The Calgary Flames are looking to have a bounce-back season after finishing two points back of a wild-card spot in the western conference. The Flames have moved on from General Manager Brad Treliving and have decided to let go of head coach Darryl Sutter.

Both roles have been filled now as The Flames announced the hiring of Craig Conroy as General Manager and Ryan Huska as head coach. Both of these hires came from within the club.

The Flames didn’t have very much cap space, so they elected not to bring any big names into the organization. They did have a significant trade where they forward Tyler Toffoli in exchange for Yegor Sarangovich, and a third-round pick.

Graduating Players

Graduating to the NHL

Matthew Coronato, RW: Coronato signed with the Calgary Flames after his season with Harvard was all done. He is a little undersized but possesses so much skill and has a cannon of a shot that makes him so dangerous for scoring chances. He will get a chance to play with the Flames’ top 6 with the departure of Toffoli and will provide the Flames with scoring and a bit of youthful energy this season.

Jakob Pelletier, LW: Pelletier played twenty-four games in the NHL, and this was a huge stepping-stone to his development. Former Head Coach Darryl Sutter wasn’t a huge fan, stating that he was “21 years old, got a long ways to go”. In the games he played, Pelletier looked a bit out of place defensively and was adjusting to the game’s speed. It will be interesting to see where he is slotted in this season.

Dustin Wolf, G: Dustin Wolf could be the best goalie prospect in all of hockey. He put up insane numbers again this season in the American Hockey League with the Wranglers and looks like a future starter in the NHL. He will likely be an NHL regular this season, assuming Dan Vladar is moved.

Walker Duehr, RW: Duehr played 27 games with the Flames in a bottom-six role. He looked good in that spot and was very effective with his big body and physical game.

Graduating to professional hockey:

William Strömgren, LW: Strömgren has officially signed with the Wranglers and will play a full season with them next year. He will need to adjust to North American hockey and understand how much of a difference there is compared to European hockey. The American Hockey League is where he will need to get stronger and use his gifted hands to excel in the league. His defensive abilities will need some improvement as well.

Rory Kerins, C: Kerins played extraordinarily well this season and will be moving up to the American Hockey League this year. He was seen as one of the best players every time he hit the ice. Playing in the ECHL as a 20-year-old isn’t easy and he really flourished playing a full season. When Kerins got called up to the AHL, he looked more mature and ready for a bigger challenge while playing with the Wranglers.

Jérémie Poirier, D: Poirier had a terrific year in his first year at pro. He still lacks good footwork and really needs to work on his off-puck engagement. He has great offensive abilities and knows how to run a power play.

Risers

Dustin Wolf, G: Wolf proved last season wasn’t a fluke and instead was even better this year in the American Hockey League. He is the Flames’ best goalie prospect by a large margin and is incredibly impressive statically.

Connor Zary, C: Zary improved significantly this year and really gained more confidence after having one full season in the American Hockey League. He was more patient with the puck and looked more comfortable playing at a faster pace. His creativity is still fantastic, and if he performs well at camp, he could get a call-up very soon with the Flames.

Fallers

William Strömgren, LW: Strömgren had a rather disappointing year in the Swedish hockey league. He also didn’t perform well in the World Junior Championships as well which is slightly concerning for someone who was the oldest age at the World Junior Championships. He is going to play in the American Hockey League and will have to fight his way into a good spot for himself.

Cole Schwindt, C: Schwindt played with the Wranglers for his second season, and he looked slow and wasn’t very effective in most games. He had a promising first year with the Wranglers, but I think there was too much depth in the lineup, and this prohibited him to get the ice time he got last season.

Organizational Depth Chart

Left Wing                  Center                Right Wing
Jabok Pelletier     Connor Zary     Matthew Coronato
Samuel Honzek     Topi Ronni         Walker Duehr
Aydar Suniev          Rory Kerins         Eetu Tuulola
Lucas Ciona           Cole Huckins
William Strömgren  Ben Jones
Parker Bell             Jaden Lipinski
Cade Littler
Mathias Emilio Pettersen
Cole Schwindt
Martin Pospisil

Left Defencemen        Right Defencemen
Jérémie Poirier                   Jake Boltmann
Étienne Morin                        Brady Lyle

Yan Kuznetsov
Ilya Solovyov

Goalies
Dustin Wolf
Arseni Sergeev
Daniil Chechelev
Yegor Yegorov

Top 20 Fantasy Prospects

This section is intended to paint a picture of the Flames prospects whose
current trajectory projects them making the most positive fantasy impact at the time that they reach the NHL. Arrival date and NHL certainty have been taken into consideration. However, a player’s potential upside is the most important factor in determining this list.

1. Dustin Wolf
2. Matthew Coronato
3. Jakob Pelletier
4. Connor Zary
5. Samuel Honzek
6. Jérémie Poirier
7. Topi Ronni
8. Rory Kerins
9. Étienne Morin
10. Lucas Ciona
11. William Strömgren
12. Cole Huckins
13. Ben Jones
14. Jake Boltman

15. Brady Lyle
16. Jaden Lipinski
17. Yan Kuznetsov
18. Arseni Sergeev
19. Parker Bell
20. Cade Littler