Dom Luszczyszyn’s yearly fantasy hockey point projections are here for the 2026-27 season, and if Dom is correct, the Calgary Flames won’t be scoring many goals this season. The Athletic writer has projected some painfully low point totals for most of the Flames roster this season.
The projections
Below are Dom’s projected totals for each player on the roster.
| Player | GP | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matvei Gridin | 74 | 19 | 34 | 53 |
| Matt Coronato | 82 | 23 | 30 | 52 |
| Morgan Frost | 83 | 20 | 27 | 46 |
| Joel Farabee | 84 | 20 | 23 | 43 |
| Jonathan Huberdeau | 67 | 15 | 24 | 40 |
| Simon Nemec | 72 | 11 | 26 | 37 |
| Yegor Sharangovich | 82 | 18 | 18 | 36 |
| Mikael Backlund | 83 | 14 | 20 | 34 |
| Connor Zary | 77 | 15 | 18 | 33 |
| Ryan Strome | 78 | 9 | 20 | 29 |
| Zayne Parekh | 74 | 9 | 17 | 26 |
| Kevin Bahl | 82 | 4 | 18 | 22 |
| Jacob Middleton | 81 | 5 | 16 | 21 |
| Adam Klapka | 69 | 8 | 12 | 20 |
| Martin Pospisil | 71 | 6 | 13 | 19 |
| Maxim Tsyplakov | 76 | 6 | 11 | 17 |
| Zach Whitecloud | 80 | 2 | 14 | 16 |
Picking the over/under
Let’s work our way down the list and project whether each player will come in over or under Dom’s projected point total prediction.
Matvei Gridin – Under 53 points
Matvei Gridin is arguably the Flames’ most skilled forward right now, and should be in line for a healthy dose of ice time on the team’s top line. With that said, 53 points seems a little too rich for me. The team’s leading scorer last season had 45 points. This year’s roster is even worse, so a sophomore in Gridin hitting 53 points seems unlikely. I think he comes close, but stays under.
Matt Coronato – Over 52 points
I’m a big Matt Coronato believer. Last year was a struggle for the former first-round pick, but he still led the entire team with 45 points. With Kadri and Coleman gone and Huberdeau injured, Coronato is the most experienced and skilled forward on the roster. I think he gets a ton of minutes at even strength and on the power play and hits a career-high point total over 52.
Morgan Frost – Over 46 points
For the Flames’ sake at the trade deadline, I hope Frost smashes 46 points this season. With Kadri out of the way, the 27-year-old is the bona fide top centre on the roster. If he’s unable to beat his current career high of 46 points, it’d be a massive failure for a pending UFA. I think he settles somewhere in the low 50s because of his role on the roster.
Joel Farabee – Under 43 points
Joel Farabee has failed to hit 43 points in every single season of his career except one, in 2021-22. There’s no reason to believe this is the year he hits the mark again. Sure, he’ll have an expanded role with Coleman gone, but he already played the fifth-most minutes of any Flames forward last year and only hit 38 points. 43 isn’t crazy by any means, but I don’t see it.
Jonathan Huberdeau – Under 40 points
Jonathan Huberdeau posted 25 points in 50 games last season, and is starting the year injured after major surgery. Slam the under on this one.
Simon Nemec – Under 37 points
I think 37 points is a good prediction for Simon Nemec, but I’ll say he comes in slightly under. It looks like Parekh will be getting PP1 minutes, which is a big hit to Nemec given how terrible the Flames’ second unit looks. I still think he hits a career high in points playing on the top pair, but over 37 seems ambitious on this roster.
Yegor Sharangovich – Under 36 points
After back-to-back seasons with under 33 points, I’m taking the under on this one. Sharangovich has been dreadful for two years now, and I don’t see any reason that will change.
Mikael Backlund – Over 34 points
Mr. Reliable Mikael Backlund has surpassed 34 points in 10 of the last 11 full seasons. Coming into the year as the team’s clear-cut number two centre, I think Backlund easily crosses 34 points.
Connor Zary – Under 33 points
If you had told someone two years ago Connor Zary’s point projection was 33 points going into the 2026-27 season, they’d call you crazy. The former first-round pick looked like he was on a fast track to becoming a top-six mainstay after posting 34 points in only 63 games his rookie year. He’s followed that up with seasons of 27 and 25 points. It also looks like he’s going to start the season on the third line. Unfortunately, I think Zary has another tough year.
Ryan Strome – Over 29 points
I certainly hope Ryan Strome delivers more than 29 points, or the hope of getting anything of value for him at the trade deadline goes out the window. While I don’t foresee a big comeback season from Strome given his age and the roster around him, I think the veteran centre can hit the 30-point mark this season.
Zayne Parekh – Over 26 points
Dom is clearly not a believer in Zayne Parekh yet. While I understand the pessimism given his age and the lack of talent around him, 26 points seems low to me. I don’t expect an explosion from Parekh this season for the same reasons I just listed, but I can certainly see the supremely talented defender hitting 30 points given his role on the top power play unit. If you watched him at all in pre-season, you’d also be slamming the over.
Kevin Bahl – Over 22
Kevin Bahl has never played a full season in Calgary. Last year he posted 18 points in 76 games, and the year prior he was at 20 across 73 games. I think he hits a career high playing alongside Simon Nemec this season on the top pair as long as he’s healthy.
Jacob Middleton – Under 21
Jacob Middleton failed to hit 21 points on the loaded Wild roster last season, so I can’t see him hitting the total on this Flames team. Maybe his role alongside Parekh carries him to a higher total, but I see him finishing under 21 points.
Adam Klapka – Under 20
Even on the Flames’ terrible roster, Adam Klapka is barely a fourth-liner. I don’t see him hitting 20 points playing on the fourth line of the league’s second-worst roster.
Martin Pospisil – Under 19
Martin Pospisil is in the same boat as Klapka, an AHLer on most teams, but a fourth-liner on the Flames. After posting three points in 22 games last year, I don’t see him hitting 19 this year.
Maxim Tsyplakov – Over 17
Somehow, Maxim Tsyplakov posted 35 points just two years ago. 17 is such a low total for a player earning power-play minutes that I’ll take the over.
Zach Whitecloud – Under 16
Zach Whitecloud hasn’t hit 16 points in a season since 2021-22. I don’t see that changing this year, playing on a defensive pairing with Yan Kuznetsov.
