Jonathan Castagna’s first NHL game came with a first NHL point, and it set up one of the night’s best moments at the Saddledome.
The Calgary Flames call-up made the primary assist on Adam Klapka’s highlight-reel goal against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday evening, helping pull the game even at 1-1 in the first period. Castagna chipped the puck past fallen Avalanche forward Zachary L’Heureux along the boards in the Flames’ defensive zone, sending it toward Klapka to spring the play.
From there, the 6’8″ winger did the rest. Klapka carried the puck into the attacking zone, worked around defender Josh Manson, and snapped a heavy wrister past goaltender Scott Wedgewood.
The goal came at the 17:30 mark of the opening period and was Klapka’s first of the 2026-27 season. Castagna was credited with the lone assist.
Castagna and Aydar Suniev were recalled from the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers on Wednesday as the Flames tried to jump-start an offense that had struggled early. The two rookies lined up with Klapka on Calgary’s fourth line in Thursday’s game.
Castagna arrived in the Flames organization midway through the 2025-26 season as part of the MacKenzie Weegar trade with the Utah Mammoth. The third-round pick, No. 70 overall by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2023 NHL Draft, was signed by Calgary to a three-year, entry-level contract after his junior year at Cornell University ended.
Klapka, who turned 26 in September, has become the “elder statesman” of that new-look fourth line. The undrafted winger played his first full NHL season with the Flames in 2025-26, finishing with six goals, 18 points, and 112 penalty minutes in 79 games. He entered Thursday with one goal and 27 penalty minutes through four games to open the new season.
The Flames and Avalanche were tied 1-1 after 20 minutes, with goals from Klapka and Devon Toews. Calgary entered the night still looking for its first win of the season after dropping its first three games by a combined 16-3 to the Vancouver Canucks and Seattle Kraken.
In Other News...
Flames Shake Up Lineup As Pressure Builds Before Avalanche Test
The Flames are making a noticeable set of changes as they head into a matchup with the Colorado Avalanche, reworking both their forward group and defensive pairings in search of a cleaner look. Among the most telling moves is the arrival of Aydar Suniev and Jonathan Castagna from the AHL, a pair of recalls that gives Calgary a fresh fourth-line option and adds a little more intrigue to how the bottom half of the lineup will be deployed.
Calgary is also turning to Devin Cooley in goal for the Avalanche test, a decision that puts added attention on a game already carrying some weight as the pressure builds. With middle-six forwards shuffled around and the back end adjusted as well, the Flames are clearly trying to find a combination that can steady things against one of the leagues tougher opponents. The question now is whether those changes give them enough structure to hang with Colorado. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Ugly Start Could Force Craig Conroy Into His Next Move
The early going has been rough enough in Calgary that the Flames are already looking at ways to jolt a flat offense before the season can really get away from them. After opening with a significant scoring deficit and a string of underwhelming performances, management has begun weighing roster changes, with Craig Conroy facing an increasingly familiar kind of early-season pressure: decide whether the answer is already in the room or whether help has to come from outside.
Patrik Laine is one of the names on the board, and the Flames are also in conversation with other veteran forwards who could add some finishing touch to a lineup that has struggled to create it. The sense around the team is that Conroy may not wait long if the current group does not start to produce, with a short-term addition looming as a real possibility if Calgarys internal options fail to spark the offense. [Read more 🡒]
Red Wings Rumors Suddenly Point To A Much More Realistic Upgrade
The trade chatter around Detroit has started to drift away from the more sensational names and toward a possibility that feels far more grounded. Pierre LeBrun has downplayed the speculation tying Dylan Larkin to Florida, especially with Aleksander Barkov expected back in six to eight weeks, and that has shifted some of the focus to other options around the league. Among the clubs keeping an eye on the market are the Flames and Red Wings, both of whom have shown interest in Patrik Laine as they look for ways to add offense without paying the price that comes with a true blockbuster.
Laine remains unsigned despite drawing contact from multiple teams, which keeps the door open for a move if the right situation emerges. For Calgary, the appeal is obvious, but the timing matters just as much as the talent, with the organization watching how its younger players perform before deciding how aggressive to get. Around the league, there is also a separate goaltending thread involving Connor Hellebuyck and the Jets, but for the Flames the bigger question is whether this becomes the kind of measured upgrade that fits their timeline. [Read more 🡒]