The NHL’s new money climate has already started to reshape the Calgary Flames’ future, and three names stand right in the middle of it: Morgan Frost, Matvei Gridin and Zayne Parekh.
A summer that began like most NHL offseasons - cautious, predictable, and generally stingy - changed fast when Daniel Brière and the Philadelphia Flyers put a five-year, $90 million offer sheet on Anaheim Ducks centre Leo Carlsson on July 3. That move helped redraw the market in real time, and the ripple effect is now all over contract talks across the league.
The cap is climbing, player leverage is climbing with it, and the numbers are getting wild. Macklin Celebrini is at $18.8 million AAV, Carlsson at $18 million, Connor Bedard at $15 million and Cutter Gauthier at $13.5 million. Even the supporting cast is cashing in at levels that would have once been reserved for stars: Justin Sourdif at $6.35 million, Luke Evangelista at $7.25 million and Ville Koivunen at $4 million.
For the Flames, that new reality lands hardest on Frost. He’s entering the kind of window players dream about: one year left on his deal, then free agency at age 27.
The 2026-27 season could be the one where everything comes together for him. He’s lined up to be Calgary’s top five-on-five centre, run with the top power play unit and get meaningful time in 3 on 3 overtime.
A 50-plus-point season is there for the taking.
And if he gets there, the price tag changes dramatically.
Before Carlsson’s offer sheet, a Flames extension for Frost felt doable - something in the range of five or six years at $5-6 million AAV. That conversation is different now.
Frost will be 28, he’ll be a top-six centre and he’ll be heading toward unrestricted free agency. In this market, that combination points to a much bigger payday than anyone would have expected in April.
The UFA centre board in July of 2027 includes Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Ryan O’Reilly, William Karlsson, Tyler Seguin, Barrett Hayton, Pavel Zacha, Andrew Copp and Phillip Danault. But the league has changed so much that teams are no longer letting players actually reach that stage very often. That makes the free-agent centre pool look thin, and thin drives up bids.
That’s why Frost could end up with serious attention from multiple teams. A deal in the neighbourhood of seven years and $7 million a year would not be a shock.
The question for Calgary is whether it wants to go there. Frost brings plenty to like - skill, face-off work and leadership among them - but seven years is a major commitment. That tension is going to be one of the most interesting Flames storylines to watch this season.
Gridin is in a different spot, but the market trend hits him just as hard. He can sign an extension with the Flames in the summer of 2027, and if his play continues at - or above - the pace he finished the 25-26 season, he’ll be positioned for a huge number. Young wingers are getting paid like cornerstones now, not afterthoughts.
Cutter Gauthier, who is only entering his third full year in the NHL, landed a six-year deal at $13.5 million AAV. Ryan Leonard, coming off 45 points in 75 games, got eight years at $10.5 million AAV. Noah Ostlund, with just 68 NHL games, signed for eight years at $6.6 million AAV.
If Gridin puts together a 50-60-plus point sophomore season, he could be staring at a massive extension of his own.
Parekh is the last piece, and maybe the most fascinating one. Like Gridin, he can also extend with Calgary next summer.
In the old NHL, signing a player with so little experience to a max-term deal would have sounded extreme. In this one, it looks much more normal.
Zeev Buium is the best comp. He signed for eight years at $9.38 million AAV, and his path has a lot in common with Parekh’s.
Both were first-round picks in 2024. Both came in with big junior resumes.
Both have already hit some early NHL bumps. Buium has played 76 NHL games and has 26 points, and he struggled last season, especially defensively under Adam Foote.
Parekh could be set up for a better season than Buium had a year ago, especially if he handles the Flames’ top power play for a full year. If that happens, Calgary could be looking at a second contract that starts with a 10 or 11.
The bottom line is simple: the NHL’s contract landscape has changed fast, and the Flames are going to feel it soon. By January 2027, these decisions will already be looming. How Conroy handles Frost, Gridin and Parekh could define the next stretch of Calgary’s roster building.
In Other News...
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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 🡒]