With a little luck, the Calgary Flames should be a playoff team in 2025-26

The Calgary Flames ended last season inches away from the playoffs and gon into next season in a very similar position. The team has made remarkably few moves, and except for the impending trade of Rasmus Andersson, appears ready to start the season nearly the same as it ended last season.

However, what they do have is one more year of age and experience in their young players, a couple of new faces pushing for minutes in the big club, and a very good chance of being back in the playoffs next season.

Who are the Calgary Flames losing and adding next season?

Going into next season, the Flames will be without Kevin Rooney and Anthony Mantha, but having lost the latter for most of the season, it’s largely a wash. On the blueline, the Flames will likely lose Andersson before the start of the year, but the other losses are depth players like Tyson Barrie.

The big loss is in the net, with Dan Vladar off to the Philadelphia Flyers. However, the Flames added Ivan Prosvetov in net to support Dustin Wolf. They also have Arseni Sergeev, Owen Say, and Devin Cooley should the Russian netminder not be up to par.

What the Flames are adding is Zayne Parekh up front. The dynamic defencemen comes to the Flames after putting up 107 points in the OHL, the most by a blueliner in more than 30 years. He should slot in on the blueline, and in a perfect world, be in contention for the Calder Trophy next season. If he can find his feet at the NHL level next season, it is an enormous step forward for the entire organization.

Aside from Parekh, the Flames have a number of bodies pushing for NHL jobs this season. Up front, Rory Kerins, Matvei Gridin, and William Stromgren highlight the list of players who could earn NHL jobs. On the blueline, Hunter Brzustewicz is probably the most exciting name on the list. The team also has Yan Kuznetsov, Jeremie Poirier, and Ilya Solovyov, who will all be pushing hard for minutes this season.

All of these players will come into camp hungry for minutes, knowing that there are jobs to be had and careers to be made. Expect them to be difference-makers in the limited minutes they get off the bat. If even one or two can stick on top of Parekh, the Flames have a boost of energy down the lineup.

What the team also has is a year of growth from their young NHLers, including Wolf, Connor Zary, and Matt Coronato. All three will be a year older, a year more experienced, and looking to take a step forward in their careers. Wolf, in particular, is entering a contract year, and he will be looking to show that he can be the starting goalie for this club for the next generation. Expect a big year from him.

With the older players, you had scoring from up and down the roster, but relatively slow years from the top guys. Nazem Kadri saw his point total dip to 67, down from 75 the year prior. Jonathan Huberdeau meanwhile, saw his numbers turn up a touch to 62 from 52 the year previous, but a far cry from his 115 point campaign in 2021-22. If either can increase their numbers this season, it’s a win for this team.

The one player who had a very down year last year was Yegor Sharangovich, who looked downright abysmal for stretches of the season. He had just 32 points, down from 59 two seasons back. Expect him to bounce back this coming year as well.

Could the Calgary Flames be playoff-bound in 2025-26?

The good news with this team is that even with down years from many players and the team taking a big step back collectively, they still somehow managed to sneak their way into the playoffs. Statistics would suggest that this team is better than it looked last year, and with a few new additions, particularly with younger players looking to jump up into the lineup, this team could be a playoff team next year.

This team is far from unbeatable, and will need some more tuning to be a real competitor in the Western Conference, but with several weak teams, including the Vancouver Canucks, Utah Mammoth, Anaheim Ducks, and San Jose Sharks, there is plenty of opportunity for the Flames to slide into one of the three Pacific Division spots.

Even if they get beaten in the first round of the playoffs, getting the team’s young guys playoff experience in the NHL matters. None of the team’s young players have had NHL playoff experience yet, and it is time they get some. The game is so different in the post-season that getting guys like Zary and Coronato out in the speed and muck of the playoffs will only do good for their development.

Here’s hoping for a big year from the boys in red.