Flames roster news: Zayne Parekh’s impending return and other notes

As the Calgary Flames prepare to kick off a three game home stand to close out their schedule prior to the 2026 Winter Olympics, and a three week break between games, there are a few bits of roster-related news that merit discussion.

Let’s dive in!

Zayne Parekh

Good news, everybody! Zayne Parekh is on his way back to the NHL!

The Flames’ ninth overall selection in 2024 concluded his two week conditioning stint with the American Hockey League’s Calgary in Friday’s game against the San Jose Barracuda. While he was with the Wranglers on the conditioning stint he still counted against the active roster and the salary cap, so the Flames don’t need to do anything else to accommodate his return.

Parekh can only be in the NHL from now until the end of the season:

• He can’t go back to the AHL because (a) under the terms of the NHL-CHL Transfer Agreement he’s ineligible to play in the AHL on a regular assignment until his 20-year-old season and (b) under the AHL’s roster rules, players need to be on the AHL roster as of the NHL trade deadline to be eligible for subsequent assignment from the NHL to avoid NHL clubs flooding the AHL with, well, waiver-exempt NHLers for the playoffs. (As a 19-year-old who’s otherwise not eligible to be in the AHL, he’s also limited to a single conditioning stint this season.)
• He can’t be assigned to the OHL because the roster deadline was back on Jan. 10.

As noted frequently by our pal Pat Steinberg on Flames Talk on Sportsnet 960 The Fan, as well as Sportsnet’s Eric Francis, the game plan is for Parekh to spend the Olympic break in the gym and to be a regular part of the Flames’ lineup down the stretch. Parekh last played in the NHL back on Nov. 7 when he was injured against Chicago. Since then, he helped Canada win a bronze medal at the World Juniors and set the record for goals and points by a Canadian blueliner at a single tournament.

With Parekh returning to the big club, the active roster looks like this:

• 2 goaltenders: Dustin Wolf & Devin Cooley
• 8 defencemen: Kevin Bahl, Zach Whitecloud, Yan Kuznetsov, MacKenzie Weegar, Joel Hanley, Hunter Brzustewicz, Brayden Pachal & Zayne Parekh
• 13 forwards: Connor Zary, Nazem Kadri, Martin Pospisil, Yegor Sharangovich, Mikael Backlund, Matt Coronato, Jonathan Huberdeau, Morgan Frost, Matvei Gridin, Ryan Lomberg, Justin Kirkland, Joel Farabee & Adam Klapka

Likely Olympic break assignments

The Olympic roster freeze begins at 1 p.m. MT on Wednesday, seven hours before the Flames host the Edmonton Oilers.

As previously noted, Matvei Gridin is eligible for an AHL assignment during the break no matter what – even if he plays all three remaining games. If Hunter Brzustewicz is scratched in one of the final three games, he’ll be eligible, too.

Our expectation is that both Gridin and Brzustewicz will head to join the Wranglers after Wednesday’s game. The Wranglers play four times before NHL teams are allowed to start practising again on Feb. 17 (and eight times before the Flames return to game action in San Jose on Feb. 26).

Injury snapshots

Finally, two injured Flames forwards may be set for returns following the Olympic break. Blake Coleman (in a no-contact jersey) and John Beecher (in a regular jersey) were skating with the main group here and there prior to the Flames’ road trip to Minnesota.

Speaking to the media over the last little bit, Coleman has been shut down until after the Olympic break, while Beecher is building towards a return after the Olympic break. Should one, or both, of these gentlemen be ready for a return, the Flames would need to have a roster spot available – which could impact the returns to the NHL after the break for Gridin and/or Brzustewicz.

Jake Bean and Sam Honzek both remain on the injury reserve list, are both out indefinitely, and both are unlikely to return this season. (A disclaimer: the team has not declared either of them out for the season, mind you, but the stated timelines for their injuries would likely surpass the end of April.)