Zayne Parekh’s place on the Calgary Flames is already clear: he’s one of the most compelling players on the roster, and he may be on the verge of becoming one of the most influential too.
That’s a big leap for a defenseman who was pushed into the NHL at 19 after the ninth-overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft had run out of realistic options everywhere else. He was too young for the AHL, not eligible for the NCAA, and had already done so much damage in the OHL that sending him back to junior didn’t make sense.
So 2025-26 became his first full season in the league, and like it does for so many young players, the adjustment came with the expected bumps. Parekh had to sort out life against opponents who were bigger, older and far more experienced.
Still, the last six weeks hinted at what the Flames are hoping to see more of in 2026-27. The clearest example came in the final game of the season against the Los Angeles Kings, when he scored a highlight-reel lamp-lighter that stood out even in a season full of growing pains.
If Parekh can take that late-season burst and turn it into something steady next year, he has the kind of skill that can help Calgary create offence from the blue line and stay in the mix. That’s the real draw here: not just a talented young defenseman, but one whose ceiling could matter a lot for where the Flames go next.
In Other News...
Senators Still Have One Big Top Six Question At Camp
Training camp opens Sept. 16 with the Senators already looking a little different up front after Steve Staios spent the summer reshaping the forward group. The expected mix on the top two lines now includes names like Andre Burakovsky, Claude Giroux and Fabian Zetterlund, while Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens, William Eklund and Tim Stutzle should all be in the top six conversation as Ottawa tries to settle on a look that has more balance and more finishing than a year ago.
What remains unsettled is the last major piece of that puzzle. Ottawa has explored the idea of adding another proven winger to give the group even more punch, but the market is not exactly offering easy answers and the club still has to decide whether internal options are enough. For a team that wants its top six to carry the offense, camp is less about sorting out the obvious names than figuring out who ultimately earns the final spot and how aggressive the Senators want to be before the season starts. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Goalie Situation Just Got More Complicated Than Fans Expected
The Canadiens goaltending picture is already feeling more crowded than expected, with Montreal having explored a move for Sam Montembeault without finding an acceptable offer and Edmonton now looming as a possible suitor after Frederik Andersens injury. On top of that, Kevin Woodley noted that Thatcher Demko still has not offered a return timetable in Vancouver, and the recent signing of Driedger has only added another layer of uncertainty around how quickly Demkos recovery is truly moving.
For Ottawa, the bigger long-term question sits a little farther up the lineup, where Drake Batherson and the Senators still have time to work toward an eight-year extension. Both sides reportedly want to keep the partnership going, but the talks are not settled yet, and the remaining gap is centered on the financial terms and bonus structure. With the calendar ticking toward Sept. 15, this is the kind of negotiation that can sit quietly for a while and then suddenly become one of the teams most important storylines. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Already Proved One Free Agency Narrative Wrong
For years, Ottawa has had to fight the lazy line that it is not a place top NHL free agents want to land. The Senators recent history gives that argument a little less oxygen, though, because the club has still managed to bring in established names who saw enough in the market, the roster and the role to make the move north.
Sergei Gonchar, Vladimir Tarasenko and Claude Giroux all arrived with plenty of reputation attached and, in different ways, gave Ottawa real veteran value. Giroux in particular changed the conversation around what the Senators can sell to outside players, even after his original deal, and the fact that the team keeps getting another look from proven talent suggests the old narrative may be more habit than reality. [Read more 🡒]