Alex Nylander’s path to Calgary is built on a familiar family connection, but the real reason he’s in Flames camp on a PTO is much more immediate: he thinks there’s a chance to make himself useful on a team that needs offense.
Nylander was just a baby when his father, Michael, wrapped up his run with the Flames, so he doesn’t have any firsthand memories of that stretch. Still, the old connection mattered enough to make this summer feel like a natural fit.
“My dad played here back in the day and really liked it, so I just thought it was a great opportunity,” Nylander said on Thursday morning after Day 1 of Flames training camp. “I don’t remember (that time), but they loved it here, is what they told me.”
The 2016 first-round pick, taken eighth overall by the Buffalo Sabres, has taken a winding route since then. He signed in 2024 to play in Toronto, where his brother William has starred, and spent most of that time with the Marlies in the AHL. That stop ended with a Calder Cup title this past spring, along with a big offensive line in 2025-26: 24 goals and 29 assists.
That production is the calling card he’s bringing into camp, and it’s the reason Calgary is taking a look. The Flames are in a rebuild and had trouble scoring last season, which opens the door for a player like Nylander to make a case for NHL work.
“He’s an offensive player, we know he’s been around a lot,” Flames head coach Ryan Huska said. “He’s helped teams win in the past like he did last year, he’s a very good power-play player. When he plays his couple games he’s allowed to play (in pre-season), those are things we’ll look for out of him.”
Day 1 also brought a few other notable lineup wrinkles. Martin Pospisil opened camp at centre on the Flames’ fourth line, a spot he has played before without holding onto it for long. Huska said after practice that he plans to give the Slovak forward a longer look and an extended run at the position.
Brennan Othmann skated in the second training group on Thursday. The restricted free agent remains unsigned for the coming season. Othmann came to Calgary in the March deal with the New York Rangers that sent prospect Jacob Battaglia the other way.
And Connor Zary lined up on the left side with Ryan Strome and Yegor Sharangovich, which appears to be the spot Jonathan Huberdeau will fill once he’s ready to return from hip surgery earlier this year. Huberdeau will not be available when the season opens.
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Martin Pospisil Has A Real Shot To Reshape Calgarys Forward Battle
Martin Pospisil is entering Calgary Flames training camp with a real chance to make himself more than just another forward in the mix. He is lined up as the fourth-line center, and head coach Ryan Huska sounds comfortable giving him a look there after what he showed at the 2026 World Championships. For a team treating the 2026-27 season as an evaluation year, that matters, because Craig Conroy has made it clear the young forwards have to earn their way into bigger roles.
Pospisils path could get broader from there, too. The Flames are also considering him for penalty-kill duty, a spot that became available after Blake Colemans departure, which adds another layer to what is already a useful camp battle. If Pospisil handles the center job and makes himself reliable in short-handed situations, he could reshape the bottom of Calgarys forward group in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Settle Brennan Othmann Question As Camp Battle Takes Shape
The Flames opened training camp with one roster wrinkle checked off, announcing Friday that they have re-signed Brennan Othmann to a one-year, two-way contract. The 23-year-old forward, a former first-round pick, gives Calgary another layer of depth at a position where camp battles are already starting to take shape.
Othmann is expected to begin the season in the American Hockey League, but his path back to the NHL remains in view if he pushes his way into the conversation over the course of the year. For a club trying to sort through its early-season depth chart, the timing of the deal at the start of camp at least removes one lingering question and lets the focus shift to who can actually stick. [Read more 🡒]
Hunter Brzustewicz Suddenly Has A Tougher Flames Path Than Expected
Hunter Brzustewicz entered the offseason as one of the more interesting young defensemen in the Flames system, but his route to a full-time NHL job now looks a lot less direct than it might have a few months ago. Calgary has plenty of bodies on the right side of its blue line, and for now Brzustewicz is on the AHL track rather than positioned to break camp with the NHL club, even though he has already shown enough upside to keep the conversation alive.
For the Flames, that makes him a player to watch rather than a player to pencil in. Because he is still waiver-exempt, Calgary has the flexibility to develop him in the AHL without losing him, which buys the organization time but also underscores how crowded the depth chart has become. His path could change quickly if the roster shifts or if the team decides to move another defenseman to create room, but for now Brzustewicz sits in that awkward middle ground of being valuable, intriguing and not quite needed yet. [Read more 🡒]