But, by and large, even the panellists who didn’t find a spot for Wyttenbach in the Top 20 — including yours truly — still have plenty of time for him as a player. He’s part of a very strong tertiary group of forward prospects for this Flames team.

Sure, it’s relatively common for 5’10” wingers who trade on energy and work ethic over eye-popping skill to top out as high-end AHL players or run-of-the-mill depth pieces on NHL rosters, but for every dozen tweeners, there’s an Andrew Mangiapane who slips through the cracks. Wyttenbach has already made a decent case for himself as one of the more efficient scorers in the USHL this past season. With continued positive developmental years going forward, he could begin to stand out more from the pack.

Wyttenbach finished 22nd among all USHL players with 51 points in 2024-25 despite skating in just 44 of a possible 62 contests with the Sioux Falls Stampede. Adjusting for games played, the Roslyn, N.Y. product moved up to seventh in scoring, just one spot behind Nashville Predators first-rounder Ryker Lee. Points aren’t everything, but it’s encouraging that the Flames were able to get a guy who can really score so late in a relatively weak draft class — especially a whole round after similarly productive USHLer in L.J. Mooney, who is three inches shorter.

In April, the USHL selected Wyttenbach as the first recipient of the Gaudreau Award, bestowed upon the player who best exemplifies the legacy of Johnny and Matty Hockey — “combining elements of on-ice excellence with joy, enthusiasm, care and responsibility.” He led the Stampede in total community service hours prior to sustaining a lower-body injury in February and was named a Chipotle All-American.

Here’s what McKeen’s Hockey contributor Mark Dubreuil had to say when we asked him for his thoughts on Wyttenbach:

A skilled and offensively talented forward selected in the 5th round #144 by the Flames in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, Wyttenbach has great vision and is able to read the ice really well. There was a nice development curve this past season playing in the USHL for Sioux Falls, but still some nuances in his game that need to be addressed, namely his skating, which making the jump to the NCAA level with Quinnipiac should help with his development.

Expectations for 2025-26​

Quinnipiac has blossomed into a top-notch NCAA Division I men’s hockey school, having won the National Championship in 2023 and clinched its 11th tournament appearance this past spring. Historically one of the more veteran-laden groups in the NCAA, Wyttenbach will have his work cut out for him as a freshman this upcoming season.

That’s not to say Wyttenbach won’t be able to play a sizable role for the Bobcats — Bruins prospect and fellow USHL Sioux Falls alum Chris Pelosi put up 24 points in 38 games as a freshman at Quinnipiac in 2024-25 — but it won’t be a walk in the park for the 5’10” winger. Working in his favour? He’s one of only three NHL prospects projected to suit up for the Bobcats in 2025-26.

Will all this considered, it’d be encouraging to see Wyttenbach score at or around a half-point-per-game pace in his first year of school. Anything above that would be highly impressive, particularly considering that he won’t turn 19 until February. We’ll see.

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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/fns-2025-flames-summer-prospect-rankings-20-ethan-wyttenbach

 

[Calgary Flames]

What do the Flames have to show for their 2013 NHL Draft class?

It’s been a wild few years for the Calgary Flames when it comes to the NHL Draft.

In 2024, for the first time in awhile, they had two first-round picks – and selected Zayne Parekh and Matvei Gridin. In 2025, they had two first-round picks again – and selected Cole Reschny and Cullen Potter. And presently, they’re slated to have two first-round picks in 2026, too.

As we wait to see what the past two draft classes with multiple first-rounders will turn into, let’s look back at the prior instance of multiple firsts, 2013, and see what the Flames have to show for that much draft capital.

The picks​

Between picks they were allocated that they kept and picks they acquired in trades, the Flames selected seven players in 2013.

In the first round, sixth overall, they selected Sean Monahan. He played 656 games for the Flames before being traded to Montreal (along with a conditional 2025 first-round pick) in exchange for future considerations to open up cap space. While the ending was a bit ignominious for Monahan, he was one of the most consistent and impressive goal-scorers in club history. That’s pretty solid value.

In the first round, 22nd overall, with the pick they acquired from St. Louis for Jay Bouwmeester, the Flames selected Emile Poirier. Poirier turned into a pretty solid pro, but failed to really get a foothold in the NHL, playing just eight games before leaving as a free agent. Swing and a miss.

