With the draft lottery complete and not a single team moving up, the Calgary Flames are now locked into the ninth overall selection in the draft. Barring a trade down, the Flames will be picking in the top 10 of the draft for the first time since 2016, and for just the 10th time in Calgary Flames franchise history.
Unfortunately, the organization has a less-than-ideal history of picking in the top 10, with multiple misses, busts, and puzzling selections. Let’s take a look at the team’s history of picking in the top 10 and who they selected the first nine times at the podium.
Flames history of picking in the top 10
Below is the full list of top-10 selections the Flames have made since moving to Calgary in 1980. Overall across 43 drafts, they’ve picked in the top 10 nine times.
| Draft Year | Pick | Player Selected | GP as a Flame |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 6th | Matthew Tkachuk | 431 |
| 2014 | 4th | Sam Bennett | 402 |
| 2013 | 6th | Sean Monahan | 656 |
| 2003 | 9th | Dion Phaneuf | 378 |
| 2002 | 10th | Eric Nystrom | 204 |
| 2000 | 9th | Brent Krahn | 0 |
| 1998 | 6th | Rico Fata | 27 |
| 1997 | 6th | Daniel Tkaczuk | 19 |
| 1992 | 6th | Cory Stillman | 393 |
Picking inside the top 10 hasn’t been a common occurrence in Calgary and has only come during two specific eras of Flames hockey. The organization selected in the top 10 six times between 1992 and 2003 during the dark ages also known as the Young Guns era. After 2003, it would be 10 years until they made another top 10 selection, kicking off the post-Iginla rebuild with three picks in the top 10 in a three-year span between 2013 and 2016.
We’ll dive into more detail below, but right off the bat, it’s not hard to tell that the organization has been very hit or miss when they’re picking in the top 10. If you don’t remember the likes of Daniel Tkacuk or Brent Krahn off the top of your head, you’re not alone.
Overview of each Flames top 10 selection
2016 – Matthew Tkachuk (6th)
The organization’s most recent selection in the top 10 came eight years ago when they selected Matthew Tkachuk sixth overall at the 2016 draft. This one is hard to grade. On one hand, this was a slam dunk pick as the Flames picked up what would turn out to be the second-best player in the draft and a true superstar player. On the other hand, Tkachuk was no longer with the organization just six years after being drafted and before he even entered his prime. It’s fair to say we only got to see prime Tkachuk for one single season in Calgary before he was shipped to Florida, which isn’t exactly ideal for a top-10 selection.
Still though, the six years he was were fun. Tkachuk instantly became a fan favourite and one of the organization’s most important players during his six-year tenure. Most fans labelled him as the team’s future captain. Unfortunately, we only witnessed one season of Tkachuk at his best and just one trip past the first round of the playoffs before he refused to re-sign and forced a trade out of town.
Whether you blame management for not signing him long-term or Tkachuk for pushing his way out, this was a disastrous end to what should’ve been one of the best draft picks in franchise history.
2014 – Sam Bennett (4th)
At fourth overall, Sam Bennett was and still remains the highest draft pick in franchise history. Unfortunately for everyone involved, this pick just didn’t work out in Calgary. You could argue no draft pick of the past 20-plus years of Flames hockey had more hype around him than Bennett. The expectations were sky-high for Bennett.
After dominating the OHL followed by a strong showing in his first taste of playoff hockey in 2014–15 and then a solid 36-point rookie campaign, things seemed to be going in the right direction. Unfortunately, Bennett’s 36 points in 2015–16 would be his highest-ever total as a Flame, as he’d fail to reach that mark again across his next five seasons in Calgary. As a pending free agent going into the 2021 offseason, Bennett was shipped to Florida for Emil Heineman and a second-round pick.
All said, this turned out to be one of the biggest busts in franchise history. The team ended up moving on from their highest pick ever just six years after he was drafted with him never having passed the 40-point mark once as a Flame.
2013 – Sean Monahan (6th)
The first pick of the post-Iginla rebuild, Sean Monahan was also the Flames’ first top-10 pick in a decade at the time. Monahan would make the immediate jump to the NHL at the age of 19 after being drafted and never looked back. He’d become one of team’s best and most important players of the 2010s, leading the team in goals on three separate occasions while also wearing an A for seven straight seasons.
Unfortunately, a plethora of major injuries piled up over the years and Monahan’s play slowly fell off after his career-best 82-point season in 2018–19. Despite remaining a fan favourite and leader in the room, Monahan was eventually traded in 2022, nine years after being drafted, as a pure salary dump coming off the worst season of his career in 2021–22.
Things may not have ended how we all envisioned, but for a period of nine years after being drafted, Monahan was beloved in the city and also a major part of the Flames post-Iginla era. He left the franchise sitting in the top 10 in just about every major offensive category.
