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The Calgary Flames have familiar problems already this season!

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The Calgary Flames have familiar problems already this season!

Originally posted on The Win Column | By Kate Jackson | Last updated Oct 16, 2026 11:41 AM ET

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Let’s not beat around the bush; the Flames have not started the season well. It’s been the expected start, but still not a poor one.

Six losses from seven see the Flames sit at the bottom of the NHL, although the Kings are winless this season (at the time of writing). The initial call-up of Aydar Suniev has proved a wise choice by Ryan Huska, but that’s the only bright spot so far, and it prompted the only win of the season so far.

Normally, I’d approach this with the “it’s still early in the season” mentality, but are there any positive signs for the rest of the season?

Upon looking at the stats, familiar patterns are starting to set in, and none of them are promising.

Coronato and Farabee lead the way with humble numbers

Matt Coronato finished the 2025–26 season as the Flames’ top points scorer. He scored a humble 45 points in 80 games and has started the season with a not-too-dissimilar hit rate. His two goals and two assists have him at four points overall. If he continues at that rate, he would achieve a forty-eight -point season.

Whilst an improvement, it’s only a modest gain, and still not a rate you’d want from your leading points scorer.

His underlying numbers are worrying this season, however. He already sits on a plus-minus of -9. He ended last season on -29, which “led” the team for players who were in Calgary for the entire season. His -9 is the second worst on the team right now, with only Zayne Parekh’s -10 being worse.

Joel Farabee is also on four points from seven games, all assists. If he also ended on the projected forty-eight points, that would be an improvement of ten points. Still modest, but heading in the right direction. His plus-minus is “only” -5.

Goaltenders having a terrible time

Neither Dustin Wolf nor Devin Cooley have enjoyed promising starts to the season.

Wolf’s numbers have been in decline for a few years, and after five starts, he sits on an 83.4% SV. His goals against also sits at 4.85.

Whilst it’s not surprising given the Flames have already been hit for six three times and seven once, neither of those numbers make for a positive reading. While it will likely average lower over the season, both are significantly higher than last year.

Last season, Wolf recorded an 89.9% SV and a GAA of 3.01.

Meanwhile, Devin Cooley has had a torrid time in his two games so far. He currently sits on an 81.8% SV and a 5.01 GAA. He proved himself a fantastic understudy last season, even eclipsing Wolf’s numbers.

Upcoming games give little hope for fantastic numbers

The Flames are a team in need of a confidence boost, but next up is the current Stanley Cup Champions, the Carolina Hurricanes. Second in the Central Division, the Minnesota Wild follow.

Following the Wild game, the Flames do face the Red Wings, currently bottom of the Atlantic (at the time of writing). This is realistically the Flames’ best chance of winning for a while, as following that are games against the Leafs and Oilers.

In fact, the Flames don’t play anyone with a relatively comparable record until November, when the Flyers head to Alberta. Philadelphia currently sit at nine straight defeats to start the season, although they do sit above Calgary thanks to three overtime loss points.

Buckle up, kids!

We all knew that this season would be difficult after all of the trades in recent years. The season has started exactly how most would have anticipated, and the numbers give little hope that that will improve any time soon.

This does open the door later in the season, however, for the prospects to be given a chance, because, at this point, what do we have to lose?

This article first appeared on The Win Column and was syndicated with permission.

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