Tough news out of Calgary: Jonathan Huberdeau’s season is over. The veteran forward will undergo season-ending hip surgery, a significant blow for both the player and a Flames team already struggling to find its footing this year.
Huberdeau had been trying to find his rhythm in what’s been a challenging season across the board. Through 50 games, he posted 10 goals and 25 points-numbers well below the high bar he set earlier in his career.
Still, there were flashes. Just this past Wednesday, he opened the scoring in Calgary’s 4-3 win over the rival Edmonton Oilers, a reminder of the offensive instincts that made him one of the league’s premier playmakers not so long ago.
At 32, Huberdeau is in the third year of an eight-year, $84 million contract he signed back in 2022. It was a massive commitment from the Flames after acquiring him in a blockbuster deal, and while last season offered some optimism-28 goals and 62 points in 81 games-this year has been a step back, both for him and the team.
Before arriving in Calgary, Huberdeau was a force with the Florida Panthers. His 2021-22 campaign was the stuff of elite-tier production: 30 goals, 115 points, and the kind of playmaking that made him a fixture on highlight reels. That version of Huberdeau hasn’t consistently shown up in Calgary, but the talent is still there-when healthy.
Now, the focus shifts to recovery and the long game. Hip surgery is no small matter, especially for a player who relies on edge work and vision to create space and drive offense. The hope, of course, is that this procedure gets him back to full strength and closer to the player the Flames believed they were getting when they locked him in long-term.
As for the Flames, they sit 29th in the league with a 23-27-6 record-a team in transition, trying to retool on the fly. Losing a veteran presence like Huberdeau doesn’t make that any easier. His absence opens the door for younger players to step up, but it also underscores just how much Calgary has to figure out moving forward.
In total, Huberdeau has racked up 263 goals and 807 points across 962 career games with the Panthers and Flames. That’s a resume few can match, and while this season ends prematurely, the book on his career is far from closed. The Flames-and fans across the league-will be watching closely to see what version of Huberdeau returns next year.