Last night, the Calgary Flames struck a deal with the Philadelphia Flyers while both had a game going on. It started with Andrei Kuzmenko being scratched at the last minute for Kevin Rooney. For a while that’s all we had until it was announced Kuzmenko was being traded to the Philadelphia Flyers. Speculation furthered when Morgan Frost left the Flyers’ bench for unknown reasons and didn’t return. Jakob Pelletier went to the Flames’ locker room and then it was said he was going alongside Kuzmenko to Philly. Pelletier and Kuzmenko were the only two confirmed pieces of the deal.
Frost was heavily rumoured due to his departure from the bench but some reports were that he was banged up and didn’t feel the best. While true, it was announced shortly after that Frost was headed to Calgary with Joel Farabee. The full deal ended up being Kuzmenko, Pelletier, the Flames own 2025 2nd and 2028 7th round picks for Frost and Farabee.
Both Frost and Farabee bring intriguing opportunity to the Flames. Young players sent to the dog house in Philly looking for a fresh new start. Let’s begin by looking at the Flames newest centre, Morgan Frost.
Morgan Frost’s career so far
Before going pro
As a kid from Aurora, Ontario, Frost worked his way up through junior hockey ranks in Ontario. He was drafted in the fourth round of the OHL draft by the Sault St. Marie (Soo) Greyhounds in 2015. In the same year, Frost began his OHL career, putting up 27 points in 65 games in his rookie season on a pretty solid Greyhounds team. It was the next year that mattered most due to it being his draft year.
In 2016–17, Frost took steps with the Greyhounds, playing a bigger role with the club. The Greyhounds finished 2nd overall in the OHL and Frost played a steady part. In 67 games, he improved 62 points and picked up an additional eight points in 11 playoff games. His performance was enough to get him on the radar of NHL teams and earn himself consideration as a potential first-round pick. With the 27th overall selection, the Philadelphia Flyers took him in the draft.
With an NHL team to call home, Frost exploded in his D+1 season. The Greyhounds became even better finishing 1st in the OHL pretty easily with 55 wins and only 13 total losses. Frost was a huge part of that scoring 42 goals and 112 points only behind Aaron Luchuk in league scoring. The Greyhounds and Frost would go on a deep playoff run that would see them lose heartbreakingly to the Hamilton Bulldogs in six games in the finals. Frost had 29 points in 24 games in their pursuit.
2018–19 was another big one for Frost as he dominated the OHL once again. In 58 games, Frost scored 37 goals and 108 points to lead his team once again. He was also fourth in the OHL for points and second in points per game. Representing his country for the first time, Frost played for team Canada at the World Juniors. He led the team in points with eight in five games as they were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Finland.
Professional career
It didn’t take long for Frost to make the NHL. He started his first pro year in the AHL with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and overall produced 13 goals and 29 points in 41 games. In November 2019, Frost was recalled and played his first NHL game on the 19th, scoring his first goal. He would stay with the Flyers until December 28th and played two more games in February. In total, he put up seven points in 20 games.
The following year was tough for Frost with the global pandemic. Hockey was restricted, especially for Frost as he only played two games the whole year. 2021–22 was much better as although Frost started with the Phantoms, he quickly made his way up to the Flyers. With the Phantoms he had 19 points in 24 games and 16 in 55 games with the Flyers. In a limited role, Frost was progressing well.
In 2022–23, Frost was given a bigger role with the Flyers and stood tall to the task. Putting up what is his current career high of 46 points in 81 games, Frost finished fourth in team scoring which was a huge jump in comparison to the year before. 2023–24 saw him put up a similar statline of 41 points in 71 games while being 5th on the team in scoring.
That brings us to this season where Frost has been very up and down, even being healthy scratched at points. The Flyers seemed to have lost their interest in Frost and a deal seemed inevitable since last summer. So far, Frost has 25 points in 49 games which paces out to a similar statline to last season. That inevitable deal happened and Frost is now a Calgary Flame.
