The Calgary Flames are set to start training camp today, and it feels like it has been forever since the Flames hit the ice. The team has been divided into three separate groups, with two groups being made up of NHLers and players who could impress and earn a role and the third group being players almost certainly heading to the AHL or junior hockey.
From the way the Flames have broken down their groups, there are a number of early lines and battles forming. Here’s how things are looking:
Team Crisp
In this group, the Flames have the makings of two of their four lines. As things are right now, the guarantees are something as follows:
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Nazem Kadri | Andrei Kuzmenko | |
| Mikael Backlund | Blake Coleman |
This then leaves Yegor Sharangovich, Matt Coronato, and Connor Zary as the three NHLers to fill the two open spots.
You can feasibly put Sharangovich in any of the open two spots, or you can even move him to centre a different line. Realistically, given the way he plays, he’s probably going to start the season with Nazem Kadri and Andrei Kuzmenko.
This then leaves a battle for the spot with Blake Coleman and Mikael Backlund. Zary will almost certainly have an NHL spot, but it’s reasonable that if Coronato pushes hard, he could find his way into the lineup in that shutdown role. Coronato was drafted as a scoring forward with a really strong two-way game. He played penalty kill minutes for Harvard throughout his NCAA career and was an AHL All-Star last season. It’s not out of the question that the Flames could want to try him in that role this season.
Given last season, the spot is probably Zary’s to lose. However, Zary is also a centreman, and the Flames may want to finally give him a spot in the middle on a different line to start the year. I would imagine the team starts with Zary on the wing here and then adjusts from there.
Also in this group are Dryden Hunt, Cole Schwindt, and Adam Klapka, who will be looking to have strong camps and earn either the last spot in the lineup or be the first man called up when injuries strike. The competition for this spot will be fierce.
On defence, the Flames will probably start with Daniil Miromanov and MacKenzie Weegar as one of their top two pairings. This pairing was good last year and will probably go again to start the season.
Beyond that, there will be a big battle with Joel Hanley and two players on professional tryouts—Tyson Barrie and Jarred Tinordi—for a spot on the blue line. There are probably two open spots on the blue line—the sixth and seventh defencemen—that are up for grabs, and all will be vying for one of those two.
Team MacNeil
Just as with the first group, there are the starting point of two lines, with a number of bodies vying to fill in the spaces. Here’s how it shakes out:
| Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Huberdeau | Anthony Mantha | |
| Ryan Lomberg |
Then you have Martin Pospisil who needs a spot and likely Kevin Rooney who you pencil in as your fourth line centre.
Pospisil could play on the wing, but the more intriguing spot for him would be in the middle with Jonathan Huberdeau and Anthony Mantha. In this role, the Slovak would play a Sam Bennett-esque role to try and get Huberdeau going. I would imagine this is how they start.
This leaves one open spot on the right wing for one of their bodies. That spot could go to any of the players above, as well as Martin Frk, Walker Duehr, Justin Kirkland, Sam Morton, Jakob Pelletier, or William Stromgren. Honestly, any of the players could earn that spot, with the runner up earning the 13th forward spot, and the balance heading down to the AHL. Further, any of the centres could push Rooney out of the lineup as well, as happened last season when the Flames sent him down. Lots of possibilities here.
On defence, Rasmus Andersson probably starts paired up with Kevin Bahl, but it’s anyone’s game from there. Jake Bean and Brayden Pachal probably have the inside track to earn a roster spot, but do not count out Jeremie Poirier or Ilya Solovyov, who could earn a roster spot. Solovyov was a reliable depth option last season, while Poirier started the last season on an absolute tear before going down with a nasty injury. Do not count him out this season.
Perhaps the most interesting battle of all will be between Daniel Vladar and Devin Cooley in net. One or both of them could start in Calgary alongside Dustin Wolf, who is almost certainly going to start the season with the big club. This one could go any which way, and camp will be a good time to see who ends up with a spot.
What to watch for in camp
Training camp begins today and there are so many storylines that will emerge over the coming weeks. The Flames will likely start with cuts to their third group—Team Johnson—early next week, with more coming from there until they are down to an NHL-sized roster by opening night in October.
We are just weeks away from hockey that matters, and it’s going to be a blast as always, even if the Flames on the ice probably won’t be great.
