We have passed the 25-game mark of the 2024–25 season for the Calgary Flames. So, now is a good time for me to give some thoughts on the team—25 of them. Let’s get right into it.
25 thoughts on the Flames
1. The Flames need a dynamic/star forward. This is the main reason a lot of fans are okay with a rebuild or reset of some sort. This team’s offence is so dull. You need a dynamic forward to be successful in this league. A perfect example is the Minnesota Wild. They are a solid roster and Judd Brackett and Co. have assembled some great young pieces. But you add in Kirill Kaprisov and they are a different animal.
2. The Flames are a tough watch due to the lack of star talent. We were so lucky in 2021–22. The Flames need that guy who makes you get on the edge of your seat and admire what he can do shift after shift.
3. Dustin Wolf. Enough said, right? Goaltending was the number one concern heading into the year. It’s been the least concerning thing so far. Wolf has dominated every league so far, so why not the NHL?
4. Connor Zary has eased the Flames’ concerns at centre. I understand the Flames looking at the market for a centre, preferably a right shot—Nazem Kadri and Mikael Backlund aren’t getting any younger—but they don’t need to go out and rush a move to bring someone in.
5. On that note, I still think the long-term answer for the Flames at centre is through the draft. We will see how the rest of the season unfolds, but there are a lot of great centre prospects at the top of this draft. Acquiring a guy like Marco Rossi or Dylan Cozens could be a prudent move depending on the acquisition price. But that’s not the type of guy that changes the Flames’ trajectory much. Teams don’t give away star players unless they ask out or leave in free agency. And that’s a rare occasion.
6. The acquisition of Ryan Lomberg can’t be overlooked. Sure, he’s not going to get on the scoresheet much. But that’s completely fine. Every video or behind-the-scenes look has Lomberg encouraging or pumping up the boys. He brings lots of personality to the locker room. He stood up to Mathieu Olivier on Saturday against Columbus. He’s a big reason for this team having a better record than anticipated, which is not something people on the outside would think when looking at point totals.
7. This Flames team has surprised everyone. They are working hard. They don’t give up. Credit to them after we haven’t seen hard work as part of this team’s identity for the last couple of seasons.
8. Hard work gets you through the first half of the season, but talent usually wins out in the last half as things tighten up and scoring becomes more difficult. As the saying goes, “never bet against talent.”
9. I continue to see similarities between this Flames team and the Philadelphia Flyers last year. Everyone wrote off the Flyers last year, but great goaltending and hard work earned them a playoff spot for most of the year. Going back to the hard work factor in the previous two points, teams can gain ground in the first half of the year. But when you have guys giving 100% every game, that’ll wear on you. And you begin to fade. It’s what happened in Philadelphia last year and I can see a similar thing happening for the Flames.
10. It’s time to accept that Huberdeau is what he is. He likely never returns to a point-per-game player, let alone a 100-point player. He’ll help the team get to the cap floor, and then he’s likely bought out once they are looking to be competitive again. At least he is well-liked with his teammates. There’s that… at least.
11. This team cannot generate offence. My first thought comes back to the lack of star talent. It’s frustrating to watch. Both the scoresheet and their chances are not great.
12. The Flames are very hit-or-miss. First six games: 5–0–1 record. Next ten games after that: 3–5–2. After that, they went 4–1–0 in their next five. Now, their recent road trip earned a record of 0–3–1.
13. Tuesday is going to be an emotional game for Flames fans. It is truly remarkable that the Gaudreau family is coming out to the game. They became and still are such an important family to Flames fans and to Calgary. I don’t think there is going to be a dry eye in the Saddledome or for those at home watching.
14. Yegor Sharangovich is a good winger. The Flames need to stop trying him at centre.
15. The Flames need to change up their forward lines. This four-game road trip was rough. Splitting up Backlund-Coleman had some merit in trying to revamp two lines, but it’s time for them to play together.
16. Kevin Bahl has been exactly what the Flames needed. They took a huge dip when Chris Tanev was dealt. Bahl has helped bring some of that stability back.
17. Next to Bahl, Rasmus Andersson has had a great season so far. He’s being relied on in every situation and he’s performing well.
18. Nazem Kadri is struggling. He gives away the puck trying to make a fancy play way too often. He’s pacing the team in negative plus-minus and it’s not close. He was so effective last year. This year he looks like a completely different player, however. Ironically, he is leading the team with 15 points in 25 games.
19. The Flames are still running with eight defencemen. Guys like Joel Hanley and Tyson Barrie block the way for a guy like Ilya Solovyov to make an impact. He’s leading the Wranglers in defensive scoring with 11 points in 16 games. That’s someone who deserves a long look on the third pairing.
20. The Flames got killed in March last year, in part due to losing some key players as well as a difficult schedule. Glancing at their schedule for March this year and it’s tough again. Depending on what happens before then, that’ll be a make-or-break month.
21. One thing I’ve noticed about the Flames over the last number of seasons—they love to put defensive pairs together and stick with them. Bahl-Andersson has been great. Weegar-Miromanov struggled to start and I thought they might want to promote Pachal next to Weegar. But to Miromanov’s credit, he’s been better of late.
22. Andrei Kuzmenko has one goal so far this year. It’s unfortunate for the Flames’ hopes at the deadline. He’s a guy that a lot of people wanted to extend at the beginning of the year. Now, I don’t think many would want him extended. He looks like someone who is preventing a roster spot from someone else.
23. A concern I have—the Flames could come out of this reset with exactly what they have now. We see this happen so often with teams that choose to re-tool. The current Flames team isn’t horrible. They’ve got a bunch of second/third liners, three good defencemen, and a good young goalie. With the insistence on staying competitive, they likely won’t bottom out in the next couple of years. So, their likelihood of grabbing a superstar dwindles. They have some solid prospects and young players in the system. But no one who projects to be a top line player. I don’t want to watch a team of second/third liners for the next ten years.
24. No player on the Flames is on pace for more than 50 points. Again I go back to the lack of star talent. I would also look at the system they’re playing. To give Ryan Huska a bit of credit, he’s playing the system that would place this team highest in the standings. This team is built to win a lot more 3–1 games than they are 5–4 games.
25. In a recent interview with TSN, Craig Conroy mentioned that the Flames are looking to “re-tool this thing as quickly as possible.” The Flames responded by going 0–3–1 on this road trip. Take your time, Conroy. Or else thought 23 becomes even more real. The Nashville Predators this year are a perfect example of why rushing things to try and be competitive doesn’t work as you hope. Teams that take their time and build are the teams that win.
