The Calgary Flames have mapped out their 2026-27 main camp, and the split is pretty clear from the start: the NHL group is being separated from the rest.
The club announced a 52-player camp roster along with its schedule, then divided the group into two smaller teams. Team Red is built around the regulars, with Alex Nylander, a professional try-out, and Chase Harrington, an unsigned junior prospect, folded in. Team Black carries the rest of the roster, which is largely the AHL side.
Calgary will open its four-game exhibition slate on Sunday at home against Seattle.
In goal, the Flames are bringing six netminders. Devin Cooley and Dustin Wolf are with Team Red as the NHL locks, while Semyon Konopsky, Owen Say, Arsenii Sergeev and Kirill Zarubin are all in Team Black.
The blue line is where the separation gets even more obvious. Calgary listed 16 defensemen for camp, with Team Red featuring the players expected to be in the NHL mix: Kevin Bahl, Joel Hanley, Yan Kuznetsov, Jacob Middleton, Simon Nemec, Brayden Pachal, Zayne Parekh and Zach Whitecloud. The Team Black group includes Kent Anderson, Mike Benning, Hunter Brzustewicz, Andreas Englund, Axel Hurtig, Jake Livingstone, Kyle Walker and Abram Wiebe.
Up front, the Flames are bringing 30 forwards. Team Red includes a long list of likely NHLers: Mikael Backlund, Matt Coronato, Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost, Matvei Gridin, Samuel Honzek, Jonathan Huberdeau, Dryden Hunt, Adam Klapka, Martin Pospisil, Yegor Sharangovich, Maxim Tsyplakov and Connor Zary. Nylander and Harrington are also in that group.
Huberdeau is still injured and will not start camp with Team Red, though the expectation is that he could join them later.
Team Black’s forwards include Andrew Basha, Ryder Boulton, Jonathan Castagna, Will Dineen, Alex Gallant, Tyson Gross, Ben Jones, Rory Kerins, Sam Morton, Brennan Othmann, Luke Philp, William Stromgren, Aydar Suniev, Carter Wilkie and others on the AHL side.
Here’s the full camp makeup by position:
Goaltenders: Devin Cooley, Semyon Konopsky, Owen Say, Arsenii Sergeev, Dustin Wolf and Kirill Zarubin.
Defensemen: Kent Anderson, Kevin Bahl, Mike Benning, Hunter Brzustewicz, Andreas Englund, Joel Hanley, Axel Hurtig, Yan Kuznetsov, Jake Livingstone, Jacob Middleton, Simon Nemec, Brayden Pachal, Zayne Parekh, Kyle Walker, Zach Whitecloud and Abram Wiebe.
Forwards: Mikael Backlund, Andrew Basha, Ryder Boulton, Jonathan Castagna, Matt Coronato, Will Dineen, Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost, Alex Gallant, Matvei Gridin, Tyson Gross, Chase Harrington, Samuel Honzek, Jonathan Huberdeau, Dryden Hunt, Ben Jones, Rory Kerins, Adam Klapka, Sam Morton, Alexander Nylander, Brennan Othmann, Luke Philp, Martin Pospisil, Yegor Sharangovich, Ryan Strome, William Stromgren, Aydar Suniev, Maxim Tsyplakov, Carter Wilkie and Connor Zary.
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Flames Young Talent Could Soon Face A Real Roster Squeeze
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Simon Nemec does not really fit that conversation in the same way as the others, since the organization views him as a core defensive prospect it would not be looking to waive. For the rest of the group, the issue is less about talent than timing, NHL experience and how much room the Flames have when the roster starts to tighten, with Benning among the players most likely to get caught in that squeeze. [Read more 🡒]
