Joel Farabee enters the 2026-27 season with his role in Calgary looking anything but settled, and that uncertainty is the biggest reason his projection lands where it does.
The Flames’ forward picture is getting tighter, and Matvei Gridin’s rapid rise only adds pressure to the mix. Farabee has been a regular in Calgary’s top six since arriving, but that status could be tested quickly once the season starts. The question is whether he stays in that scoring group or slides down the lineup as the year unfolds.
Farabee arrived in the trade package the Flames received when Philadelphia took on Andrei Kuzmenko, with Morgan Frost also coming back in what the piece describes as a “problem-for-problem trade.” That deal brought Farabee to Calgary after he had long been viewed as a highly regarded prospect. Drafted 14th overall by the Flyers in 2018, he put up 76 points in 62 games with the US National Development Team before the draft and followed that with 36 points in 37 games the next season.
He reached the NHL a year after being taken in the first round and has carved out a solid career, but he has never quite matched the early buzz. His best NHL season came in 2023-24, when he scored 22 goals and finished with 50 points. In the other seven NHL seasons he has played, he has not reached 40 points.
In Calgary, the lineup squeeze appears to come down to Farabee, Jonathan Huberdeau and Connor Zary. When healthy, Huberdeau is described as the most effective offensive player and the one with the highest price tag, which makes him the likeliest of the three to stay highest in the lineup. Zary has the talent to be just as productive, but he still needs a long run with steady linemates to show it.
That leaves Farabee as the odd man out in the top six. The expectation here is that he spends most of the season in a third-line role, while also serving as a movable piece when injuries force the Flames to reshuffle.
Because his ice time and linemates are so unsettled, the projection keeps the role adjustment relatively flat. There is still real uncertainty over who ends up pushed down the lineup, and the article notes that it could just as easily be Zary or Huberdeau. That makes the production forecast heavily dependent on where Farabee actually lands.
If he keeps the same kind of role he has held since joining the Flames, the projection is 17 goals and 42 points. If he slips down the lineup, that number drops closer to 15 goals and 35 points.
Either way, the season is expected to make one thing clearer: Farabee does not look like part of Calgary’s long-term future, especially with only one season left on his contract after 2026-27.
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Flames Face A Real Morgan Frost Decision Before His Price Climbs
Morgan Frost has quickly become one of the more interesting pieces in the Flames center picture, and not just because of how he fits on the ice. Calgary is staring at some real uncertainty down the middle, with Ryan Strome likely to be traded and Mikael Backlund protected by a no-movement clause, which makes every decision around Frost feel a little bigger than it would otherwise. Even before the season is over, the question is already whether the Flames should lock him in now or keep weighing their options as the market around him develops.
There is a practical urgency to it, too, because a player who can help solve a roster problem tends to draw attention from other teams as well. If Calgary waits too long, the cost can rise, and the organization would be left trying to replace a useful center while also sorting out the rest of its depth chart. In a league where movement never really stops, Frost may end up being one of those names that forces a team to decide whether it wants certainty now or the risk of chasing it later. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Could Put Several Familiar Names On The Block Again
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Morgan Frost and Connor Zary are the two names that will draw the most attention, even before the market fully develops. Frost remains one of the more talented centremen in the organization, which gives Calgary a tough decision if the right offer arrives, while Zary has already surfaced in trade chatter and could find himself back in that conversation quickly if his start to the season does not match the teams hopes. [Read more 🡒]
Calgary Native Gets A Real Chance To Climb In The Flames System
A Calgary native who has spent recent seasons working his way through the pro ranks is getting a new opportunity close to home. The Wranglers have added Alex Young on a two-way AHL/ECHL contract, giving the former AJHL standout and college player a chance to keep climbing in the Flames organization after proving himself in the ECHL.
Young heads into the season with a real path to minutes at either level, depending on where the Wranglers need help and how the roster shakes out. For a player who has bounced around the minor-league ladder, the chance to compete for ice time in Calgarys system gives him both a fresh platform and a familiar hockey market to make an impression. [Read more 🡒]