Calgary Flames Prospect Update: WJC snubs, developments

The Flames’ NHL squad has really built up some momentum recently. As of writing, the Flames sit four points out of a playoff spot, with the playoff teams holding games in hand.

This momentum must be contagious as Calgary prospects also build steam, with Cole Reschny and Zayne Parekh both being named to Team Canada’s preliminary World Junior Championship squad. Soon enough, Junior seasons will pause, and it’ll be WJC time.

The Flames are both winning on the ice and in their prospect development. Let’s take a look at why.

Welcome to the TWC Calgary Flames prospect update. Each week, we’ll take a dive into how the Flames prospects have done in their respective leagues, to go along with a feature on one standout prospect in Calgary’s system. We have defined a prospect as a skater who has played fewer than 65 NHL games and was born in 2001 or later.

All data is from QuantHockey and EliteProspects.

World Junior Championship Snubs

It is no secret that the Calgary Flames have a deeper prospect pool than most teams. That being said, there are a few Flames prospects that could have made their respective nations’ teams for one reason or another.

Cullen Potter

Potter remains the only Flames first-rounder not playing at the World Junior Championships. With his lightning-fast skating, high-end playmaking, and growth in his two-way game, Potter is a true snub for Team USA.

The main argument around Potter not being on the team is that the 2007-born forward has been genuinely inconsistent in his sophomore season with ASU. Potter’s momentum this season started slowly, but has picked up the pace as he’s gotten more comfortable.

Don’t be surprised if he makes Team USA next year, though.

Ethan Wyttenbach, USA

The high-scoring playmaker two-way forward combo would have added significant scoring depth to an already stacked Team USA, while having decent defensive upside. The main thing that holds Wyttenbach back from some of the higher-end American talent, mainly his skating and physicality.

These drawbacks, while they aren’t super noticeable in games with Quinnipiac, would’ve posed problems against some of the fastest, high-paced, and offensively imposing players in the world. His exclusion makes sense, but it would have been a silver lining for Calgary Flames fans.

Hunter Laing, Canada

The power forward is a high-end physical threat with notable competitiveness and quality defensive senses. He could’ve been the new age Zach Hyman who added grit and toughness for Team Canada at the WJC. That being said, Canada has plenty of depth, and there are more attractive options with higher-end finishing.

Additionally, Team Canada rarely selects players from outside of the top two rounds of the NHL draft, so being a 6th rounder gave Laing a slim-to-no chance of being considered. He was a long shot, but could’ve been fun to watch.

Calgary Flames prospect updates

AHL

• The Wranglers had a rough past week, going 0–1–2 this past week, dropping a game to Abbotsford 2–1 in the shootout on the 3rd. They also dropped a pair of games to Ontario with a 6–1 loss on the 6th and a 2–1 OTL on the 7th.
• The Calgary Wranglers have dropped to 5th in the AHL’s Pacific Division with an 11–9–4 record.
• Matvei Gridin is still leading the Wranglers Flames-affiliated prospects in points with 21 across 22 games.
• Defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz was called up by the Calgary Flames on the 7th. Additionally, defender Étienne Morin and goaltender Connor Murphy have joined the Wranglers.

ECHL

• The Rapid City Rush were on a roll this past week, with straight wins against the Tahoe Knight Monsters. Rapid City played them in a trio of games on the 3rd, 5th, and 6th, and only allowed five goals combined.
• The Rush boosted themselves to 4th in the Mountain Division with a 10–9–2 record on the season now.
• Flames-affiliated defensive prospect Étienne Morin was reassigned to the Wranglers on the 7th.
• 2021 7th-rounder Arsenii Sergeev appeared in the first two games this past week and made a combined 76/79 saves. He is expected to be the starter for Rapid City while Connor Murphy is up with the Wranglers. He is now backed up by fellow ECHL rookie Nathan Torchia.

NCAA

• 2024 6th rounder and University of Denver defender, Eric Jamieson, played a pair of games on the 5th and 6th against Miami University (Ohio). With a goal on the 5th and an assist on the 6th, he now has a 3-game point streak. The 6’03 Jamieson is an expert at exerting physical pressure and slowing down opponents’ pace.
• Forward Aidan Lane had the best week of his young college hockey career. He found the scoresheet with some slick passing and quality vision for an assist on the 5th against Yale. He then found the back of the net twice against Brown University in a 7–3 blowout win for Harvard on the 6th.
• Cole Reshny was named to Team Canada for the WJC earlier this week. He also extended his point streak to nine games with an assist against Cloud State on the 5th and a pair of assists against that same team on the 6th. Reschny will be a highly adaptable forward for Team Canada. Teammate Littler also put up three points with an assist on the 5th, and two goals on the 6th in around 20:00 combined.
• Wyttenbach leaves this week as the fifth-highest scoring skater in NCAA hockey this season with 25 points across just 18 games. The Flames’ 2025 5th-rounder continues to look like a steal every week with high-end hockey IQ, puck skills, and a lethal shot. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say Flames fans might see the scoring forward in a Flames jersey in the near future.

OHL

• Battaglia and the Frontenacs are now on a nine-game losing streak. Kingston remained busy this past week, playing three games, in which the captain contributed two assists. Battaglia’s game is a slow and steady give-and-go thinker’s game, but with the Frontenacs leaning towards being a rebuilder, expect his regression to continue. A change of scenery would be beneficial for the young forward.

WHL

• It was a busy week for the physical defender Axel Hurtig, who played three games this past week. Hurtig found the scoresheet with an assist in the first game on the 5th against the Prince Albert Raiders. He also played against the Lethbridge Hurricanes on the 6th and the Wenatchee Wild on the 7th.

Russia

• 2024 3rd-round pick Zarubin appeared in one game this past week, on the 8th, against MHK Krylia Sovetov Moskva, where he helped secure a 2–1 win. Zarubin sits at 9th best save percentage in the entire MHL, and 10th best GAA in the league.
• Yegorov has played in his clubs’ last five games in a row. He played two games this past week and stopped 64/68 shots. Yegorov split the pair of games. collecting a 6–2 win against Krasnaya Mashina Yunior Krasnogorsk on the 4th, and a 5–2 loss (in relief) against MHK Dynamo Moskva on the 9th.

Forwards