The 2022 NHL Draft is just mere days away, with the Calgary Flames expected to make their first pick in two days’ time. Held in Montreal this year, the Flames will be idle during first round on July 7, and will make their first pick during the second round on July 8.
TWC will be breaking down which players the Flames could select with their second round pick at #59 by position, finishing with goaltenders today.
Our consolidated draft rankings were created by compiling various draft boards and rankings including those from from Dobber, Future Considerations, Sportsnet, EliteProspects, The Hockey Writers, TSN, and The Athletic. The top and bottom ranks for each player were removed, and then a simple average was taken. There is no right way to rank these players so take them with a grain of salt; we know GMs will probably draft in a very different order than any of us think come draft day.
The Flames have a solid pipeline of goaltenders in their system and expecting them to select a goaltender in a deep draft with only three picks available is unreasonable. That said, they may trade down and acquire more selections which could mean a goaltending prospect donning a Flames jersey is not completely out of the question.
Let’s dive into the top draft eligible goaltenders the Flames could take with their second-round selection:
| Rank | Player | Pos | Team | League | DOB | HT | WT | S | GP | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 79 | Tyler Brennan | G | Prince George Cougars | WHL | 27-Sep-03 | 6’4″ | 190 | L | 39 | 3.58 | 0.899 |
| 80 | Topias Leinonen | G | JYP U20 | U20 SM-sarja | 25-Jan-04 | 6’5″ | 234 | L | 21 | 2.28 | 0.916 |
| 168 | Hugo Hävelid | G | Linköping HC J20 | J20 Nationell | 01-Jan-04 | 5’10” | 174 | L | 28 | 1.82 | 0.920 |
| 178 | Brett Brochu | G | London Knights | OHL | 09-Sep-02 | 5’11” | 176 | L | 43 | 2.75 | 0.911 |
Tyler Brennan
| Rank | Player | Pos | Team | League | DOB | HT | WT | S | GP | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 79 | Tyler Brennan | G | Prince George Cougars | WHL | 27-Sep-03 | 6’4″ | 190 | L | 39 | 3.58 | 0.899 |
Tyler Brennan is the highest ranked goaltender in our consolidated rankings and is expected to be one of the first goaltenders to be selected outright during the draft. The difference between this year’s draft compared to last year’s is that goaltenders aren’t ranked as high overall. With a plethora of high-end prospects in other positions, goaltenders aren’t going to be selected early on unless a team reaches. This means if someone is high on Brennan, they could take him as mid-round pick.
What makes Brennan a formidable prospect is how he uses his skating to complement his build. In 2021–22, he was the starter for the Prince George Cougars, splitting games with Taylor Gauthier—who was traded midseason—and Ty Young. Brennan had the lion’s share of ice time with 39 games played.
In his first season as a WHL starter, Brennan put up a respectable 3.58 goals against average (GAA) and 0.899 save percentage (SV%), but he added the most to his stock during the WHL playoffs. In a losing effort against the Portland Winterhawks, the Cougars were unfortunately swept. However, in four appearances, Brennan posted a 1.86 GAA and 0.954 SV%, giving up just seven goals on a whopping 153 shots against.
The goaltender has plenty of room for improvement, but in this year’s draft class that can be said about any and all netminders. Brennan in particular can tighten up his positioning, both with respect to how he squares off against opposing players coming in close, but also how he’s a bit too loose with his arms with a tendency for pucks to slip through underneath.
Nothing about him is a red flag, but he’s far from a top-end prospect. Having him in any prospect system wouldn’t be a bad thing whatsoever. He’s the number one ranked North American goaltender for a reason.
Brennan is ranked as high as 54th by Craig Button and as low as 100th by TheHockeyWriters among lists in our consolidated rankings.
