Five years later: A look back on the Calgary Flames 2020 draft class

Now, five years on, it’s been long enough to start to make some final conclusions about the 2020 draft. The Calgary Flames went into the draft with six picks. Thanks to a couple trades to move down in the first round, they picked up two extra mid-round selections.

All in all, the Flames made eight picks at the 2020 draft, including four in the first three rounds. Anytime you make that many picks in the early rounds, you expect to walk away with some NHL talent. So far, the draft class hasn’t made a huge impact at the NHL level. However, there are certainly a couple of intriguing pieces ready to make a push for an NHL job.

24th overall – Connor Zary

Originally slated to select 19th overall, the Flames ended up moving down to 22nd overall, and then again to 24th overall before finally picking Connor Zary. It’s clear the Flames always had their eyes on Zary. As of right now, their decision to move back looks like a smart one.

Zary’s D+1 season was cut short thanks to injury. In the 15 games he played in the WHL, he was dominant, totaling 24 points. He also added seven points in nine AHL games that season. The following year was a tough one for him, though. He struggled with injuries and a move to centre that saw him fall behind his peers, with 25 points in 53 AHL games and then just two in 13 playoff games. The good news is he quieted the doubters the very next year, in 2022–23. His AHL production climbed to 58 points in 72 games, and he was one of the Calgary Wranglers’ best forwards.

Zary’s meteoric rise continued in 2023–24, dominating the AHL before earning an NHL call-up early into the season and never looking back. He’d finish the season with 34 points in 63 NHL games, establishing himself as a full-time NHL player at just 22 years old. This past season, Zary’s impressive production continued. Unfortunately, a couple of scary knee injuries limited him to just 54 games. This has brought about some questions regarding his long-term durability.

If he can stay healthy, there’s no doubt Zary has a future as a second-line forward in the NHL, which would be great value at 24th overall. It’s up to Zary now to prove his breakout 2023–24 campaign wasn’t a fluke.

50th overall – Yan Kuznetsov

With their second pick of the draft, the Flames selected defensive defenceman Yan Kuznetsov out of the NCAA. There’s no beating around the bush here: Kuznetsov was drafted with the sole purpose of becoming a shutdown defender in the NHL one day.

After being drafted, Kuznetsov played one more year in the NCAA in his D+1 season. He also logged six AHL games that year. The following year, in 2021–22, he split his time between the AHL and the QMJHL. In the Q, he posted 13 points in 25 games for the Memorial Cup Champion Saint John Sea Dogs. In 2022–23, Kuznetsov made his full-time jump to the AHL. This is where he has spent the last three seasons fine-tuning his game.

All said, Kuznetsov has racked up 53 points in 198 AHL games over the past three years as a mainstay on the Wranglers’ blue line. Considering he is still just 23 years old, he already has a plethora of professional experience under his belt. Unfortunately, his results haven’t taken a huge jump so far.

It’s now or never for Kuznetsov to prove he’s more than just an AHL defender. With the organization loading up on defensive talent in recent years, Kuznetsov has slowly fallen down the depth chart and has failed to stand out. He’ll need to take a big step and soon, as he’s starting to look like a whiff at 50th overall.

72nd overall – Jeremie Poirier

Outside of Connor Zary, Jeremie Poirier was the most exciting player from the Flames’ 2020 draft class. A pure offensive defenceman with borderline elite offensive talent, Poirier was a classic boom or bust selection. His massive shortcomings on defence pushed him down draft boards and into the Flames’ lap at 72nd overall.

What initially seemed like a potential steal by the Flames has started to look like a swing and a miss. Poirier’s first couple years in the organization were great. He dominated the QMJHL to the tune of 94 points in 100 games from the blue line and followed that up with a tremendous rookie season in the AHL in 2022–23. He’d post 42 points in 69 games, a huge achievement for a 20-year-old defenceman in his first year of pro hockey. His season even earned him a spot on the AHL’s all-rookie team.

His 2023–24 season is where things hit a huge hitch. After starting the season with seven points in just three games, Poirier went down with a serious laceration in the fourth game of the season. It ended up costing him five months, and he never quite looked right after returning. This past season, Poirier started to find his game again, with 42 points in 71 games, but didn’t take the step forward many had hoped he would.

At this point, Poirier is running out of time to prove he can be an NHL player one day. He needs to have a huge year in the AHL in 2025–26 if he has any hopes of a future in Calgary. With a plethora of young offensive defencemen in the organization now in Zayne Parekh, Hunter Brzustewicz, and Henry Mews, Poirier has fallen way down the depth chart.

