Matvei Gridin has gone from an unfamiliar name on draft night to one of the brightest young stories in Calgary. Through 16 games, the 20-year-old forward has put up five goals and 10 points, and his breakout moment came with a two-goal night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. His Griddy celebration caught on fast with Flames fans, and he has kept producing since then while carving out a real role in the lineup.
That kind of start naturally raises the question: where would Gridin land in a 2024 NHL redraft?
The first ten picks from that draft were Macklin Celebrini, Artyom Levshunov, Beckett Sennecke, Cayden Lindstrom, Ivan Demidov, Tij Iginla, Carter Yakemchuk, Berkly Catton, Zayne Parekh and Anton Silaev. It’s a strong group overall.
Celebrini already looks like a certified NHL superstar, while Sennecke and Demidov were Calder finalists last season. Parekh and Catton have also earned spots on their NHL squads.
The two names that stand out as the biggest question marks right now are Lindstrom and Silaev. Lindstrom, who went to Columbus, has been hit hard by injuries, including a herniated disc that wiped out most of the 2024-25 season.
He played only four games that year, all in the WHL Playoffs, and posted four points. Through 37 games at Michigan State University, he has 12 points.
Silaev, taken by New Jersey, is a defensive defenceman who simply needs more time. He has appeared in eight AHL games this year.
So where does Gridin fit into that picture? The most realistic answer is probably somewhere in the 8-10 range.
He’s not in the same tier as Sennecke or Demidov, and there’s a strong case for Iginla having a higher ceiling. But Gridin can absolutely be discussed against Lindstrom, Silaev and Yakemchuk, especially with the way his development has gone so far.
He also has a case in the 10-20 range, where the comparison gets wider. Terik Parascak, Cole Eiserman and Anton Silaev have not made their NHL debuts yet.
Sacha Boisvert and Jett Luchanko have only played a handful of games and are still developing at the AHL level. The one player in that group who clearly sits above Gridin right now is Zeev Buium.
That leaves Gridin as a definite top-20 pick in this redraft, but not quite a lock for the top ten. He’s pushed himself into the conversation, though, and that alone says plenty about how quickly he has risen.
What is clear is that Gridin has been the steal of the 2024 draft in the first round. Cole Hutson, a second-round pick, will likely go down as the biggest steal overall, but among first-rounders, Gridin has made the biggest leap. He has gone from a player many fans barely knew on draft day to a regular in the Flames’ top six.
The final 13 picks of the first round were Cole Eiserman, Michael Hage, Yegor Surin, Stian Solberg, Cole Beaudoin, Dean Letourneau, Liam Greentree, Marek Vanacker, Matvei Gridin, Emil Hemming, E.J. Emery, Ben Danford and Sam O’Reilly.
Among that group, Gridin has clearly been the best so far. Beaudoin is the only other player from that stretch to reach the NHL, and he has appeared in four games with Utah.
Michael Hage is the one name in that range with a chance to get near Gridin’s level. He has been excellent at the University of Michigan with 20 points in nine games and looks like an important part of the Montreal Canadiens’ future.
For Calgary, Gridin’s rise is a huge win. After splitting last season between the NHL and AHL before earning a full-time spot this year, he now looks like a real piece of the Flames’ future. And with prospects like Carson Carels, Cullen Potter and Cole Reschny still on the way, the organization has plenty to be excited about.
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