Topias Leinonen
| Rank | Player | Pos | Team | League | DOB | HT | WT | S | GP | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | Topias Leinonen | G | JYP U20 | U20 SM-sarja | 25-Jan-04 | 6’5″ | 234 | L | 21 | 2.28 | 0.916 |
One of Finland’s top goaltending prospects, Topias Leinonen is another goaltender with plenty of upside and scouts have taken notice. He’s a goaltender that has shown flashes of brilliance throughout his development thus far. His goaltending instinct is naturally impressive, complementing his size to make for a fairly complete package.
However, he’s not as active when squaring off and taking away angles. It’s a bit of a knock against bigger goaltenders who are too reliant on their size, as Leinonen falls trap to this. If he can sharpen his body positioning—something that can definitely be trained—then he has all the makings of an NHL goaltender.
Leinonen is expected to be playing in Liiga, Finland’s top hockey league. With just four games in Liiga thus far, his showing with JYP was less than spectacular, where he couldn’t find the same success he had with JYP U20. If he’s selected, he’ll be motivated to prove that spending a pick on him was not a mistake.
Leinonen’s ranked as high as 59th overall—right where the Flames select—by Corey Pronman, and as low as 112th by TheHockeyWriters.
Hugo Hävelid
| Rank | Player | Pos | Team | League | DOB | HT | WT | S | GP | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 168 | Hugo Hävelid | G | Linköping HC J20 | J20 Nationell | 01-Jan-04 | 5’10” | 174 | L | 28 | 1.82 | 0.920 |
A smaller goaltender, Hugo Hävelid is making another case that size doesn’t mean everything for netminders. With an exceptional showing in the J20 Nationell and at the World Juniors, Hävelid is a top-end goaltender hailing out of Sweden.
He’s not going to picked early on due to his size, but the Flames have Dustin Wolf defying the odds so far as well. The Flames have shown they are not small-player-averse and are willing to draft skill over size. Hävelid is exactly that.
He has the toolkit to be a successful goaltender, but he’ll be challenged at every level he plays at to prove he belongs. He’s been up to the task thus far, but the next steps are going to be bigger. It’s easy to throw smaller-stature goaltenders into a group of prospects with much to overcome, but Hävelid is showing that he’s not letting it be a detriment but instead an asset.
The next generation of smaller players don’t let size get in the way of their ascent. Hävelid is no exception. He’ll almost certainly be available to select by any team that wants him in the middle rounds if not even later. While he does risk falling down in the draft order, he could be a great lottery ticket for a team willing to take the chance.
Hävelid is ranked 105th by TheHockeyWriters and and 127th by Corey Pronman.
Brett Brochu
| Rank | Player | Pos | Team | League | DOB | HT | WT | S | GP | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 178 | Brett Brochu | G | London Knights | OHL | 09-Sep-02 | 5’11” | 176 | L | 43 | 2.75 | 0.911 |
Brett Brochu is an interesting case. He’s been passed over for the past two NHL Drafts despite having strong numbers. Another goaltender s maller in size, he’s shown that he can be a top-end performer. He most recently won the Jim Rutherford Trophy as the OHL’s goaltender of the year. Yes, he’s a little older now, but goaltenders are rarely ever on perfectly linear development paths anyway.
In his third year of draft eligibility, Brochu’s resume is a bit stronger, making him a strong candidate for a late-round selection, or a darkhorse early-round pick. He’s not ranked too often by scouts. In fact, only Corey Pronman has him ranked at 124th overall. However, scouting is one thing and drafting is another. Teams may see his recent success as development in the right direction.
Brochu’s done everything he could really do thus far, and in a make or break year, the goaltender will hope to have his name called by the time the draft is over. There’s no telling who’s willing to take a flyer on a goaltender, but Brochu’s body of work this past season makes him a more appealing pick than some other comparables.
The odds are low on the Flames picking a goaltender in a year with limited picks and with a netminder pipeline already quite strong. That said, they can still pad the position with more skill and these are some of the goaltenders we think can fit right in with the organisation.
Which goaltender would you pick if you were the Flames? Would you use a second-round pick on a goaltender at all? Let us know in the comments or on social media.
