Before the 2026-27 NHL season gets started, we wanted to turn things over to our team to ask some burning questions about what to expect from the Calgary Flames in our roundtable this year. Let’s get into it!
1. Where will the Flames finish this season (division, conference and league)?
Joshua Serafini: This team is going to be bad, very bad. Vancouver is probably the only team that’s worse on paper entering 2026-27. Coleman is gone, and Weegar, Andersson and Kadri are all off the roster from game one this year. Even with some potential steps from the young guys, I don’t think it’ll be enough to keep the team from finishing in the basement. A bottom-five league finish should be a guarantee, with only Vancouver and maybe Seattle finishing lower in the Pacific and West.
Quentin Matheson: The Flames will be second-to-last across division, conference, and league because the only team worse is the Vancouver Canucks. It sounds bleak, but the kids are getting their feet wet; it’ll have fun moments!
Drew Ostmoen: It’s almost a guarantee that the Flames will not be very good this season! Some of the most impactful pieces from the beginning of last year are all gone, and now the Flames will be mostly a squad looking to prove themselves. The Canucks are the one team I look at as being in the same tier as the Flames, but I have a feeling some team will be surprisingly bad and finish below the Flames as well. I’ll predict that this team will be the Kraken. So I think the Flames will finish 6th in the division, 14th in the conference, and 30th in the league.
Jashan Parmar: The Flames are going to be one of the worst teams in the NHL, and have a really good chance of finishing dead last. In every other year, they would be worst in their division at least, and most likely the conference; although they have the Vancouver Canucks in the Pacific alongside them, who are equally as bad. The Flames will finish around 31st in the league, 15th in the West, and 7th in the Pacific.
Samay Chokshi: The Flames will finish 7th in the Pacific Division, 15th in the Western Conference, and 31st in the league. I believe that the Flames will be worse this season compared to last season. However, they will still finish ahead of the Vancouver Canucks.
Cody Misyk: I believe that this Flames team is in for an extremely rough season. The only other team that I could say is worse is the Vancouver Canucks. After losing plenty of key veteran players, this will easily be a rebuilding year that hopefully provides all the young players with playing time. With that being said, I have the Flames as a bottom-three team league-wide, a bottom-two team in the Pacific, and a bottom-three team in the Western Conference.
John MacKinnon: The Flames have the talent level to be 32nd in the NHL this season, but there is almost a guarantee that Dustin Wolf and Devin Cooley are going to win a few themselves. They likely finish 30th, but anything higher would be a shock.
2. Who will lead the Flames in points this season?
Joshua Serafini: I think Matt Coronato settles in around 55 points and leads the team again in what should be a career-best year.
Quentin Matheson: As much as I love Matvei Gridin’s confident claim that he’ll lead the Flames, I’ll defer to the few more years of experience Matt Coronato has under his belt and give it to him.
Drew Ostmoen: I feel that Matt Coronato is in for a big season this year. I’ll say that Coronato finishes around 60 points to lead the Flames and prove himself as a high-quality winger.
Jashan Parmar: Last year it was Matt Coronato, and it’s going to be more of the same, though Matvei Gridin will be second this year.
Samay Chokshi: Matt Coronato will lead the Flames in points this season. While his 45 points last season was the lowest total for a team scoring leader in franchise history, I expect him to improve on that this season.
Cody Misyk: I believe Matt Coronato will lead the team in goals, but I think Matvei Gridin will take significant steps forward this season. I expect him to lead the team in points, around the 50-60 point mark.
John MacKinnon: Can’t imagine anyone on this team getting sixty points this season; it would be shocking if that were the case. I’ll go off the board and say Joel Farabee. Ryan Huska seems to be using him as the new Blake Coleman and all that ice team surely is going to translate to a few more points.
3. Who will be the team’s MVP this season?
Joshua Serafini: Whoever helps the team lose the most games this season will be the MVP. In all seriousness though, I had Simon Nemec here until watching Zayne Parekh in the preseason. He looked dynamic as ever, I’ll say him.
Quentin Matheson: Dustin Wolf will hold the fort remarkably well behind an inexperienced defence corps and anemic scoring help from the forwards. He’ll keep scores close and steal some wins.
Drew Ostmoen: I’d love to say someone like Zayne Parekh or Matvei Gridin here. However, realistically, Dustin Wolf is the answer here. Behind a team poised to have poor scoring power and a weak blueline, it’ll be up to Wolf to make the Flames win some games they aren’t supposed to.
Jashan Parmar: The common answer here will be Dustin Wolf, though I will say, Zayne Parekh. He’ll take large strides in his game and take that next step towards being the team’s number one defenceman.
Samay Chokshi: Dustin Wolf will be the team’s MVP this season. He will be the primary reason the Flames stay competitive on most nights.
Cody Misyk: Considering that this will be a rebuilding year, it is tough to predict a valid MVP. However, I think that either Dustin Wolf or Simon Nemec will be the best player on the team. Wolf will be looking to have a bounce-back season, while Nemec will try to make a great first impression with his new team.
John MacKinnon: I don’t think you can have an MVP if your team finishes at the bottom of the league, but based on the preseason and vibes alone, I think Zayne Parekh is going to be the leading favorite for the most successful season.
