Calgary Flames 2024 first-rounder Matvei Gridin showed off his blazing speed and picked up three goals and five points for the Shawinigan Cataractes this week. I was skeptical of this pick at first, but he’s won me over. He’s a lot of fun to watch at the junior level, at least.
Out west, it was Hunter Laing scoring four times and adding an assist in two games for the Saskatoon Blades. His play has helped the Blades sneak into the playoffs in the WHL.
Blueliner Jeremie Poirier is finding his offensive form once again. He had four helpers for the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers to extend his team-lead in points by a defenceman.
And, naturally, Zayne Parekh lit up the OHL to the tune of five points in three games for the Saginaw Spirit, including his 100th point of the season. He became the first defenceman to record 100 points in the OHL since Ryan Ellis did it 14 years ago.
Let’s take a look at how everyone did this week.
Welcome to The Win Column’s 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.
Flames prospect happenings
AHL
- The Wranglers’ scoring woes persisted, as they found the back of the net 11 times in four games. They finished with a 1–3–0 record, only managing a win on Sunday, where they were able to hold their opponent to two goals.
- Samuel Honzek remained out of the lineup with an injury all week. We wish him a speedy recovery, as the young forward has struggled through unfortunate injuries early on in his career.
- Wranglers’ leading goal-scorer Rory Kerins picked up a goal and three points this week, improving to 26 goals and 46 points on the year. He’s been noticeably less productive in the A since his stint with the Flames.
- Defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz picked up another two helpers to reach 20 on the year. He’s up to 24 points in 57 games.
- Yan Kuznetsov also had a couple of points—a pair of goals—to improve to 18 points in 58 games.
- Jeremie Poirier had four assists to bring his point total up to 33 in 57 games. He had two two-assist games after going scoreless in the first two games this week.
- Goaltender Waltteri Ignatjew was trusted with the pipes just once and lasted just over 30 minutes before he was yanked, giving up five goals on 16 shots. He’s now 10–6–3 on the year with a 3.76 goals against average and a 0.882 save percentage.
Europe
- CSKA Moskow blueliner Nikita Okhotyuk suited up for just one of his team’s three games this week. He recorded two blocked shots and three hits in just under 16 minutes. CSKA went 2–0–1 this week, both wins coming with Okhotyuk out of the lineup.
- Daniil Chechelev tended the pipes for Unison-Moscow in their only game this week and picked up the win. He stopped 34 of 38 shots, improving to 2–4–1 on the year in the VHL. His GAA dipped to 3.61, but his SV% slightly improved to 0.888.
- Krylya Sovetov goalkeeper Yegor Yegorov played less than half a game, allowing three goals on 15 shots. He’s down to a 7–10–0 record with a 2.99 GAA and a 0.908 SV% this season in the MHL.
- Mikhailov Academy won their only game this week, largely thanks to their goaltender, Kirill Zarubin, who stopped 39 of 41 shots on goal. He improved to 11–8–0 with a 2.26 GAA and a 0.935 SV% in the MHL.
NCAA
- Niagara University’s Trevor Hoskin had two assists this week as his team went 1–0–2 in the inaugural Atlantic Hockey America Championship. The loss saw them ousted in the tournament’s quarterfinals.
- Winger Aydar Suniev added two assists in two games to improve to 35 points in 31 games on the year for UMass. His team finished the week 1–0–1.
- Arsenii Sergeev continues to be the workhorse in goal for Penn State, starting both games this week. He picked up a pair of wins, but his numbers took a hit. His GAA bloated to 2.63, and his SV% fell to 0.915. Still a great season for the 22-year-old, though.
- The University of North Dakota was 1–1–0 this week without the services of Cade Littler.
OHL
- Luke Misa and the Brampton Steelheads were quiet this week. Brampton went 1–1–0, scoring just two goals. Misa didn’t factor in on either of them but remains at a respectable 78 points in 61 games. He’s just four points away from setting a new career-best.
- The Saginaw Spirit went 2–1–0 this week. Zayne Parekh picked up another five points—including his 100th of the season—and managed to only be a minus-two as his team was run over 11–3 by the Brantford Bulldogs on Saturday.
- The Sudbury Wolves put up a perfect 3–0–0 record this week in spite of Henry Mews’ reduced production. He had just one point this week. It’s disheartening to see him go from 1.32 points per game with a bad Ottawa 67’s team to 1.08 points per game with the playoff-bound Wolves.
- It was tough sledding for the Kingston Frontenacs, who went 1–2–0 and, frankly, struggled to score. Jacob Battaglia was not part of the problem, though, picking up two goals and three points. He’s up to 38 goals and 83 points on the year, both career-bests.
QMJHL
- Matvei Gridin’s three goals and five points helped Shawinigan to a 3–0–0 week. He scored in each game and is up to 32 goals and 71 points in 52 games.
- The Moncton Wildcats were also 3–0–0 this week, with blueliner Etienne Morin scoring a goal to improve to 51 points on the year.
WHL
- Hunter Laing had two two-goal games and added an assist this week. He’s up to 40 points in 57 games. Saskatoon went 2–1–0, thanks to his contributions.
- Vancouver Giants centre Jaden Lipinski had two points in two games, improving to 53 in 54. A 2–0–0 week helped the Giants stay in the middle of the pack in the playoff picture for now.
