Anytime a former first-round selection ends up on waivers, there’s going to be some major questions. Not only did Connor Zary get placed on waivers earlier this week, but he also cleared them. No team in the entire NHL wanted to take a chance on the 2020 first-round pick. It’s yet another reminder that former general manager Brad Treliving’s draft record in Calgary continues to haunt the organization to this day.
Treliving’s draft history
Throughout his nine years as general manager of the Flames, Brad Treliving oversaw nine drafts from 2014 to 2022. Those nine drafts produced some major hits, but far more misses. Here’s how the paths of all 54 of Treliving’s draft picks have played out to date.
2014 was historically bad
The Flames’ 2014 draft should go down as one of the worst in NHL history, by any team. The Flames made six picks that year, including three in the first two rounds. Within seven years, three of their six picks had fully retired from hockey. That’s a remarkable level of failure. In fact, the only one to even play in the NHL was Sam Bennett, who was a failure in Calgary before becoming a stud in Florida.
2015 – 2016 was special
Something was in Treliving’s water in 2015 and 2016, because he was elite at drafting those two years. Unfortunately, things went downhill quickly after that. More on that later. Between 2015 and 2016, the Flames made 14 picks. Of those 14, six went on to be impact players in the NHL, including two superstars in Tkachuk and Fox. Mangiapane in the sixth and Andersson in the second is also incredible value.
That’s a remarkable hit rate. Now we all know the Flames didn’t reap the full benefits of that down the line, but regardless, if we’re just looking at drafting, Treliving was a mastermind these two years and found value in just about every round.
2017 was the beginning of trouble
Following Treliving’s masterful work in 2015 and 2016, many thought the Flames were set at the draft thanks to Treliving. Not so fast. Treliving seemingly went from a high-value drafter to an absolutely terrible one in the blink of an eye. 2017 was when the cracks started to show. Of the Flames’ five picks, only two played in the NHL: Valimaki and Ruzicka. Neither were impactful players, though, and by their D+9 both were out of the league.
Overager Zach Fischer also deserves a shoutout, as the 2017 fifth-rounder was retired from hockey a mere three years after being drafted.
2018 was a write-off
You can’t critique Treliving too much for the 2018 draft, as the Flames didn’t hold a pick in the first three rounds. Regardless, the returns are still ugly. Three of four picks never even sniffed NHL action, and by their D+5, both Roman and Zavgorodniy were off to Europe, with Petterssen following a couple of years later. The only notable pick in 2018 was Martin Pospisil, who has developed into an NHL player, albeit not a very good one.
Wolf saves the day in 2019
Treliving’s 2019 draft looks much like 2018 and 2017 as you read down the names; that is, until you get to the bottom. Finding Dustin Wolf in the seventh round in 2019 and taking a flyer on the undersized goalie completely saved the 2019 draft for the Flames. Despite some early promise, Jakob Pelletier never worked out in the NHL and remains a textbook case of a great AHL player but a bad NHL player. After him, the Flames got basically nothing until the seventh round.
Between Ilya Nikolaev, Lucas Feuk, and Josh Nodler, the Flames got 35 combined AHL games, all from Nikolaev. Sure, they’re mid-round picks, but barely getting any AHL games from most of your draft class is a failure.
2020 looked like a home run, until it wasn’t
The 2020 draft was a weird one for Treliving. On the surface, the Flames got NHL games out of four of their draft picks, which is no small feat. With that said, none of those four were ever impact players, and now three of them are back in the AHL after Zary cleared waivers. The only full-time NHLer looks to be Yan Kuznetsov, who’s a third-pairing defender at best.
Jeremie Poirier looked like a steal at the time, and even earned a spot on the AHL All-Rookie team in 2022-23. Unfortunately, a serious injury and inability to adapt his game led to him losing steam and never earning a shot with the Flames. Jake Boltmann remains one of Treliving’s strangest draft picks. The defender was ranked as a late-round pick, but Treliving decided to use a third-rounder on him. He proceeded to register two goals and 20 points over his next 126 games in the NCAA.
A series of whiffs in 2021
Aside from Matt Coronato and potentially Arseni Sergeev, the 2021 draft was an impressive streak of whiffs from Treliving. By their D+4, three of the Flames’ eight picks were playing in U Sports, basically a retirement league where you go to get an education while playing low-level hockey.
Then there was the William Stromgren pick. Zary’s junior teammate and supremely skilled forward Logan Stankoven fell right into the Flames’ lap. Treliving decided to pass and instead take the 6’3″ Stromgren out of the SHL. Stankoven is now a top-six forward and Stanley Cup champion, while Stromgren has played three NHL games.
Credit where it’s due, Sergeev looks like a potential gem at 205th overall, but it’s far too early to call it a successful pick.
Please make it stop
2022 was the perfect ending to Treliving’s draft tenure in Calgary. Minimal picks available, passing up talented players for refrigerators, and getting nothing from an entire draft class. After skipping out on Stankoven for Stromgren the year prior, Treliving made the same mistake the next year. With Lane Hutson available, Treliving decided to pass to take 6’2″ Topi Ronni out of Finland. Ronni never played a single game in North America, and Hutson is a yearly Norris candidate.
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