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Dustin Wolf, Calgary Flames (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

Flames Taking a Massive Risk on Dustin Wolf Extension

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Rupert McDonald | Last updated Sep 9, 2025 2:25 PM ET

The Calgary Flames have locked up Dustin Wolf long term as it was announced on Tuesday morning that the two sides have agreed to a seven-year, $52.5 million extension. The contract, which will kick in come the 2026-27 season, will see the young netminder carry a cap hit of $7.5 million.

The contract shows some big-time faith in Wolf, who is set to enter just his second full NHL season. The 24-year-old burst onto the scene in his rookie campaign, posting a 2.64 goals against average (GAA) along with a .910 save percentage (SV%) in 53 appearances. While there’s no denying his 2024-25 season was extremely impressive, this is still a massive risk on behalf of the Flames.

Wolf’s Contract is Unprecedented

Prior to the 2024-25 season, Wolf had logged just 18 NHL games, having spent the vast majority of his first three professional seasons in the American Hockey League. He’s still very inexperienced at the NHL level, having appeared in just 71 career games to date.

His lack of experience makes this an unprecedented contract, as it’s the largest contract given to a goalie in NHL history with his number of games played. Clearly, the Flames believe his rookie season was just the beginning of what’s to come, but that doesn’t change the fact that there is plenty of risk involved.

As we’ve seen in the NHL, especially in more recent years, goalies are extremely hard to predict. Aside from the truly elite names such as Andrei Vasilevskiy, Igor Shesterkin, and Connor Hellebuyck, many netminders have put together incredible seasons only to drop off dramatically the following campaign. Take Sergei Bobrovsky, for example, who has reclaimed his status as one of the NHL’s best goalies but just a few years ago was considered to have one of the worst contracts in the league.

Wolf Better Known Around the NHL

While many will argue that Wolf is set to continue on his upward trajectory, you can’t hide the fact he wasn’t very well known by opposing teams coaching staffs and players. After all, he was a young rookie goalie who had fallen all the way to the seventh round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Seemingly nobody aside from his biggest supporters ever envisioned him getting to the point he has.

What will be interesting to monitor this season is whether or not Wolf hits a sophomore slump. Other team’s top shooters now have a better scouting report on him, and may be able to pick up on certain deficiencies in his game that weren’t picked up on by players or fans throughout his rookie season.

While a sophomore slump wouldn’t be of grave concern given that many NHLers go through it, it could suggest that teams have figured out ways to expose Wolf, whether it be for his small stature or otherwise. Of course, a big dip in play could also affect his mental game moving forward, which we’ve certainly seen from other goalies in the past.

To Wolf’s credit, the Flames organization and management group are very smart individuals, and have certainly calculated these risks on their own time. Based on this long-term extension, it’s clear they truly believe his rookie season was no fluke, and expect him to only get better as time passes.

On the opposite side of things, it’s also possible that Wolf does continue to grow to the point where this extension looks like a true bargain in the coming years. That certainly played a part in the Flames going long term, as another strong season like we saw from him in 2024-25 would have increased his price tag dramatically. Either way you look at it, it’s a big risk for general manager Craig Conroy to take, and could be one that defines his legacy in Calgary for better or worse.