2003 – Dion Phaneuf (9th)
The last time the Flames selected in their current slot of ninth overall was over 20 years ago when they took Dion Phaneuf at the 2003 draft. After being drafted, Phaneuf made the jump to the NHL a couple of years later in 2005–06. He immediately made an impact, finishing his first year in the league as a finalist for the Calder Trophy. The following year at just 21 years old, he would finish sixth in Norris voting. It seemed as though the Flames had found a true franchise number one defenceman.
Phaneuf’s peak came during the 2007–08 season—his third in the league. He’d finish the year with 60 points and finished the season as the runner up for the Norris trophy. He even finished 12th in the Hart Trophy race. It was all downhill from there though as Phaneuf’s play would decline the following two years and in one of the most shocking moves in franchise history, he was sent to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a blockbuster deal in 2010, just seven years after being drafted.
Phaneuf’s impact in Calgary is felt to this day, but as a top-10 pick it’s a shame he only lasted a few seasons in Calgary.
2002 – Eric Nystrom (10th)
The year before taking Phaneuf ninth the Flames also picked in the top 10, selecting Eric Nystrom 10th overall. After being drafted in 2002, Nystrom’s production would immediately decline in college over the next couple of years. He’d eventually earn regular NHL minutes in 2007–08, five years after being drafted. Across the next three seasons, Nystrom would struggle to adapt to the NHL game and put up just 30 combined points across 202 games. In 2010, just three years after making his full-time debut with the Flames, Nystrom walked away as a free agent to sign with the Minnesota Wild.
All said, this pick went south from pretty much day one. Nystrom played just three seasons in Calgary and never produced more than 19 points in a season.
2000 – Brent Krahn (9th)
As if the 2002 draft didn’t go poorly enough, the Flames missed even worse on their top 10 selection just two years earlier in 2000. At ninth overall the Flames selected goaltender Brent Krahn, the highest-drafted goaltender in franchise history. After being drafted, Krahn spent the next seven years in the AHL, all while battling a recurring knee injury. Following the 2007–08 season and before he played even one game in the NHL, the Flames decided not to re-sign Krahn and he would leave as a free agent. He would go on to play one NHL game and retired in 2011.
1998 – Rico Fata (6th)
Two years before missing on Krahn, the Flames selected Rico Fata at sixth overall, tied for the highest draft pick in franchise history at the time. Like Krahn, this pick turned into a colossal miss from pretty much day one. After being drafted, Fata would make his debut with the Flames less than a year later during the 1998–99 season.
Across the next three seasons, he’d manage just 27 NHL games, putting up one single point. At the beginning of the 2001–02 season—just three years after being drafted—Fata was placed on waivers and claimed by the New York Rangers. Over the next five years, he’d play 203 NHL games and post 62 points, eventually leaving the NHL for Europe in 2006.
1997 – Daniel Tkaczuk (6th)
To say the Flames drafted poorly in the late 1990s would be an understatement. Their work at the draft between 1997 and 2000 set the franchise back years, in particular, their back-to-back whiffs at sixth overall in 1997 and 1998. A year before picking Fata sixth, the Flames picked Daniel Tkaczuk sixth overall in 1997. Tkaczuk would make the jump to pro hockey in 1999–2000, three years after being drafted. That season he’d lead the Flames’ AHL affiliate in scoring at the age of 20.
The following season, Tkaczuk would make his NHL debut. What seemed like a promising career in the making came crashing down though as he suffered a serious concussion in just his 19th game with the Flames. Following the concussion, Tkaczuk would return to the AHL to help the Saint John Flames claim the AHL title. That same summer, the Flames would send him to St. Louis in a deal for Roman Turek and he’d never play in the NHL again.
1992 – Cory Stillman (6th)
With the Flames’ first ever top 10 pick and their highest in franchise history at the time, the organization selected Cory Stillman in 1992. After being drafted, he’d join the Saint John Flames a year later for the 1993–94 season and lead the team in scoring two seasons in a row. He’d make his full-time NHL debut in 1995–96. Over the next six years, Stillman would operate as a regular in the Flames lineup, posting 235 points in 383 games.
Unfortunately, he was never able to reach his full potential as a Flame, topping out at 57 points while in Calgary. During the 2000–01 season, Stillman was dealt to St. Louis for Craig Conroy and a seventh-round pick. He’d carve out a successful NHL career over the next 11 years after being dealt, putting up 492 points in 642 games. He would also win a Stanley Cup in Carolina in 2006, finishing second in playoff scoring that year.
Overall this was a solid pick. Stillman was a useful Flame for a few years, and when it was time to move on the Flames were able to deal him for Conroy who’d become one of the best Flames of the 2000s.
Calgary has a history of top-10 misses
All said, the Flames have picked in the top 10 nine times in franchise history, but only one of the players ended up playing over 500 games in Calgary. The picks have either ended up having poor NHL careers or were shipped out of town soon after being drafted. With the 10th top-10 pick in franchise history set to be made in June, here’s hoping the organization can end their shaky history with top-10 picks.
