The Calgary Flames spent the back half of last season looking a lot more relaxed than they did in the opening months, and that calmer version of the group is the one they’re trying to bring into 2026-27.
After a slow start and a season that shifted dramatically once the club moved Rasmus Andersson, MacKenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri ahead of the trade deadline, the Flames finished with a different feel altogether. The pressure points were gone.
The roster was younger. The remaining players could just show up and play.
And they did. Calgary went 10-9-2 after the deadline, scored on 17.4% of its power plays and killed 75.4% of opposing power plays.
The late-season surge also came with some real progress from the kids: Matt Coronato led the team in points over the final 21 games, Morgan Frost paced the club in goals, and Matvei Gridin and Zayne Parekh both looked more and more comfortable with the puck. For the first time all season, the power play started to look dangerous again over the final 20 games.
That’s the challenge now: making sure that stretch wasn’t just a closing note to a weird year.
After Wednesday’s practice at the Saddledome, Frost was asked how the Flames can keep that momentum alive.
“I think we’ve talked about a bunch of that stuff,” said Frost. “I think that’s a good question.
How do you carry it over? We watch it over, we talk about it, and you’ve just got to carry some of that confidence and swagger.
Obviously, there’s some new leaders in here and fresh faces. Just look to build on it, and see how it goes to start and build from there, I guess.”
Parekh was another player who seemed to find a different gear late last season. After a rocky first pro campaign, he finished with a much stronger stretch in March and April, and on Wednesday he said the difference from a year ago is obvious.
“night and day from last year to now”
He added: “I feel like a completely different player,” said Parekh. “And I think just the strength and the work I put in this summer, it’s really helped me and I’m feeling really confident going into the start of the season.”
Ryan Huska kept his lines and pairings steady through training camp, with many of the same combinations carrying over from the end of last season. The Flames coach said that consistency matters, but so does making sure comfort doesn’t turn into stagnation.
“The one thing we don’t worry about is what we’re getting from the team on a nightly basis,” said Huksa. “The work and the identity that they’ve established. But we’ve talked about before: now it’s got to find a way to build on that and take this team to another level.”
The Flames open the 2026-27 regular season at home against Seattle on Thursday night.
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What made the performance harder to digest was how many of the problems were of Calgarys own making. Penalties and defensive mistakes kept feeding the Krakens momentum, and the lone Flames goal came only late in the third period after the outcome was long since tilted. For a team trying to establish a better early-season footing, the question now is how quickly this group can clean up the details before one bad opener starts feeling like a pattern. [Read more 🡒]
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Canucks Just Sent A Top Prospect Into A Situation Flames Fans Know Well
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For Vancouver, the decision is clearly about patience and development, not a fast track to the NHL. Canucks GM Ryan Johnson has made it clear there is no set timeline for a promotion, which puts the emphasis on steady growth in Abbotsford rather than immediate pressure in Vancouver. How Cootes settles in there, and how quickly he can turn a strong start into momentum, will be one of the early stories to watch once the season opens. [Read more 🡒]