What a week for the Calgary Flames’ prospects. Matthew Coronato continues to be exceptionally hot for the Harvard Crimson, and is centring the team’s top line. In the AHL, Connor Zary, Emilio Pettersen, Jakob Pelletier, and Cole Schwindt all had at least three points, while Dustin Wolf recorded his first shutout of the season. Both of the Flames’ pro goalies saw their numbers improve substantially, and a few Flames prospects got their first goals and points of the year. So much to get into, let’s dive right in.
Welcome to the TWC Calgary Flames prospect update. Each week, we’ll take a dive into how the Flames’ prospects have done in their respective leagues. We have defined a prospect as a skater who has played fewer than 65 NHL games, and is younger than 25 years of age. All data is from QuantHockey and EliteProspects. We also use an NHLe calculator built by Christian Roatis (@Croatis) which is used to estimate a player’s equivalent point total in the NHL based on how they are performing in their respective league. The calculator uses the difficulty of the given league combined with the ease at which a player puts up points to determine the NHLe.
Standout Performer: Cole Schwindt – Calgary Wranglers
| Period | GP | G | A | P | PPG | PIMs | NHLe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This week | 3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1.25 | 0 | N/A |
| Season total | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0.83 | 4 | 33.1 |
Acquired as part of the sign-and-trade Matthew Tkachuk deal, Schwindt was expected to be one of the most NHL-ready prospects in the system, but he started the season off quite slowly, with just six assists in his first nine games. He has since snapped his goal-scoring drought, recording four goals this week to lead the Wranglers to a 2–0–1 week. Take a look at three of his goals here:
The one consistency in all three of these goals is his absolutely incredible release. He has an incredible ability to shoot the puck, and to elevate it in tight above and around goalies into the top of the net. And while he hadn’t scored prior to this week, Schwindt clearly has a nose for the net that looks like it will continue through the rest of the season.
While he was lost in the shuffle during the Tkachuk trade, not garnering as much praise as the acquisitions of Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar or a first round pick, Schwindt has a ton to offer the Flames and for now the Wranglers. He is a legitimately good prospect who plays a strong two-way game and can score. His skating is quite good as well, and he projects to be a middle-six NHLer in a year or two. Expect there to be a good chance he earns a call-up this season.
Flames prospect happenings
AHL
- The Wranglers went 2–0–1, losing a heartbreaker in overtime to the Manitoba Moose. Most of their goal scoring came from Schwindt, but they did get a couple goals from Emilio Pettersen and a goal from Walker Duher as well. Take a look at his goal below:
- Duher has been generally fine in the AHL, but not really good enough to justify an NHL call-up.
- Connor Zary had three assists and Jakob Pelletier had four. Pelletier had a very nice feed to Schwindt on the third clip above. Both are looking like they are itching for a call-up to the NHL.
- Dustin Wolf recorded his first shutout of the season this week, and made a number of huge saves including this one. Take a look:
- The Wranglers’ backup, Oscar Dansk has been very forgettable to this point in the season. He is currently rocking a 0.842 save percentage through four games, and was a big reason why the Wranglers lost in overtime this week to the Manitoba Moose.
- It may be time to see what Daniil Chechelev can do in that role. Chechelev is currently in the ECHL, boasting a 0.917 save percentage in eight games.
BCHL
- One goal and three assists for Cade Littler in the BCHL this past week. He’s about a point-per-game right now but it is still the BCHL.
ECHL
- Yay for Ilya Nikolayev. The forward had not one but two goals this week, breaking him out of his season opening funk. Take a look at his goals here:
- He should probably be in the AHL this season, and three points this week will hopefully put him on his way to earning a call-up.
- No points for Lucas Feuk. The experiment of bringing him over this season from the Swedish third division has not gone over particularly well to this point.
OHL
- Jack Beck continues to be injured for the Ottawa 67’s. They have not released any details as to what is keeping him out of the lineup.
QMJHL
- The Flames’ QMJHL prospects have been very average to start this season. Cole Huckins has been playing mostly on the second line for Sherbrooke, but had just one assist this week.
- No points this week for Cameron Whynot for Halifax. Both he and Huckins were third round picks in 2021, but neither seems destined for an ELC if their play does not improve.
WHL
- Lucas Ciona has slowed down a touch since he started the year with an absolute blast. He had two assists this week for the Seattle Thunderbirds, and has been playing on the team’s second line. Seattle is an early favorite for the Memorial Cup this season.
- Two assists for Parker Bell this week for the Tri-City Americans. He’s been very decent this season.
NCAA
- Another huge week for Matthew Coronato at Harvard. He had a goal and two assists this weekend for the Crimson. Take a look at his goal here:
- Expect Coronato to hopefully join the Flames at the end of this season.