In the first round, 28th overall, with the pick they acquired from Pittsburgh for Jarome Iginla, the Flames selected Morgan Klimchuk. Klimchuk also turned into a pretty solid pro, but he played just a single NHL game. He was eventually traded to Toronto for minor-league blueliner Andrew Nielsen, who in turn left as a free agent. Another swing and a miss.

In the third round, 67th overall, the Flames selected blueliner Keegan Kanzig. Despite Kanzig playing zero NHL games, this turned into a fairly interesting pick. Kanzig was packaged with a 2019 sixth-round pick and traded to Carolina in exchange for Eddie Lack, Ryan Murphy and a 2019 seventh-round pick. Lack played four games before being sent to the AHL (and then traded to New Jersey for Dalton Prout, who left as a free agent). Murphy was bought out immediately after the trade. The seventh-rounder in 2019 was used to draft Dustin Wolf, who’s played 71 games so far. The original pick didn’t provide much value, but rolling it into future assets worked out.

In the fifth round, 135th overall, with the pick they acquired from Columbus for Blake Comeau, the Flames selected blueliner Eric Roy. He wasn’t signed.

In the sixth round, 157th overall, the Flames selected forward Tim Harrison. He wasn’t signed.

In the seventh round, 187th overall, the Flames selected Russian blueliner Rushan Rafikov. He wasn’t signed.

The trades​

The Flames traded away three of their own 2013 picks, to varying degrees of success.

Their second-round pick (36th overall) went to Montreal, along with Rene Bourque and Patrick Holland, in exchange for Mike Cammalleri, Karri Ramo and a 2012 fifth-round pick. Cammalleri played 135 games, Ramo 111, and the fifth-rounder was used on Ryan Culkin, who played zero games. Second-rounders are often hit and miss, so a couple hundred games isn’t awful here.

Their fourth-round pick (97th overall) went to Florida for Corban Knight. Knight played nine games and was traded back to Florida for Drew Shore, who played 13 games. Not awful value considering how infrequently fourths pan out.

Their fifth-round pick (127th overall) went to Washington, along with minor-leaguer Jordan Henry, in exchange for Dennis Wideman’s rights. The Flames signed Wideman and he played 280 games for the club. Yeah, the Flames had to shell out for a hefty contract, but this was a petty savvy gamble to get Wideman’s rights.

The verdict​

For better or worse – mostly better – the 2013 draft will be defined by Sean Monahan. He ruled before all his injuries slowed him down, and he deserves to go down in history as one of the better Flames ever. (Had he stayed healthy, he could’ve been an all-time great.)

All-told, the 2013 class and the related assets acquired around that class combined for 1,288 NHL games. That total will keep creeping up, as the pick the Flames used to select current starting netminder Dustin Wolf was acquired in a trade involving a 2013-drafted player, Keegan Kanzig.

But even without the tenuous Wolf connection, the hundreds of games Monahan played make the 2013 class rock-solid, even if none of the other players drafted – particularly the other two first-rounders – turned into much.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/what-do-the-flames-have-to-show-for-their-2013-nhl-draft-class

 

[Calgary Flames]

Rasmus Andersson hasn’t told the Flames he’ll only sign with one team: report

If you bump into a fan of the Calgary Flames during the 2025 off-season, there’s a good chance that the first or second topic on their mind regarding the local hockey club is the future of blueliner Rasmus Andersson.

The 28-year-old Andersson is headed into the sixth and final year of his current contract and, per multiple reports, it sure does sound like player and team are a ways apart on a new contract. As such, it also seems that Andersson will, at some point between now and the trade deadline in March 2026, find himself traded to another team.

On Friday, Swedish journalists David Carlsson and Mikael Ljungberg at Expressen published a quick catch-up with Andersson. And the long and the short of it seems to be: it’s pretty quiet in terms of talks between him and the Flames right now.

Most notably, Andersson was asked about a flurry of reporting from late June that indicated that (a) Andersson had nixed a move to Los Angeles at the draft and (b) he preferred to play for Vegas long-term. (Quotes here via Carlsson and Ljungberg and translated via Google Translate):

“I have still been very appreciated in Calgary for a long time. Then some insider comes with wrong information and then the fans believe it, because they are right about a lot of other things they do and I understand that that is their job. But I have not given Calgary a team, that I only want to play with one team. That is not true, he says.”

Andersson did confirm the existence of an offer, but declined to confirm which team made it. (“Some team made a very good offer, that’s it.”)

