Jonathan Castagna has only four NHL games on his résumé, but the young Flame is already carving out a larger footprint.
The 21-year-old Cornell product has been getting a look on Calgary’s penalty kill, and that opportunity could grow as the Flames open a four-game homestand Sunday against the Hurricanes. Castagna was back in that spot Thursday night in Vegas, handling spot duty on the kill while continuing to build trust with the coaching staff.
“It’s a great honour,” Castagna said during a chat Saturday inside the Flames dressing room. “I know I'm very early in my career, and to have a coach trust me on the PK right now, it really means a lot.
“I think it's a testament to maybe I'm doing some things right, playing good defensively, and I'm gonna keep trying to take hold of that opportunity, and see if I can get on my way to becoming a full-time penalty killer.”
That kind of usage fits with the way Castagna has entered the league. He was named the ECAC’s best defensive forward just a few months ago, and in his first four NHL appearances he has been even in the face-off circle. For Flames head coach Ryan Huska, the bigger takeaway is the way Castagna has approached the job from the start.
“He is a hard working young man. He's doing a good job in the face-off circle, and I think he's a difficult guy to play against,” Huska commented Sunday morning. “I think he was taught well at school, and he has good checking instincts.
“I think the more time he gets there, the better he's going to be for us in that situation as well.”
Castagna’s latest game in Las Vegas also came with a familiar, comforting sight: two bright red No. 38 sweaters in the T-Mobile Arena crowd. They belonged to his parents, Al and Joyce, who had already been there for his NHL debut and made the trip to Nevada to watch him again.
“They've been incredible. I’m extremely grateful to have them as parents, because they show all the time how much they care about me, and that's just one example of it,” Castagna said. “It’s also very nice to play in front of them, because it makes you feel a little bit more comfortable in front of familiar eyes.
“You want to play well for them, because they're kind of the reason that I'm here right now, so, it's really nice to have them there.”
Now Castagna is set to be in the mix again Sunday at the Scotiabank Saddledome, where he is on track to appear in his fifth straight game since debuting Oct. 8 against Colorado. He says he’s staying focused on the same simple message from Huska: “He just said to keep doing the right things, playing on the right side of the puck, and being a reliable guy,” Castagna said of his conversations with Huska.
In Other News...
Flames Get An Early Test That Could Reveal Plenty At Home
A fresh home test is on deck for the Flames, and it comes against one of the leagues more demanding visitors in Carolina. Calgary will get its first look at the Hurricanes this season at the Saddledome, with projected lineups, availability updates and broadcast details all part of the buildup to a game that should offer a useful early read on where the group stands in its own building.
There is also a bit of added texture here, since this is the Hurricanes final trip to the Saddledome before their next visit to Calgary at Scotia Place. The Flames are still sorting through some personnel questions, which only adds to the interest in how this matchup unfolds, especially with the kind of pace and structure Carolina tends to bring into these meetings. [Read more 🡒]
Wranglers Face A Tough Chance To Seize Control In Bakersfield
The Wranglers hit Bakersfield for the third game of a road-heavy week, and the timing is not ideal. Calgary is trying to keep pace in a season series that carries its own edge because of the parent-club rivalry, while the Condors are waiting with fresher legs after not playing since last weekend. It sets up a useful measuring-stick game for a Wranglers group that has already been through a busy stretch and now has to manage another one away from home.
Ben Jones has been one of the names to watch for Calgary during this run, while Bakersfield brings plenty of threat on the other side in Quinn Hutson. The matchup will be available on AHLtv and Wranglers Radio, giving fans a chance to follow along as the clubs continue sorting out the series, but the bigger question for Calgary is whether this is the kind of road stop where it can grab control before the week gets away from it. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Have One Line Earning Trust During This Rough Start
Seven games into a rough start, the Flames have at least found one group that has held up better than the rest. Their fourth line has done the kind of steady, unspectacular work coaches usually trust in a difficult stretch, with Adam Klapka a constant presence on the unit. While Calgarys overall five-on-five goal differential sits at minus-16, that line has limited the damage to minus-1, a small but meaningful sign that there is still a pocket of reliability on a team searching for more of it.
After a recent practice, Klapka sounded comfortable with the way the line is coming together, and that matters for a group that is often asked to provide energy, structure and a clean shift. The broader question for the Flames is whether this kind of chemistry can survive the inevitable lineup shuffling that comes when a team is trying to climb out of an early hole, especially with roles around the lineup still in flux. For now, though, this is one of the few combinations Calgary can point to and trust. [Read more 🡒]