- No points for Jake Boltmann in Notre Dame. He’s been playing between the top pair and second pair this season.
- No points as well for Josh Nodler this week. He’s a defense-first centre in his final year for UMass.
- No points for Demetrios Koumontzis at ASU. He’s in his fifth year, and has been playing mostly on the bottom line for the Sun Devil program.
Europe
- No games for either William Stromgren or Topi Ronni this week.
NHLe Leaderboard
NHLe is a metric used to estimate a player’s offensive output at the NHL level from their point totals in their respective league. Here are the Flames’ current top 5 (bracketed numbers denote movement from the previous week)
- Matthew Phillips: 46.6 (Same)
- Connor Zary: 39.9 (+2)
- Matthew Coronato 38.3 (Same)
- Lucas Ciona: 36.4 (-2)
- Jakob Pelletier: 36.7 (New)
Overall regular season totals for Flames prospects
Forwards
| Player | Position | GP | G | A | P | P/GP | PIM | NHLe | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jack Beck | LW/RW | 10 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 1.30 | 4 | 34.4 | Ottawa 67’s | OHL |
| Parker Bell | LW | 16 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 1.06 | 20 | 26.2 | Tri-City Americans | WHL |
| Lucas Ciona | LW | 15 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 1.47 | 16 | 36.4 | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL |
| Matthew Coronato | RW | 6 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 1.67 | 0 | 38.3 | Harvard Crimsons | NCAA |
| Walker Duehr | RW | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0.42 | 4 | 16.7 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Mathias Emilio Pettersen | C/LW | 8 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0.75 | 2 | 29.9 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Lucas Feuk | C/W | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.13 | 4 | N/A | Rapid City Rush | ECHL |
| Cole Huckins | C | 17 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 0.65 | 20 | 15.1 | Sherbrooke Phoenix | QMJHL |
| Ben Jones | C | 12 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0.75 | 9 | 29.9 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Rory Kerins | C/LW | 7 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 1.14 | 0 | N/A | Rapid City Rush | ECHL |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.33 | 0 | 19.9 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL | ||
| Adam Klapka | RW | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0.43 | 8 | 17.1 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Demetrios Koumontzis | LW | 10 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0.40 | 6 | 10.0 | Arizona State Sun Devils | NCAA |
| Cade Littler | C | 16 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 0.94 | 10 | 11.6 | Wenatchee Wild | BCHL |
| Ilya Nikolayev | C | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0.30 | 8 | N/A | Rapid City Rush | ECHL |
| Josh Nodler | C/RW | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0.36 | 6 | 11.6 | UMass | NCAA |
| Jakob Pelletier | C/LW | 12 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 0.92 | 2 | 36.7 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Matthew Phillips | C/RW | 12 | 9 | 5 | 14 | 1.17 | 2 | 46.6 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Martin Pospisil | C/W | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.22 | 13 | 8.8 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Topi Ronni | C | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.33 | 0 | 0 | Tappara | Liiga |
| 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2.50 | 2 | N/A | Tappara U20 | U20 SM-sarja | ||
| Cole Schwindt | C/RW | 12 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0.83 | 4 | 33.1 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| William Stromgren | LW | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3.00 | 0 | N/A | Rogle BK J20/Brynas IF J20 | J20 Nationell |
| LW | 17 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0.18 | 11 | 8.1 | Brynas IF | SHL | |
| Connor Zary | C | 12 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 1.00 | 19 | 39.9 | Stockton Heat | AHL |
Defencemen
| Player | Position | GP | G | A | P | P/GP | PIM | NHLe | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jake Boltmann | RHD | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.08 | 23 | 2.2 | Notre Dame | NCAA |
| Cole Jordan | LHD | 16 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0.44 | 15 | 10.9 | Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL |
| Yan Kuznetsov | LHD | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.18 | 0 | 7.2 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Jeremie Poirier | LHD | 12 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 0.67 | 6 | 26.7 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Ilya Solovyov | LHD | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.18 | 10 | 7.2 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Cameron Whynot | LHD | 16 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 0.50 | 8 | 11.6 | Halifax Mooseheads | QMJHL |
Goalies
| Player | Position | GP | GAA | SV% | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniil Chechelev | G | 8 | 2.99 | 0.917 | Kansas City Mavericks | ECHL |
| Arseni Sergeev | G | 6 | 2.81 | 0.911 | University of Connecticut | NCAA |
| Dustin Wolf | G | 9 | 2.60 | 0.916 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
Want to know more?
Still want to know more about the Flames prospects? Check out our interviews with a number of prospects down below:
Which prospects are you most excited about? Let us know below in the comments or on social media.
Photo from CalgaryWranglers.com.
