Flames prospect Aydar Suniev is back and ready to make the most of his sophomore season

At the beginning of the 2024-25 season FlamesNation contributors came together and ranked the top 20 prospects in the Flames pipeline. Aydar Suniev landed at 12th on that list, a slight increase from his rank of 13th the year before. Suniev was drafted in the third round of the 2023 NHL Draft, 80th overall.

As was noted in his first prospect profile Suniev has had a unique path to being drafted by the Flames. The Russian-born winger would play in North America from a young age and as a junior in the BCHL. It was from the Penticton Vees of the BCHL he was drafted to the Calgary Flames. Following his standout years as a junior he would commit to the University of Massachusetts and join their Minutemen.

Last season

The 2023-2024 season saw the Minutemen as an early out in the NCAA tournament. Suniev managed 25 points (12 goals, 13 assists) on the season with 36 games played. The team floated around a #12-to-#16 ranking in the NCAA for most of the season and while they showed they had the tools for success they are not a dominant force in college hockey.

Suniev’s story was more positive than the team as a whole. He would become one of UMass’ top threats on the ice and tied for the team lead in goal scoring.

This season

Suniev’s sophomore season has seen him step forward in his scoring prowess. Despite missing the last month due to injury and playing five fewer games Suniev is third in scoring on UMass and is above a point-per-game pace. Spending time on the first and second lines he has slotted predominantly on his natural left side but since returning from injury has played on the right.

The Minutmen’s top scorer Cole O’Hara (a fourth-round pick of the Nashville Predators) has usurped Suniev as a top line winger as of late, however, he has only just made his way back from the injury. Suniev and O’Hara share the team honour of Hobey Baker long list nominees. Unfortunately for Suniev this news coincided with his injury and it remains to be seen if he can make enough noise to outshine his teammate before the voting round stops and the list is cut down to a top ten.

Despite his injury, Suniev is having a fantastic season for UMass and is doing what prospects are supposed to do: improve. Due to his absence of late it remains to be seen what Suniev can make of the remainder of his second season in the NCAA as he awaits the big club to come knocking for entry-level contract talks.

There is ability in Suniev that certainly outpaces the expectations of his draft position. The Flames have stocked their cupboards with many offensively gifted players in the last few years and if Suniev is brought into the professional leagues he will get that positive pressure to continue growing. Another upside will be playing with other prospects that match his skill level on a more consistent basis. This team has shown the patience to incubate talent before and Suniev is poised to join the Calgary Wranglers sooner rather than later.