“I thought about a lot of things. I talked to my family and thought that right then and there I wasn’t really keen on moving my family there and signing a long-term contract, that’s what it all came down to. I communicated that decision to Calgary. I said if you want to trade me, this is the number of teams I can think of signing for. But this wasn’t one of them.”

A second-round selection by the Flames in the 2015 NHL Draft, Andersson has become a really important member of the hockey club over the past decade. He became a full-time NHLer during the 2018-19 season and has been an alternate captain for the Flames for the past three seasons. One of the first players over the boards in essentially every game situation, Andersson has been a very good Flame for awhile – this past season’s plus/minus figure notwithstanding.

In 536 NHL games with the Flames, Andersson has posted 231 points. He recently captained the Swedish men’s national team to a bronze medal at the World Championships. He’s in the final year of a six year contract that includes a $4.55 million cap hit and a six team no-trade clause. Given his contract, age, experience, and quality of recent performances, he should be a very sought-after commodity in the trade market.

Head over to Expressen to check out the full interview piece… but unless you’re fluent in Swedish, maybe run it through Google Translate first.

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/rasmus...he-flames-hell-only-sign-with-one-team-report

 

[Calgary Flames]

What do the Flames have to show for their 2011 NHL Draft class?

The 2011 NHL Draft was an interesting time for the Calgary Flames, serving as the first draft under the direction of new general manager Jay Feaster, who had been promoted from assistant GM the previous December.

Feaster attempted to put his stamp on the Flames by placing an emphasis on drafting and development, and being really explicit with the scouting team to focus on building out the draft list with the right attributes, then “drafting the list.” The 2011 was the first test of that philosophy.

So what do the Flames have to show for the 2011 draft?

The picks​

The Flames made five selections in 2011. Three of them were their original draft choices, while two were acquired from the New York Rangers in exchange for Tim Erixon. The son of former Rangers winger Jan Erixon, Tim Erixon apparently had a desire to play for his dad’s old team despite being drafted by the Flames, so Feaster swung a trade to land the Flames a pair of second-round picks and forward Roman Horak in exchange for Erixon and a fifth-round pick.

In the first round, 13th overall, the Flames selected Swiss forward Sven Baertschi. Baertschi famously joined the Flames on an emergency recall in 2011-12 and scored three goals in five games, but then just couldn’t recapture that magic in subsequent seasons. He played 66 games for the Flames before being traded to Vancouver for a second-round pick in 2015, which was used to select Rasmus Andersson, who has played 536 games (and counting) for the red team.

In the second round, 45th overall, with the first of the two picks from the Rangers, the Flames selected forward Markus Granlund. The brother of Mikael Granlund, Markus Granlund couldn’t quite find a consistent role with the Flames. He was traded to Vancouver in exchange for Hunter Shinkaruk, who played 14 games with the Flames. Shinkaruk was then flipped to Montreal for Kerby Rychel, who played twice for the Flames and left as a free agent.

In the second round, 57th overall, with the second of the two picks from the Rangers (originally Washington’s), the Flames selected blueliner Tyler Wotherspoon. Wotherspoon played 30 games for the Flames before leaving as a free agent.

In the fourth round, 104th overall, the Flames selected forward Johnny Gaudreau. One of the smallest and youngest players available in the 2011 draft class, Gaudreau ended up being one of the better success stories of the draft. He played 602 games for the Flames before leaving in free agency. He was, quite simply, one of the best draft selections in franchise history.

In the sixth round, 164th overall, the Flames selected goaltender Laurent Brossoit. He was subsequently traded, along with Horak, to Edmonton in exchange for Ladislav Smid and Olivier Roy. Smid played 109 games for the Flames before departing.

The trades​

The Flames traded their own second-round pick to Toronto as part of a trade that sent Wayne Primeau and the pick to the Leafs in exchange for Anton Stralman, Colin Stuart and a 2012 seventh-round pick. Stralman was flipped to Columbus for a third-rounder use draft Max Reinhart, who played 23 games. The seventh-rounder was used to select Matthew DeBlouw.

Their third-rounder was traded to Edmonton, along with Aaron Johnson, in exchange for Steve Staios. Staios played 57 games for the Flames before leaving as a free agent.

Their fifth-rounder went to the Rangers in the aforementioned Erixon trade.

Their seventh-rounder was traded to Atlanta in exchange for Freddie Modin. Modin played four games for the Flames.