- Defender Axel Hurtig scored his fifth goal of the season, also marking his 15th point. The Calgary Hitmen went 2–0–0 and are in a heated battle for first in the WHL’s Eastern Conference.
- The Everett Silvertips struggled to a 1–1–1 week, with defenceman Eric Jamieson contributing just one assist. He now has 35 points in 62 games. With only a handful of games left in the regular season, Everett should have first in the West locked down, barring a complete collapse to end the year.
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 five (bracketed numbers denote movement from the previous week):
- Zayne Parekh: 46.1 (Same)
- Rory Kerins: 37.5 (Same)
- Aydar Suniev: 36.4 (Same)
- Jacob Battaglia: 35.5 (Same)
- Luke Misa: 33.9 (Same)
Overall regular season totals for Flames prospects
Forwards
| Player | Position | GP | G | A | P | P/GP | PIM | NHLe | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Basha | LW | 23 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 1.26 | 30 | 31.2 | Medicine Hat Tigers | WHL |
| Jacob Battaglia | RW/LW | 62 | 38 | 45 | 83 | 1.34 | 34 | 35.5 | Kingston Frontenacs | OHL |
| Parker Bell | LW | 49 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 0.22 | 12 | 8.8 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Lucas Ciona | LW | 54 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 0.33 | 71 | 13.2 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Matvei Gridin | RW | 52 | 32 | 39 | 71 | 1.37 | 27 | 31.9 | Shawinigan Cataractes | QMJHL |
| Samuel Honzek | C/LW | 40 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 0.45 | 18 | 17.9 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Trevor Hoskin | C/RW | 36 | 12 | 27 | 39 | 1.08 | 12 | N/A | Niagara University | NCAA |
| Rory Kerins | C/LW | 49 | 26 | 20 | 46 | 0.94 | 14 | 37.5 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Adam Klapka | RW/LW | 33 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 0.79 | 50 | 31.5 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Hunter Laing | C | 57 | 23 | 17 | 40 | 0.70 | 31 | 17.3 | Prince George Cougars/Saskatoon Blades | WHL |
| Jaden Lipinski | C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.0 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| 54 | 15 | 38 | 53 | 0.98 | 32 | 24.3 | Vancouver Giants | WHL | ||
| Cade Littler | C | 30 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0.20 | 21 | 7.2 | University of North Dakota | NCAA |
| Luke Misa | C | 61 | 32 | 46 | 78 | 1.28 | 6 | 33.9 | Brampton Steelheads | OHL |
| William Stromgren | LW | 56 | 12 | 29 | 41 | 0.73 | 14 | 29.1 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Aydar Suniev | LW | 31 | 17 | 18 | 35 | 1.13 | 22 | 36.4 | UMass | NCAA |
Defencemen
| Player | Position | GP | G | A | P | P/GP | PIM | NHLe | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter Brzustewicz | RHD | 57 | 4 | 20 | 24 | 0.42 | 8 | 16.7 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Artyom Grushnikov | LHD | 49 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0.10 | 22 | 4.0 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Axel Hurtig | LHD | 49 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 0.31 | 25 | 7.7 | Calgary Hitmen | WHL |
| Eric Jamieson | LHD | 62 | 14 | 21 | 35 | 0.56 | 59 | 13.9 | Everett Silvertips | WHL |
| Joni Jurmo | LHD | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 4 | 0.0 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| 12 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 0.83 | 4 | N/A | Rapid City Rush | ECHL | ||
| Yan Kuznetsov | LHD | 58 | 5 | 13 | 18 | 0.31 | 30 | 12.4 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Henry Mews | RHD | 62 | 14 | 62 | 76 | 1.23 | 72 | 32.6 | Ottawa 67’s/Sudbury Wolves | OHL |
| Etienne Morin | LHD | 57 | 13 | 38 | 51 | 0.89 | 32 | 20.7 | Moncton Wildcats | QMJHL |
| Nikita Okhotyuk | LHD | 59 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 0.15 | 30 | 9.9 | CSKA Moskva | KHL |
| Zayne Parekh | RHD | 58 | 32 | 69 | 101 | 1.74 | 96 | 46.1 | Saginaw Spirit | OHL |
| Jeremie Poirier | LHD | 57 | 4 | 29 | 33 | 0.58 | 42 | 23.1 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Ilya Solovyov | LHD | 45 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 0.49 | 18 | 19.5 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
Goalies
| Player | Position | GP | GAA | SV% | Team | League |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniil Chechelev | G | 11 | 3.61 | 0.888 | Yunison-Moskva | VHL |
| Waltteri Ignatjew | G | 20 | 3.76 | 0.882 | Calgary Wranglers | AHL |
| Arsenii Sergeev | G | 29 | 2.63 | 0.915 | Penn State University | NCAA |
| Yegor Yegorov | G | 4 | 3.38 | 0.870 | HK Tambov | VHL |
| 8 | 3.07 | 0.891 | MHK Tambov | NMHL | ||
| 19 | 2.99 | 0.908 | MHK Krylia Sovetov Moskva | MHL | ||
| Kirill Zarubin | G | 19 | 2.26 | 0.935 | AKM Tula | MHL |
Following the prospects
Staying up to date with the development of prospects is no easy task. Follow along throughout the season for the latest happenings in the entire Flames’ development pipelines!
Photo from @AHLWranglers on Twitter.
