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What better time is there than the dog days of the offseason to try looking into the Calgary Flames’ future? That’s exactly what I decided to do by asking Perplexity AI to give us an idea of what the Flames will look like five years down the road.

I asked three questions:

  1. Who will make up the Flames’ core based on their current roster and prospects?
  2. Which current Flames will no longer be in the organization?
  3. What are three major trades Craig Conroy will make over the next few years?

Let’s take a look at the answers!

Who makes up the Flames’ core in 2029–30

In determining who will make up the Flames’ core in five years, the AI considered two key factors. The first is which young players the Flames currently have who project to be near their peak at that time. The second is who the top prospects are. Of those names, it projected five to stand out above the rest. But let’s look at all the names first.

Current players who show promise

The promising youngsters headed into next season: Connor Zary, Martin Pospisil, Morgan Frost, and Yegor Sharangovich. I can see Zary developing into a core player if he can stay healthy. He’s definitely shown flashes of high-level skill. But I don’t see any of the others becoming core players; they’ll be support at best.

Frost—unless he can find another level in the next year or two—is likely a middle-six forward at best. Now 26 years old, he’s never scored 20 goals or 50 points in a season. It’s looking most likely that he’s near his peak. I love Pospisil’s game, but I seriously doubt the soon-to-be 26-year-old can develop his offensive game enough to become part of the core. Lastly, the polarizing Sharangovich. He has five NHL seasons on his resume and has not looked like a play-driver at all. He’ll be 31 come 2029–30 and—if he’s still a Flame—a secondary scorer a la Andrew Mangiapane.

The AI mentioned Dustin Wolf as a top-ranked goaltending prospect who projects as the number one keeper “for much of the next decade if his AHL numbers translate.” Oops! It forgot to look at this season’s stats for Wolf. But I still wholeheartedly agree.

Flames’ top prospects likely to make it

We have six prospects who AI predicts are most likely to graduate to the Flames by 2029–30. The obvious: Zayne Parekh. We all know he oozes skill and could be a franchise defenceman if his development goes well. Fellow 2024 first-rounder Matvei Gridin is up there, too, based on his size and top-six skill potential. No arguments here on either of them, as both had a tremendous D+1 this season.

After them, it’s 2023 first-round pick Samuel Honzek. The AI tells me he’s “already knocking at the roster door” and could possibly be a top-line forward by 2029, but unless he has a great camp, he’s probably headed back to the Calgary Wranglers for more seasoning. I’d love to see Honzek put it all together—and he’s shown flashes—but right now it’s looking unlikely he’ll be part of the core.

Then we have Henry Mews, an “all-around blueliner [with] strong NHL projection.” I really liked Mews with the Ottawa 67’s, but his play after he was traded to the Sudbury Wolves was uninspiring. He’s committed to the NCAA next year and will need a good season with the Michigan Wolverines. I’d love to get back on the Mews hype train.

Lastly, it’s a pair of 2025 draft picks in Cole Reschny and Theo Stockselius. Yes, you read that right; no Cullen Potter in the top six. It’s still very early for both these players, but they look like great picks already, and it would be fantastic if they’re key contributors for the Flames in five years.

The Flames’ projected top-five in 2029–30

In the top spot is Parekh, which is very possible. He has all the makings of a franchise defenceman, and I couldn’t see him being lower than two. However, AI has Zary in the second spot, which is a bit of a surprise. I wouldn’t debate him being in the top five if his development progresses well and he can avoid further injuries.

Third is Honzek. I picked up my jaw just in time for it to hit the floor again. As I mentioned earlier, he has shown flashes of skill, but his D+1 in the WHL and D+2 in the AHL were uninspiring and marred by injuries. He’s not even 21 years old yet and is almost as polarizing as Sharangovich. Some fans are ready to write him off, while others preach patience. I lean more toward the latter, but I haven’t seen enough to believe there’s top-line potential there.

Somehow, Wolf ended up in the fourth spot. It’s likely because the AI didn’t look at his NHL season this year. There’s no doubt he and Parekh should be one-two, and I don’t think the order really matters. Both project to be elite players in the NHL for years to come.

Rounding out the top five is one of Gridin or Frost. Decisions are tough, I suppose. The AI says that Gridin edges out Frost based on age and ceiling but expects Frost to be a “strong late-20s component.” I think there’s a good chance Gridin is the one if these are the two options, but of the players mentioned, I’d have Reschny above both.

Reschny and Mews were both honourable mentions who could crack the top five if their development accelerates.

Which current Flames will be gone by 2029–30

Based on their current age and contract status, AI predicted some players who will most likely be gone by 2029–30. I asked it to narrow down to the five most likely, considering it originally gave me half a roster worth of players. The list shouldn’t shock you, but it might make you emotional!

Captain Mikael Backlund is most likely to be gone. The Flames’ 2007 first-round pick will be 40 at that point and likely retired or playing in another league. He’s played his entire 1,066-game NHL career to this point in Calgary, and it will be a sad day when he leaves.

Rounding out the top five are Nazem Kadri, Blake Coleman, Joel Hanley, and Kevin Rooney. Kadri, Coleman, and Hanley will also be pushing 40 by then. For Kadri, the AI says there’s a strong chance of retirement, buyout, or trade. It doesn’t expect the Flames to re-sign Coleman as they continue going younger. Hanley will likely be surpassed by younger talent, and Rooney is currently a free agent, so the AI is already batting 0.200.

Trades Craig Conroy could make over the next few years

To predict trades the Flames would make, I asked the AI to look at Conroy’s moves as general manager so far and the type of players he has targeted. It reasoned that Conroy’s trades “reflect long-term value over short-term wins,” and he’s continued to add young skill into the lineup.

It specifically mentioned his trades involving Frost, Elias Lindholm, Jacob Markstrom, and Henrik Andersson. Don’t ask about that last name, I’m just the messenger! Anyway, here’s what we came up with.

Three most likely trades

First and foremost, the Flames will trade Rasmus Andersson for high-end assets. After the Noah Hanifin debacle, let’s hope so! It expects the Flames will get a young NHL-ready player plus a top-four prospect or a first-round pick. That doesn’t sound far off from the Hanifin return.

The second move has the Flames dealing one of Frost or Joel Farabee for a top-six scoring forward or another high draft pick. That’s interesting, since they just dealt a high draft pick—along with Jakob Pelletier—for the duo. The reason is mostly sound, though: neither has emerged as a game-changer, and Conroy will want to move one while they have value. The return would be a “more dynamic scoring winger” or a first or second-round pick. I don’t hate it; it would be good asset management to get a high pick back for just one of them.

Lastly, the Flames trade a veteran forward to clear roster and salary cap space. This smells like Coleman. I’ll be honest with you, it did list him as an example of the type of veteran forward they’d trade. But it also mentioned Rooney, so we’ll say it’s Coleman. They’ll deal him for mid-round picks or prospects to open up more roster spots for younger players, as he’ll no longer be part of the core.

These moves seem pretty likely, overall. It will be interesting to follow over the next few years. Hopefully, Conroy can bring in some more elite talent via the draft or trade over the next few years. It would be great to see the team be competitive again when they move to their new arena or soon after.

This article first appeared on The Win Column and was syndicated with permission.

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