The verdict​

All-told, the 2011 draft was one of the better bits of asset management by the Flames in years. Yeah, their first and second-rounders weren’t any great shakes – Baertschi just never seemed to find his two-way game to management’s sanctification. But Gaudreau was a home run draft choice, and arguably his success helped influence a shift towards involving the data side of things in drafting a bit more than happened before.

Overall, the players the Flames chose and the assets they acquired related to the 2011 class have accumulated 1,529 games for the Flames. And that number will creep up due to Andersson (and whatever assets the Flames end up getting if/when he’s traded).

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/what-do-the-flames-have-to-show-for-their-2011-nhl-draft-class

 

[Calgary Flames]

FN’s 2025 Flames summer prospect rankings – #17: Ilya Solovyov

FlamesNation’s 2025 summer prospect rankings are underway! Kirill Zarubin, Yan Kuznetsov and Ethan Wyttenbach have claimed spots 18 to 20, respectively, to start things off.

Ilya Solovyov is one of just a few names in this year’s prospect rankings to have seen NHL action. In fact, of everyone on this list, Solovyov has the most NHL experience. Coming off a career season with the Calgary Wranglers, and with the hope and expectation of potentially locking down an NHL roster spot this year, the 17th spot in the 2025 FlamesNation prospect rankings belongs to the Belarusian defenceman.

Ilya Solovyov​

Defenceman, shoots left
Born July 20, 2000 (age 25) in Mogilev, Belarus
6’3″, 208 pounds
Drafted in the seventh round (205th overall) by Calgary in the 2020 NHL Draft

Solovyov appeared on six of the nine ballots among FlamesNation staffers, ranging from 13th to 19th. Settling at the 17th position seems fitting for the 25-year-old who is entering his fifth year with the organization.

Solovyov barely held onto rookie eligibility heading into this season. According to NHL rules, rookie eligibility is defined as: “To be considered a rookie, a player must not have played in more than 25 NHL games in any preceding seasons, nor in six or more NHL games in each of any two preceding seasons. Any player at least 26 years of age (by Sept. 15th of that season) is not considered a rookie.”

Solovyov narrowly qualifies on all counts. Over the past two years, the defenceman has played in 15 NHL games — 10 in 2023-24 and five in 2024-25. One more game last year and Solovyov would not be on this list. Having just turned 25, he will also age out of rookie eligibility after this upcoming season.

Solovyov was a steady presence on the Wranglers’ blue line last season and put together the best campaign of his career. In 59 games, he scored six goals and recorded 22 assists for 28 points. His play earned him top ice time for the Wranglers, and he was used in all situations. Solovyov was usually the first name to come mind when the Flames needed a defensive call-up.

It took until February for Solovyov to see NHL action last season. Considered a contender for the opening-night roster out of training camp, the fact he played only five NHL games fell short of expectations — and not through any fault of his own. He recorded a lone assist against the Washington Capitals, marking his only NHL point of the season.

We asked FlamesNation’s own Paige Stewart, who sees a lot of Wranglers hockey, for her thoughts on Solovyov:

“Ilya Solovyov couldn’t have had a better reaction to his assignment to the Wranglers early in the season. He solidified a spot at the top of the defensive pairings and moulded his game to fit the situation he was put in. His most regular d-partner was Jonathan Aspirot and with Aspirot’s speed and hockey IQ mixed with Solovyov’s composure and confidence, they were a deadly combination. Solovyov carried the ice time on the blue line and earned himself a career year out of it. His confidence improvement at the end of the season makes me think he’ll be much closer to a regular NHL spot than we may think.”

Expectations for 2025-26​

Without a doubt, Solovyov will be looking for a personal redemption tour this training camp. After failing to make the team last season, securing a spot on the opening-night roster will be his top priority as the new campaign approaches.

That being said, Solovyov is entering the final year of his contract with the Flames, which happens to be a one-way deal. If he fails to make the opening-night roster, there’s a good chance the Flames could lose him on waivers — something they surely want to avoid.

With a backlog of defencemen trying to make the team — such as Zayne Parekh and Hunter Brzustewicz — and a veteran many believe may be taking up a roster spot in Rasmus Andersson, competition on the blue line will be stiff. If the Flames can’t find room for Solovyov on the NHL roster, they may be motivated to use him as a trade chip in order to get a return rather than lose him for nothing.

