With less than two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Calgary Flames’ playoff fate still isn’t decided. Despite a fluke goal resulting in only a single point against the Vegas Golden Knights Saturday, the Flames sit four points outside the second wild card spot in the west. In October, it would have been hard to find a media member or fan who believed the Flames would be competing for a playoff spot in 2024–25.
The rebuild was supposed to be in full effect this season, but a number of factors derailed that plan—as far as the standings are concerned, that is. Although this season didn’t deliver a lottery draft pick like many imagined, the organization made some substantial improvements on and off the ice. We wanted to know what the Flames community considered the biggest success of the 2024–25 regular season. We asked, you answered.
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How would you grade the season if the Flames miss the playoffs?
We presented the below poll to our readers:
Separate of whether the #Flames make the playoffs, what do you think is the biggest success of the season?
— The Win Column (@wincolumnCGY) April 5, 2025
Wolf’s rise
It’s safe to say the Flames have found their next franchise goalie in Dustin Wolf. With a whopping 70% of the vote this week, Wolf has proven himself time and time again in his Calder-worthy rookie campaign. The 23-year-old has started 48 games, recording a 25–16–7 record with a .910 save percentage and a 2.62 GAA. His three shutouts on the year also set a franchise record for rookie goaltenders.
Wolf has been one of the best goalies in the league at even strength, with 19.5 goals saved above expected, fifth league-wide among goalies with at least 25 starts.
He’s stepped up in the clutch and shouldered the weight of the team on multiple occasions, stealing wins despite the roster’s lack of offence. Beyond that, he’s composed and been consistent almost the entire year, outside of a small rough patch before the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament. His impact can’t be understated.
Wolf has been the Flames MVP this season, and it’s well-deserved. If the Flames can take anything tangible from this season, it’s that they have their goaltender of the future.
Huberdeau’s bounce back
Jonathan Huberdeau’s bounce-back season collected 9% of the vote this week, third overall in the poll. Huberdeau’s season is far from his Hart Trophy vote-getting campaign in 2021–22, but he does have a chance to tie his career-high in goals at 30, currently with 27. Despite being on pace to barely outscore his first two seasons in Calgary, the narrative around Huberdeau has been significantly different this season.
His impact has extended beyond the offensive zone this season. Huberdeau leads all Flames forwards in blocked shots and is fifth on the team with a 55 Corsi for percentage. His role on the penalty is also paying dividends as the winger leads the team with three short-handed goals. The “power forward” label might be a stretch, but Huberdeau has seemingly shifted his play style to some degree this season.
With Aydar Suniev and Zayne Parekh on the radar for next season, Huberdeau will have more help in the offensive zone in the future. At the very least, he seems to be enjoying himself much more this season. That has to count for something when you’re signed for another six years.
Players becoming leaders
Despite collecting only 3% of the vote this week, leadership has also taken a step this season. Ryan Huska has made note of Nazem Kadri’s outspoken nature and the impact it’s had on the team. Beyond Kadri, Backlund, Coleman, Weegar, Huberdeau and Andersson have all been outspoken about the group’s support for one another and the importance of mentoring the young crop of players developing their NHL games.
It may not be at the forefront in the Flames community, but the leadership group this season has been at its best in the last few years and segues perfectly into the final option.
Team culture
With 18% of the vote, team culture finished second in this week’s poll. Despite all the narratives surrounding the 2024–25 Calgary Flames, the locker room has stayed even-keeled and united on all fronts from opening night. This group does have a special quality—they all play for each other. That’s something that has been missing in Calgary in recent seasons. It felt in years past there were certain individuals holding back that “buy in” piece that’s so crucial to team success.
Due to the Flames’ lack of star power, their only chance to win games this season was to do so by committee if they’re being honest with themselves. There’s no chance this team was going to average more than three goals a game, and they knew it coming into the year. Their entire season has been aimed at playing playoff-style hockey for 82 games. In many ways, they have.
Part of that is playing selfless and doing the little things right and letting everything else fall into place. Even if the Flames don’t reach the playoffs this year, the buy-in from their roster and the cultural shift the organization has undergone this season will do wonders as more and more young players get brought into the fold in the coming seasons.
There are levels to it
Despite what looks like yet another middling season for the Calgary Flames, the organization seems to have taken some strides in the past year. The new era of Flames hockey has come quicker than anyone expected, and it’s starting to look like Craig Conroy’s Dallas Stars re-tool model is already starting to reap rewards.
Goaltending is taken care of, and the team culture has shifted dramatically over the course of this season. The Flames are starting to look like a pretty welcoming environment to their glistening prospect pool headed into a draft with multiple picks in the first round. Another middling finish may be disappointing to a lot of fans this season, but don’t overlook the strides taken towards being a sustainably successful team down the road.
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