An updated look at the Calgary Flames current roster situation for opening night at Scotia Place

This group has Craig Conroy’s fingerprints all over it as he shapes the roster to his liking. Only Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri were acquired and/or signed by Brad Treliving. In particular, Conroy has been busy this summer with internal extensions, handing out new deals to Matt Coronato, Connor Zary, Martin Pospisil, and Backlund to keep them all around into 2027. He also acquired Joel Farabee last season, who is signed through 2027, and signed Yegor Sharangovich to a five-year deal in 2024.

All in all, the Flames currently have eight forwards already under contract for the 2027–28 season, which seems like a lot. For a team currently preaching a youth movement in a rebuild, it’s a tad confusing to have eight players already tied up two years down the line. It’s even more puzzling when three of them are in their mid to late 30s, and only two are under the age of 27.

Prospects under contract

The above four forwards are the only current Flames prospects with contracts running into the 2027–28 season. The hope, of course, is that one or multiple of the above players will be NHL regulars by the time 2027 rolls around. Sam Honzek and Matvei Gridin will both have multiple pro seasons under their belt by then, so they’re currently the favourites.

Andrew Basha and Jacob Battaglia, meanwhile, will very likely still be in the AHL in 2027–28, considering they’re both slated to play in junior in 2025–26.

Expiring contracts in 2027

Odds are that at least one, if not multiple, of the above three names will be re-signed for the 2027–28 season. The easy money is on Morgan Frost, who will still be in his prime at 28 and plays a position of need at centre. Whether or not Frost returns to play at Scotia Place will very likely depend on how the Flames’ young centres develop before then.

Aydar Suniev, as well, will still only be 22 and should almost certainly get re-signed unless he has a couple of disastrous years in the AHL before then.

Blake Coleman seemed like an obvious name that will have moved on by then, but after the Flames extended Backlund until 2028, I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see Coleman retained for a couple more seasons and still here on opening night in 2027.

Adam Klapka is the only RFA of the group, so it wouldn’t be shocking to see him under contract for the 2027–28 season, even if it is only as a depth option.

Defencemen

Unlike at forward, the defence group is currently wide open for the 2027–28 season. With a number of notable prospects at the position, it appears as though the Flames are hoping for a major youth movement by 2027.

NHL regulars under contract

The Flames currently have just two defenceman locked up into the 2027–28 season. MacKenzie Weegar is the team’s undisputed number one on the blue line, and by 2027, it’s very unlikely that will have changed. He’ll only be 33 years old and should still be a top defenceman in the NHL by then.

After signing a five-year extension this summer, Kevin Bahl is the only other defender signed for opening night at Scotia Place. Bahl was already one of the core pieces of the blueline last season, and considering he’ll only be 27 by then, expect him to be a staple in the Flames’ top-four for Scotia Place’s inaugural season.

Prospects under contract

While Zayne Parekh is still considered a prospect at the moment, he’s set to be an NHL regular this coming season and, if all goes well, will be a massive part of the team’s blue line by the time Scotia Place opens. He’s currently set to play out the final year of his entry-level contract in 2027–28 and will likely be a core piece of the blue line alongside Weegar and Bahl.

The other prospect currently under contract for 2027–28 is Etienne Morin. Unlike Parekh, Morin is far from a guarantee to become an NHL player, but I think there’s a good chance he’s playing NHL games in 2027–28. With the potential for two years of AHL experience before Scotia Place opens, he could be on the opening night roster in 2027, given how many spots could be open by then.

Expiring contracts in 2027

The only name in the above list of 2027 expiring contracts that I’m confident in saying will be re-upped for the 2027 season is Hunter Brzustewicz. In fact, I think there’s a very good chance he’s an NHL regular by the time Scotia Place opens up. Unless his play suddenly falls off a cliff in these next two years, he looks like one of the team’s best NHL-ready prospects on the blueline and will no doubt be re-signed.

Among the other three names, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them all move on before the 2027–28 season. Joel Hanley will be 36 years old by then, and I can’t see the Flames bringing him back yet again. Perhaps one of Brayden Pachal or Yan Kuznetsov is re-upped to provide some depth on the blueline, but with so many younger players pushing for spots, they may both leave as free agents.

Goaltenders

There isn’t much to write about here. Dustin Wolf is the present and future of the Flames’ goaltending group after signing a mega seven-year extension last week.

As expected, Wolf is the only goaltender under contract for the 2027–28 season. Barring an absolute disaster over the next couple of seasons, he’ll continue to be their locked-in starter and franchise goaltender when Scotia Place opens.

Expiring contracts in 2027

While Wolf is the only goaltender under contract for 2027–28, 2021 seventh-round pick Aresnii Sergeev is the only goaltender who will see his current contract expire the summer before Scotia Place opens. Slated to make his AHL debut this season, if everything goes well over the next two seasons, he could be the team’s backup for the 2027–28 season.