If he does spend the season in the AHL, Solovyov should reclaim his spot as a top defender on the Wranglers and carry the brunt of the ice time. There’s no reason to think he isn’t capable of matching, if not surpassing, his numbers from last year for another career season.

Solovyov should see NHL ice time this year. His play in the AHL has shown he deserves a more thorough look. On the Flames, he likely fits best as a third-pair shutdown defenceman but could find himself on the second pairing if the situation is right. His offensive production probably wouldn’t match what he’s done in the AHL, but he should still contribute from time to time. Solovyov will be an interesting name to watch this season.

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/fns-2025-flames-summer-prospect-rankings-17-ilya-solovyov

 

[Calgary Flames]

FlamesNation Mailbag: Discussing advanced stats, puck luck and wings

We’re into August, friends, and we’re at the point of the season where everyone in the hockey world is trying to squeeze the last enjoyment out of summer before they have to head back to the rink to start prepping for the upcoming season. Heck, the Calgary Flames’ amateur scouts are already headed to Slovakia and Czechia for the Hlinka Gretzky Cup to start scouting for the 2026 NHL Draft.

As summer continues on, let’s check in with the mailbag.

I noticed on the nhl advanced stats that the Flames shot speed was in the bottom half of the league last year. Do you think this relates to the lack of scoring? How does the team address this? https://t.co/grJaisRyoD

— Nathan (@nsmigel) August 10, 2025

I would say that you – and the NHL’s advanced stats via NHL EDGE – are onto something there. The Flames are not a hockey club bereft of skill, but if you compared their roster on paper last season to the rest of the NHL… yeah, you could probably understand why they were ranked so low league-wide in terms of goals for and shooting percentage.

I will say that I think the Flames’ coaching staff put together a playing system that did a nice job of working within the roster’s limitations and giving them a chance to win. And as the team moves more and more of their young players into their big league roster, I don’t think it’s unfair to expect the skill quotient to see an uptick. Will that result in more goals? We shall see. And we’ll have to see if the 200-foot checking focus changes as the team gains a bit more skill and foot-speed over time.

How do you think ticket prices will change when the new building opens? Heard so many stories of price jumps when arenas open in other cities.

— Kevin (@KevinDang97) August 10, 2025

I mean, they’re definitely going up. That’s pretty much what always happens when a team moves into a new arena.

Rogers Place, for example, featured more premium offerings by design – Oilers execs said in interviews that’s what their ticket-holders said they wanted – and because the composition is different, an apples-to-apples comparison is tough. But while prices for a few seats stayed flat or close to flat, generally-speaking there were increases – some of them by 60% or higher. But part of the justification was it was a nicer, newer building, and the same seat in Rogers Place would have better sightlines and amenities than the same seat at Rexall Place.

The same logic will probably hold true at Scotia Place. But I suspect that Flames brass is well-aware of how poorly-received the price increases were in Edmonton, so we’ll see how things unfold here in 2027.

Which players are bouce-back candidates for next season and which players are more likely to regress?

— glamburger79 (@glamburger79) August 2, 2025

I was curious about this myself, so I went over to Natural Stat Trick and took a look at which players had particular high or low PDO – percentage driven outcomes – which is calculated by simply adding a player’s on-ice shooting and save percentage together. In theory, it evens out at 1.000, so having a high PDO means you’re a bit lucky and having a low PDO means you’re unlucky.

Those with notably low PDO at five-on-five in 2024-25 include Joel Farabee (.970), Rasmus Andersson (.972), Morgan Frost (.982), Kevin Bahl (.985), Blake Coleman (.985) and Connor Zary (.988). Andersson, in particular, played a ton of hockey and so his rough PDO combined with his ice time to produce an ugly plus/minus. The list of players with higher PDO is pretty short: just Justin Kirkland (1.109).

So if you’re trying to remain optimistic about the Farabee/Frost acquisition… well, if their puck luck bounces back, maybe it could turn out OK.

Can you get good wings in Calgary? And is it blue cheese or ranch dressing as dipping sauce?

— Ed Helinski (@MrEd315) August 10, 2025

Calgary has developed a pretty fun food culture over the past few decades – a nice byproduct of an influx of people moving to town from all over the place – and a nice outcome of that is there are so many good places to get wings in town. There are few bad choices when it comes to wing night. Generally-speaking, most places will have both blue cheese and ranch dressing available upon request, but your mileage may vary.

