The Calgary Flames and the fanbase won’t have much to look forward to when the 2026–27 season gets underway in October. The team looks like it’ll be in the basement once again. Hopefully, this will lead to a top-3 pick in the draft next June.
The Flames are in the spot in the rebuild where they are still a few years out from the prospect pool becoming contributors at the NHL level. However, they have some guys on the roster who are ready now. Those are the players who will look to make big strides this upcoming season.
If we are looking forward to anything, it will be seeing how the young core develops at the NHL level. The team is in the midst of a rebuild. It would be huge to see breakouts from young players in hopes of becoming stars. So, who can be those potential breakout stars this season? Let’s take a look.
Zayne Parekh
When we talk about Zayne Parekh, we talk about the elite skill in his game. The high-end ability to change a game with the flip of a coin. We saw it when they drafted him, and he went on to score over 100 points in the OHL with Saginaw. We saw it at the World Juniors last year. He set the record for points by a Canadian defenceman and was arguably one of Canada’s most important players. And we saw it towards the end of last season when he became more comfortable and confident at the NHL level.
Everyone should be excited and hopeful for Parekh. In the back half of last year, he stepped up. When Rasmus Andersson and MacKenzie Weegar were both shipped off, Parekh was given more ice and more opportunities to make an impact. He took advantage of that fully. With each passing game, he became more confident with the puck on his stick. He made the plays that made him so dominant at the junior level. His counting stats don’t show it, but Parekh played some really great hockey down the stretch that saw him become an NHL player, as opposed to the one we saw earlier last season.
Parekh will be given plenty of chances this season to prove himself once again. He will likely begin the year in the team’s top-four and will probably be quarterbacking the team’s power play to start the season. He will be given every opportunity to establish himself as one of the league’s best young defencemen. If Parekh can play the way he did towards the end of last season and add some more on top of that, we could be looking at a great first year for the youngster. It would be what the Flames need on the back end: a true offensive catalyst for years to come.
Matvei Gridin
I think everyone in Calgary would agree that Matvei Gridin is way ahead of schedule in terms of his development than we all thought he would be at this point. In his first year of pro hockey, Gridin made the Flames’ roster out of camp. While his first stint in the NHL didn’t last very long, he went to the AHL and dominated. When the Flames called him back up, he made sure it would be the last time he ever played in the AHL.
Gridin has a ton of skill; he might already be the most talented player on the roster. His shot is lethal, and he can fly up and down the ice. When Gridin came back up to the Flames after his stint in the AHL, he came back with a chip on his shoulder. He was ready to show the world what he could do, and he did just that. On a team that couldn’t score to save their lives, Gridin produced at a 45-point clip. He was impactful every game.
Gridin made plays look easy, and he looked like he belonged in the NHL. He was arguably the Flames’ best forward down the stretch. And he did all of this at just the age of 20. Like Parekh, Gridin will have ample opportunity to produce this season. He is going to get top-six time and top power play chances. If someone is going to score, Gridin might be the guy you pick.
I feel like Gridin has a sky-high ceiling to be a very impactful top-six winger in this league. We may have to temper expectations a little bit, considering the Flames are going to have issues scoring goals once again this year. But with all the chances that Gridin is going to get, a breakout season seems likely.
Simon Nemec
Simon Nemec will be the most fascinating player to watch for the Flames this season, in my opinion. Right before the 2026 NHL Draft, the Flames made a huge trade to acquire the 2022 second overall pick. They locked him up to a 5-year contract shortly after. Nemec was projected to be a top-pair offensive defenceman who could be trusted on the defensive side of the game as well. New Jersey had very high hopes for him, but it just never worked out with the Devils. Enter the Flames.
Nemec is going to come to Calgary and get the chance he never had in New Jersey. He will be playing in the top-four, and there won’t be anyone blocking his way. Nemec will be given every opportunity to become that top-pairing guy he was drafted as. At only 22 years old, there is plenty of runway for him to develop into an elite player.
I am sure that, without a doubt, the Flames will use Nemec in every situation. He will likely be among the leaders in ice time on the entire team when next season is over. He is already more physically mature than Parekh is, and the skill level isn’t too far off from where Parekh is right now. We saw Nemec shine at the Olympics in February when he had the chance to play as a top guy, and now in Calgary, he will get the chance to do it again.
If Nemec can develop the way the Flames think he can, the right side on the Flames blue line will be set for many years down the road.
Matt Coronato
You could say that the 2024–25 season was Matt Coronato’s coming-out party, but I think he was just scratching the surface of what he could achieve in the NHL.
It was an odd year for Coronato a season ago. He bounced around the lineup, sat as a healthy scratch, and the consistency in his game that we saw from the year prior had vanished. However, as the year went on, Coronato found his game again. He was looking like one of the Flames’ best players towards the end of the season. He was shooting the puck like we know he can; he was making plays and playing that dog-on-a-bone style we came to love in his game.
I think Coronato at his peak could be a 35-40-goal guy just based on his shot alone. I don’t think that is going to be this season, as the talent level around him is just not there right now. However, a full year with him playing alongside Gridin could be something to keep an eye on. They had some strong chemistry down the stretch last season. The hope is that it can continue into this season.
A really successful season for Coronato this year would see him get close to the 30-goal mark and be in and around that 55-60 point threshold. It would be a big ask, but I think if he can be consistent all season long, it would not shock me to see him get near there.
Sam Honzek
Sam Honzek’s 2025–26 season was cut painfully short, but that may ultimately make his 2026–27 campaign even more intriguing. In November, an upper-body injury ended his season. The 21-year-old had already shown flashes of the game that made him the No. 16 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, recording two goals and four points in 18 games.
Now healthy and heading into the fall with another offseason of development behind him, Honzek has a prime opportunity to finally put everything together. At 6-foot-4, his combination of size, versatility and two-way ability gives him a foundation that Calgary can trust. His offensive game still has plenty of room to grow. The Flames have also made it clear that their next step will have to come from within, with young players taking major strides.
That makes Honzek one of the most fascinating breakout candidates on the roster. He has already demonstrated that he can handle difficult defensive assignments and play in all situations. Now, the question is whether he can turn that reliability into consistent offensive production. If he stays healthy and earns a larger role, Honzek could go from promising former first-rounder to an important piece of Calgary’s young core in a hurry.
