Calgary also adds goalie depth in bid to return to playoffs for 1st time since 2022
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After the NHL Draft, free agency and other offseason moves, NHL.com is examining where each team stands in preparation for the 2025-26 regular season, which starts Oct. 7. Today, the Calgary Flames:
2024-25 season: 41-27-14, fourth in Pacific Division; missed Stanley Cup Playoffs
Ivan Prosvetov, G: The 26-year-old signed a one-year contract with the Flames on July 1 after spending the 2024-25 season with CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League, where he was 20-16-2 with a 2.32 goals-against average, .920 save-percentage and four shutouts. Prosvetov, who is 8-9-2 in 24 regular-season games (19 starts) with the Arizona Coyotes and Colorado Avalanche, is expected to compete with Devin Cooley for the backup spot behind Dustin Wolf.
Dan Vladar, G: Signed a two-year contract with the Philadelphia Flyers on July 1 after four seasons with the Flames. He was 12-11-6 with a 2.80 GAA, .898 save percentage and two shutouts in 30 games (29 starts) last season, playing behind Wolf. … Kevin Rooney, F: An unrestricted free agent, he played 70 games in 2024-25, and had 10 points (five goals, five assists) in a fourth-line role that also featured some penalty-killing responsibilities. … Anthony Mantha, F: Signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins after being limited to 13 games in 2024-25 after undergoing season-ending surgery on his ACL in November. He had seven points (four goals, three assists).
Zayne Parekh, D: The 19-year-old scored a goal and was a plus-3 in his first and only NHL game last season. … He had consecutive 33-goal seasons with Saginaw in the Ontario Hockey League from 2023-25, and his 107 points (33 goals, 74 assists) in 2024-25 was the highest from an OHL defenseman in more than 30 years. Selected in the first round (No. 9) of the 2024 NHL Draft, Parekh should make the opening night roster but may have to wait before getting significant playing time. … Yan Kuznetsov, D: The 23-year-old left-shot defenseman has spent the past three seasons with Calgary in the AHL, and had 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in the minors last season. Selected in the second round of the 2020 NHL Draft (No. 50), Kuznetsov could compete for a spot out of training camp. … Ilya Solovyov, D: He had 28 points (six goals, 22 assists) in the AHL last season and has played 15 NHL games over two years with the Flames. The 24-year-old could be primed for the full-time jump after four seasons in the minors.
CGY@LAK: Parekh scores his first NHL goal in his NHL debut
Another left-shot defenseman that can play in the top two pairs. Joel Hanley was re-signed to a two-year contract before free agency opened, but the 34-year-old could slide into a third-pair role should Calgary be able to secure a longer-term partner for MacKenzie Weegar. Should the Flames trade right-shot defenseman Rasmus Andersson, who is entering the final season of a six-year contract signed Jan. 8, 2020, Calgary would need additional help on the blue line.
“Come take a spot. Come take a job. Earn it. Take it. If there’s an injury and you get a chance, never give that spot back. It’s hard to say there’s one spot here or one spot there… they’re all open in my mind, but these veteran guys aren’t going to give you anything and we need the younger guys to push the veteran guys to be better.” — general manager Craig Conroy
Calgary had the sixth-most midrange shots on goal (680) last season but ranked below the NHL average (74.7) in midrange goals (72). Center Nazem Kadri was third in midrange shots on goal (115) behind Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (132) and Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks (117). Wolf finished among the top 10 in high-danger saves (341; ninth) and midrange saves (409; sixth) as a rookie. — Troy Perlowitz
The Flames have dealt with significant roster turnover in recent seasons but have two cornerstones for keeper and dynasty leagues: Wolf, a Calder Trophy finalist last season, and Parekh, who is ranked among NHL.com’s top five fantasy rookies for this season. Wolf is also the top-ranked goalie for keeper and dynasty leagues. — Chris Meaney
Jonathan Huberdeau — Nazem Kadri — Matt Coronato
Connor Zary — Morgan Frost — Yegor Sharangovich
Joel Farabee — Mikael Backlund — Blake Coleman
Martin Pospisil — Justin Kirkland — Adam Klapka
Kevin Bahl — Rasmus Andersson
Joel Hanley — MacKenzie Weegar
Jake Bean — Brayden Pachal
Dustin Wolf
Ivan Prosvetov
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