The Calgary Flames are heading into another season with the same basic reality hanging over them: contention still looks like a long shot. What has changed, though, is the sense that the organization is steadily tilting toward the future. By the end of the 2026/27 season, the club should have most of that future on display.
That shift has come with a lot of roster churn. Calgary has been moving on from veterans and making room for younger players, and the turnover has been dramatic over the past several seasons.
Last year’s opening-night group already looked different after the exits of Anthony Mantha, Andrei Kuzmenko and, most notably, Noah Hanifin. This year, the changes are even more pronounced after the Flames unveiled their first training camp lines.
The biggest departures are easy to spot. Rasmus Andersson, Mackenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri are all gone, each of them long-time fixtures in Calgary’s lineup. Andersson’s run with the team stretches all the way back to the 2016 NHL Draft, which makes his exit another major marker in the Flames’ roster reset.
There’s also movement on the fourth line. Martin Pospisil, who began the 2025/26 season on the shelf, is back, while Ryan Lomberg’s departure means that group will look different as well.
With those changes in place, the question now is how much the forward group has shifted from opening night in 2025/26. The Flames have already started to answer that with their training camp alignment, and the lineup picture is clearly not the same one fans saw a year ago.
In Other News...
Flames Just Gave Fans A New Prospect To Watch Closely
The Flames have locked up another young piece in forward Chase Harrington, signing the 18-year-old to an entry-level contract after selecting him 36th overall in the 2026 NHL Draft. Harrington is still with the Spokane Chiefs in the Western Hockey League, where he has already earned the captaincy, a sign Calgary sees both talent and maturity in a prospect still early in his development.
For the Flames, the move adds another name to the pipeline without forcing an immediate decision on his NHL future. Harringtons contract was structured with some flexibility, giving Calgary room to let him keep developing in junior hockey while the organization watches closely to see how quickly he can push toward the next level. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Just Set Up An Important Next Step For Chase Harrington
The Flames have taken a clear next step with Chase Harrington, signing the forward prospect to a three-year entry-level contract while he remains in the middle of his final full season with the WHLs Spokane Chiefs. Harrington, the Chiefs captain, has been on Calgarys radar since the 2026 NHL Draft, when the club made him the 36th overall pick and added a player it expects to keep pushing forward.
For now, the contract gives Calgary a way to lock in a promising young center of attention without rushing his path. Harrington can finish out his junior run in Spokane, and the Flames will continue to watch his development closely from afar, with the real clock on his NHL future still tied to what happens over the next couple of seasons. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Cap Space May Be Setting Up Conroys Next Asset Play
The Flames were in the mix on a busy trade front as a third-party salary cap facilitator in the deal between the Maple Leafs and Blue Jackets involving Kirill Marchenko and Matthew Knies. Calgary was not the centerpiece of the move, but its presence mattered, with the club helping create the kind of financial flexibility that can make a complicated deal possible in the first place.
For a team still trying to shape its next wave of assets, that sort of role can be more than a one-off favor. Calgary was aiming to come away with a draft pick in exchange for providing cap relief, a reminder that every bit of space can become a bargaining chip if the timing is right. In a market where teams are constantly hunting for help on the books, the Flames may already be signaling how Conroy intends to squeeze value out of the roster around him. [Read more 🡒]