The Calgary Flames’ third pre-season game had a little more bite than your average exhibition, and that’s not a bad thing with opening night closing in fast. Calgary fell 4-3 in a shootout to the Seattle Kraken, but the night was really about which young players pushed themselves into the conversation and which ones kept their names in the mix.
Aydar Suniev kept making noise. After standing out in the Flames’ first pre-season game against Seattle earlier this week, he backed it up on Thursday by scoring Calgary’s third goal and then burying the only shootout goal for the Flames. He’s looked good enough through camp that an opening night roster spot feels very much in play.
Jonathan Castagna also helped his case. He scored by getting to the front of the net, and while he still looks at least a year or two away from being a full-time NHL’er, he turned in another solid showing. Dryden Hunt and Brennan Othmann picked up the assists on that goal, with Hunt again doing work on the forecheck.
Othmann was much more involved than he was in the opener. In the first pre-season game against the Kraken, he was on the ice for only 53 seconds before an errant elbow on Ville Ottavainen led to a game misconduct, a fight, and 20 penalty minutes.
This time, he logged more than 53 seconds and added to the scoresheet with two assists. He also ended up in another misconduct situation after Ottavainen took issue with a clean hit, threw punches on a downed Othmann, and forced Braydon Pachal to step in.
The early scrums gave the game its edge. One started after Chase Harrington hit a Kraken player in the slot and was handed a two-minute roughing penalty.
Harrington, who I really like and think could become a bottom-six staple when the Flames reach their contention window, is headed back to the Western Hockey League’s Spokane Chiefs for now. Another came less than 40 seconds later, when Rory Kerins mixed it up with Josh Mahura after the Kraken goalie covered the puck.
That sequence spilled into a fight between Bobby McMann and Andreas Englund, while Sam Morton also escaped with a trip just before the melee. The Kraken, meanwhile, are bracing for their own early-season fireworks against the Edmonton Oilers after Ryan Lindgren caught Evan Bouchard up high.
Kerins made his mark beyond the rough stuff, too. He scored early in the second period to make it 2-1.
His first game against Seattle had been quiet, but Thursday was a different story. Even so, he was waived after the game.
Tyson Gross was another player who drew attention for the right reasons. He was among the Flames’ cuts on Friday, but his hockey sense stood out, especially on a first-period chance when he chose to move the puck to an open teammate instead of forcing a shot into traffic with the goalie down. I can see him ending up alongside Harrington in the bottom six when the Flames are ready to contend.
Alex Nylander had a stronger night as well, collecting an assist and earning a contract on Friday. William Strömgren also had an assist, while Othmann finished with two helpers.
It’s tough to pin many truly disappointing performances on a game like this, because the lineups made it feel more like an AHL group against another AHL group. Othmann and Nylander were basically the only forwards who looked like real locks, while Suniev has done enough to earn a look this season.
On the back end, Joel Hanley, Hunter Brzustewicz and Braydon Pachal were the regulars in Calgary’s lineup. Seattle had Jordan Eberle, Chandler Stephenson, Matty Beniers and several other regulars dressed.
Andrew Basha had another quiet outing, which is less than ideal after his prospect shine faded following a rough AHL stint in 2025-26. Ben Jones also didn’t leave much of a mark, and that matters for a player trying to win a spot on the main roster.
Devin Cooley’s .885 save percentage looks shaky at first glance, but he made several big saves and didn’t have an NHL defence in front of him. It was still a better performance than his start last Saturday.
And yes, the Kraken mascot is apparently still out there looking like a dumb troll, which remains a strange choice for a team named after a feared mythical creature.
The Flames finish their pre-season schedule against the Edmonton Oilers. Then, on Oct. 1, the games start to count, and Calgary opens the real thing against the Kraken.
In Other News...
Flames Just Added Another Rebuild Gamble Fans Will Debate
The Flames have added another low-risk piece to their forward group by signing Alex Nylander to a one-year, two-way contract. The winger had already been around the team on a professional tryout before training camp, so this was less a surprise than a formalization of a move Calgary had clearly been considering as it continues sorting through options and depth.
Nylander brings a mix of NHL and AHL experience, and he arrives with some recent winning pedigree after helping the Toronto Marlies capture the Calder Cup last season. His path also carries a little extra local connection, since he was born in Calgary and comes from a familiar hockey family, which only adds to the intrigue as fans try to figure out where he fits in a rebuild still looking for useful bets that might pay off later. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Already Have A New Blue Line Question After Camp
The Flames blue line is already shifting after camp, with Andreas Englund no longer in the mix for Calgary. The 30-year-old defenseman had signed a one-year, $900,000 deal with the club, but he was outplayed in camp and never managed to secure a roster spot, leaving the team to move on before the regular season picture was even fully set.
Detroit stepped in and claimed Englund off waivers, adding another experienced NHL depth option to its back end. For Calgary, it is a reminder that the preseason competition did not settle every question on defense, and the organization is still sorting out how the group will look after a camp decision opened up another vacancy. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Final Roster Cuts Just Put Calgarys Depth Under Pressure
The final roster trimming has started to sharpen the edges of Calgarys camp decisions, with the Flames making a batch of moves ahead of the 2026-27 season. Defenseman Andreas Englund hit waivers as the club continued sorting out its lineup, while a group of younger and depth players also came under the microscope as the front office worked toward its opening-night picture.
Mike Benning, Jake Livingstone, Dryden Hunt, Ben Jones, Rory Kerins, Sam Morton and William Stromgren all cleared waivers and were sent to the AHLs Calgary Wranglers, leaving the Flames with a clearer look at who stays in the big-league mix and who continues developing in the system. It is the kind of roster housekeeping that can pass quickly in the standings-driven grind of camp, but it also puts a spotlight on how thin the margin can be for depth players trying to hold onto NHL jobs. [Read more 🡒]