4. Which prospect will play the most games for the Flames this season? (Gridin, Brz and Parekh don’t count)
Joshua Serafini: Aydar Suniev. I think he’ll be one of the first call-ups in the event of an injury. I could see him carving out a nice role in the team’s bottom six this season, given his upside is much higher than the likes of Adam Klapka and Martin Pospisil.
Quentin Matheson: Samuel Honzek looked poised to become a regular a year ago only to have his first real season derailed by injury. Reports are he’s healthy and assuming he can stay that way, he could be riding shotgun next to Mikael Backlund all season long.
Drew Ostmoen: If anyone feels like a safe answer, barring injury, it’s Samuel Honzek. Honzek looked pretty good in the 18 games he suited up in before he went down with injury last season. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him receive his role alongside Mikael Backlund to begin the year, and for him to hold it down across the whole season.
Jashan Parmar: It is going to be Samuel Honzek. The coaching staff has trusted him a lot over the past few years; injuries just held him back from playing a full year. If he stays healthy, they will probably have him be a regular on the team. I also think Aydar Suniev will get a lot of games. He’s another player who seems poised to take that next step in their development.
Samay Chokshi: Samuel Honzek is the prospect that will play the most games for the Flames this season. His physical frame, defensive responsibility, and fit in a bottom-six checking role give him a direct path to full-time NHL minutes.
Cody Misyk: I will say that Samuel Honzek will get to play the most games. The only reason why I saw this is that his big frame and previous NHL experience will likely earn him some bottom-six minutes. It would be fantastic to see Aydar Suniev get some games as well.
John MacKinnon: Sam Honzek is going to play the most games if he stays healthy, but if we are talking about who will have the most impact, then I’d love to see Aydar Suniev get a longer run this season.
5. If you had to bet on one current Flame not being on the roster in April, who would it be?
Joshua Serafini: Morgan Frost. The 27-year-old pending UFA will be demanding a ton of money on his next deal, and there’s no reason the rebuilding Flames should be keeping him around. It would be very surprising to see him still on the roster past the trade deadline.
Quentin Matheson: With new additions Simon Nemec and Jacob Middleton, full-time slots going to Zayne Parekh and Yan Kuznetsov, plus a priority of getting Hunter Brzustewicz ice time, the blueline is suddenly crowded. I bet some playoff team picks up either Joel Hanley or Brayden Pachal for cheap depth. Pachal’s younger; let’s go with him.
Drew Ostmoen: Since he was brought in at the last deadline, it’s been my prediction that Ryan Strome wouldn’t be a Flame come the end of the 2026-27 season. The Flames traded very little for Strome (only a 7th-round pick), and it almost looked like a favour to take his contract without a sweetener. However, when Strome received a stronger role with the Flames, he produced 12 points in 19 games. Across the 60ish games before the deadline, Strome should be able to return to a 40-point pace, and some team will pick him up for centre depth, paying more than the Flames did last deadline.
Jashan Parmar: Realistically, Ryan Strome. When he was brought in last deadline, it was because Calgary had little-to-no centres after trading Nazem Kadri. This year, I can see Connor Zary getting more time down the middle; Yegor Sharangovich may play there as well as he has in the past. Plus, it could be likely that after the NCAA season is over, Cole Reschny signs a contract and plays a little bit in the NHL. Add that all together and there isn’t that need to fill a centre spot that there was in March when Strome was brought in.
Samay Chokshi: Morgan Frost will not be on the roster in April. He is entering the final year of his contract as a pending UFA. Since the Flames will be at the bottom of the standings in February, Craig Conroy will aggressively market Frost’s playmaking ability to playoff contenders and ensure that he is flipped for draft capital before the deadline.
Cody Misyk: Three names that come to mind are Morgan Frost, Brayden Pachal, and Joel Hanley. I would say Frost is the most likely to be traded, as he is the most valuable of the three. However, both Pachal and Hanley serve as extra defencemen at this point, so I believe that at least one of them will be moved by April.
John MacKinnon: The real question is who is still going to be on this roster come April. The team clearly isn’t going to hold on to too many veterans throughout the year if they want to let the rookies run. Brayden Pachal and Joel Hanley are just placeholders for the team right now, but I’d put a sneaky suspicion on Zach Whitecloud being a large trade piece come the deadline.
6. What is your boldest prediction for the 2026-27 Flames?
Joshua Serafini: The Flames have their worst season in franchise history, and Ryan Huska is fired at the end of the season.
Quentin Matheson: Jonathan Huberdeau’s return from hip resurfacing surgery proves too difficult, and he retires.
Drew Ostmoen: Martin Pospisil struggles and finds himself off the Flames before the season is over, whether that be on a new team or on the Wranglers.
Jashan Parmar: Before the year 2027, Shane Wright ends up a member of the Calgary Flames and rejuvenates his game and becomes much closer to the player he was meant to be.
Samay Chokshi: My boldest prediction for the 2026–27 Flames is that Dustin Wolf puts together a heroic season and finishes in the top three in Vezina Trophy voting by keeping Calgary in close contests nightly.
Cody Misyk: Simon Nemec takes off with the Flames, leads the team in scoring, and beats out Parekh for the quarterback spot on the first power-play unit.
John MacKinnon: The Flames trade for a young top-six center and likely overpay.