80th overall – Jake Boltmann

It just hasn’t worked out for Jake Boltmann since being drafted. Already an off-the-board pick at 80th overall, he’s really struggled to make much of an impact at the college level since being selected. In five years of college hockey since his selection, Boltmann has totaled just four goals and 32 points in 161 games. While he’s primarily known for defence, those are some painfully low numbers for a player who has been over 20 years old for four straight seasons in college.

At this point, it’d be quite the shock to see the Flames retain his rights this summer. A puzzling pick from day one, the gamble hasn’t worked out.

96th overall – Daniil Chechelev

With their lone fourth-round pick in 2020, the Flames selected overage goaltender Daniil Chechelev out of Russia. Like Boltmann, this pick was quite a reach at the time. With that said, he actually started his Flames tenure with an impressive 10 straight wins and a .943 save percentage in the MHL. He also earned 21 games in Russia’s second-best pro league, the VHL, that year, posting an equally impressive .912 save percentage.

That was about the beginning of the end of Chechelev’s time as a notable prospect. After making the jump to North America in 2021, he posted back-to-back ugly .894 save percentage seasons in the ECHL, earning just three AHL games. Following the 2022–23 season, Chechelev failed to report to the Flames’ 2023 training camp and ended up signing back in Russia, which is where he has played since.

143rd overall – Ryan Francis

An intriguing selection in the fifth round, it’s easy to forget Ryan Francis was once considered one of the Flames’ best forward prospects. Following his selection, Francis would dominate the QMJHL with 50 points in 32 games to finish eighth in QMJHL scoring in 2020–21, ahead of a slew of first-round talent. The following year, in 2021–22, he earned four AHL games as a 20-year-old, but went pointless and was promptly sent back to juniors.

He’d end up struggling to improve upon his impressive D+1 season and posted an unspectacular 65 points in 54 games as an overager. Following his uninspiring season, the Flames opted not to retain his rights, and he re-entered the draft, where he wasn’t selected. He currently plays in the ECHL without an NHL contract.

174th overall – Rory Kerins

It’s been quite the ride for Rory Kerins, the Flames’ sixth-round pick in 2020. Once an afterthought from the 2020 draft, Kerins has gone from playing in the ECHL to being one of the Flames’ best centre prospects. Kerins’ rise was nothing short of stunning, going from 59 points in the OHL in his draft year to a whopping 118 in his D+1 season. It immediately put him on the map as a potential steal in the sixth round.

The following year, in his D+2 season, Kerins failed to make much of an impact in the AHL, eventually being demoted to the ECHL. Following a successful season in the ECHL, Kerins finally earned the call in the AHL for the 2023–24 season, posting 32 points in 54 games as a 21-year-old to once again gain attention among Flames prospects.

This past year, in his D+4 season, Kerins took a huge leap, scoring a team-leading 33 goals and 61 points for the Wranglers, even earning a five-game tryout in the NHL, during which he posted four assists. Unfortunately, he was never given another shot this past season, but he at the very least firmly placed himself as the next man up down the middle.

With an empty spot at 4C this coming season, Kerins looks to be the odds-on favourite to claim the role. If he can come into camp in September and look good, there’s a good chance he’s in the Flames’ opening night lineup. Even if he only becomes a fourth-line centre one day, that can be considered a big win for the Flames with a sixth-round pick.

205th overall – Ilya Solovyov

Considering he was an over-ager seventh-round selection, Ilya Solovyov has already vastly surpassed any expectations of him. A defensive specialist, Solovyov jumped from the OHL to the KHL in his D+1 season, a big move for a 19-year-old defenceman. All in all, Solovyov fared well in the KHL, playing 41 games in one of the world’s best pro leagues. The very next season in his D+2 season, Solovyov became a regular in the AHL, skating in 51 games.

Then, in 2022–23, he further established himself as a pro defenceman, skating in 68 games for the Wranglers and posting 18 points. The 2023–24 season saw Solovyov finally earn an NHL shot as a 23-year-old, skating in 10 games for the Flames as an injury replacement.

This past season was a bit of a letdown for Solovyov, who failed to make a good impression in training camp, despite some hope he’d earn a larger run in the NHL this year. He’d end up playing just five games for the Flames. The good news is he looked great in the AHL, posting a career-best 28 points in 59 games.

At this point, at 24 years old, Solovyov really needs to make his mark this coming season if he has any hope of becoming an NHLer one day. He has the tools to become a depth piece for the Flames, but he’ll need a real solid camp to earn a spot. If not, he could be on his way to a career in the AHL.