Got a question for a future mailbag? Contact Ryan on Twitter/BlueSky at @RyanNPike or e-mail him at Ryan.Pike [at] BetterCollective.com! (Make sure you put Mailbag in the subject line!)

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Source: https://flamesnation.ca/news/flamesnation-mailbag-discussing-advanced-stats-puck-luck-and-wings

 

[Calgary Flames]

Western Conference off-season preview: Vancouver Canucks

After finishing first in the Pacific Division, the Vancouver Canucks had a significant drop-off in 2024-25.

It was a season full of injuries, drama, and regression, leading to the Canucks missing the post-season for the fourth time in the last seasons. That begs the question: Did they do enough this off-season to push for the playoffs once again?

Let’s find out!

How the season went​

After finishing with 109 points to finish first in the Pacific Division, the Canucks battled for a wild card spot for most of the season. They held on to the spot as late as mid-March but went 6-5-3 to end the season, finishing six points out of the final wild card spot.

While it was a solid season on paper, the Canucks overachieved heavily in 2023-24, and there appeared to be a lot of drama behind the scenes. And as the saying goes, where there is smoke, there is fire, as J.T. Miller was traded on Jan. 31 to the New York Rangers for Filip Chytil and a protected 2025 first-round pick. Jan. 31 happened to be the one-year anniversary of the Elias Lindholm trade.

Anyway, the Canucks flipped that first-round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Marcus Pettersson, adding a third Swede with the last name Petterson to the team. Elias Pettersson (the forward), scored just 15 goals and 45 points in 64 games, far below the production you’d expect for a player making over $11 million annually.

Brock Boeser’s game also saw regression, as he went from 40 goals and 73 points in 2023-24 to just 25 goals and 50 points in 2024-25, which is around where he’s averaged for his career. Thatcher Demko dealt with injury throughout the season, and finished with an .889 save percentage and 2.90 goals against average. The only reason the Canucks had a chance to make the playoffs was because of the strong play by Kevin Lankinen.

As expected, defenceman Quinn Hughes continued to be one of the best defencemen in the league. When health, he scored 16 goals and 76 points, but missed 14 games due to injury. There’s a legitimate chance things could’ve been different had he stayed healthy through the season.

Drafted players​

The Canucks had six picks in the 2025 draft. With their first-rounder, they selected Braeden Cootes 15th overall. They went with a goalie in the second round, selecting Alexei Medvedev from the London Knights with the 47th overall pick.

In the third round, they drafted centre Kieren Dervin from St. Andrews College, an Ontario high school. They didn’t have a fourth-round pick, but selected Swede Wilson Bjorck with the 143rd overall pick. In the sixth round, the Canucks drafted Gabriel Chiarot, followed by Matthew Lansing with their seventh-round pick.

It’ll still be a handful of seasons before any of these players make an impact, but Cootes scored 26 goals and 63 points in 60 Western Hockey League games last season. Expect him to make a significant step in 2025-26.

Trades​

The Canucks were busy before and after the draft and free agency. Their first off-season move saw them trade a 2025 fourth-round pick to the Edmonton Oilers for Evander Kane and his full salary. On Jun. 28, they acquired Ilya Safonov from the Chicago Blackhawks for future considerations.

After all their free agent signings were dealt with (more on that later), the Canucks traded young netminder Artūrs Šilovs to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Chase Stillman and a fourth-round pick in the 2027 draft. They also traded Dakota Joshua to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a 2028 fourth-round pick.

Free agent signings​

The area where the Canucks were the busiest was in free agency, and more specifically, re-signing and extending their players. They extended Derek Forbort in early June and re-signed Aatu Räty.

On the opening day of free agency, they extended Conor Garland to a six-year deal worth $6 million annually, as well as Thatcher Demko to a three-year deal with an $8.5 million cap hit. Their biggest move on Canada Day was re-signing unrestricted free agent Brock Boeser to a seven-year deal worth $7.25 million annually.

Departures​

As for the Canucks’ departures, their biggest without a doubt was Pius Suter, who signed a deal with the St. Louis Blues. Last season, he scored a career-high 25 goals and 46 points, production that Evander Kane might be able to replicate. Dakota Joshua was traded, and Noah Juulsen departed for the Philadelphia Flyers.

One other departure was their head coach, Rick Tocchet, who parted ways with the team and joined Juulsen in Pennsylvania. They replaced him with Adam Foote.

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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/western-conference-off-season-preview-vancouver-canucks