Morgan Frost’s underlying numbers
Going to HockeyViz.com, let’s take a look at Frost’s 5v5 isolated impact chart throughout his career so far. For these charts, a more positive xGF value means a player is producing more offence for their team, while a more negative xGA value means they are preventing offence against them.
Surprisingly, Frost hasn’t been the greatest analytical player throughout his career. He always sparked me as the type of player to be an analytical darling. According to these charts, Frost has always struggled with producing high-end results in the offensive zone. This is best represented by his career best being a -2.0% xGF and the blue that surrounds him. On the other end of the ice, Frost has seemed to put up better results. The blue shows in high danger areas (which is good on defence) and his career high is a -5.6 xGA.
Overall, Frost’s analytics seems to deveate from the eye test. Most I’ve seen say Frost struggles in the defensive zone, especially with turnovers. But he does seem to have offensive skill that has yet to be touched.
How Morgan Frost will fit in with the Flames
Frost has great potential to fit in nicely with the Flames. He brings a set of skills that could easily be utilized in a more filling role in Calgary. A game-breaker will likely not be his role but he’ll hopefully bring a good balance of everything to the lineup.
Talents
Frost for sure has offensive talent. He has speed. Quick bursts that launch him down the ice make him a nice piece in transition. According to NHL Edge, Frost typically places his top speed in the 90th percentile or above and his bursts above 20+ MPH in the 80th or above. This year, that top speed hasn’t quite been there but I wouldn’t be too worried. Frost’s speed will bring a much-needed addition to the Flames. The Flames have been, or have at least felt like, one of the slowest teams in the league in the past few years, so any addition of speed is a very welcome one. Frost is one of those and he compliments his fast pace with some nice edgework as well.
He has already brought a nice set of offensive tools. Frost shines with his hands and playmaking to the best ability that he can. He has always been more of a passer than a shooter, a playmaker or a sniper. While he hasn’t been able to fully put together the talent at the NHL level, it does trickle through at moments. I believe he has a promising skillset that could flourish if used properly.
There have been some concerns with his accuracy and ability to finish so we’ll see if that continues with the Flames or if he was just in need of a change of scenery. He has offensive potential that I don’t think has been fully tapped into and a new team could fully unleash. Frost has smarts, puck-moving talent, and shiftiness, he just needs to all put it together but time may be running out.
I know that Frost’s defensive analytics are very nice, but he didn’t ever spark me to be strong defensively. I’ve seen and heard that Frost can be frustrating, typically those aren’t the best defensive players. However, it would be fantastic if that was a swayed opinion and Frost did live up to those underlying numbers. I know he has the hockey sense to be good both ways and seems to be showing it with his results.
Where does Morgan Frost fit in the Calgary Flames’ lineup
Expect Frost to play in a middle-six centre role. He is probably not going to come into Calgary, light the lamp like crazy, and finish on a point per game pace, but there’s a solid chance Frost puts up a healthy 40–50 points to close the year. With the right utilization and linemates, he could push up to be a 60-point guy next season, but a lot of things would have to go right for this.
When the Flames are fully ready to compete, Frost should be a very handy middle-six centre, able to put up 40+ points each year with good results at both ends of the ice. Quick speed, nifty skating ability, and an offensive toolset to wow you once in a while is what the Flames need.
Morgan Frost is a very solid addition to the Calgary Flames
Overall, Morgan Frost should come as a good add to the Flames. He’s on the younger side of hockey players in this league and has some untapped offensive potential. 40ish points has been his career so far but maybe a change of scenery will see that number improve.
Frost has been able to put up good results in the defensive end of the ice and has great speed for the transition. Frustrations with finishing and turnovers seem to be the big gripes on Frost’s career so far. If he can mould everything together, the Flames could be looking at a very good piece of a 55+ point centre. If not, a 40–50 point middle-six centre isn’t bad either. I don’t think this move is anything franchise-changing but switching out a winger in Pelletier for a more proven centre in Frost is one that I am a fan of.
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