Another day, another loss for the Calgary Flames. While there have been some good efforts in some losses we’ve seen this season, Friday’s game was not that. They were completely outclassed by a Chicago Blackhawks team that, while taking steps in the right direction, are far from the contender they looked in Friday’s 4-0 victory.
There wasn’t much of anything to like from the Flames in this one. They gave up plenty of high-danger scoring opportunities, particularly in the third period, and weren’t able to generate much of any offence throughout. With the loss, they now sit at a disappointing 4-10-2 on the season. With that said, here are the three main takeaways from this one.
Flames Were a Mess Defensively
From a defensive standpoint, the Flames were OK through the first 40 minutes versus the Blackhawks. That was a completely different story in the third period. They gave up odd-man rush after odd-man rush, and the Blackhawks made them pay, scoring three in the final 20 minutes to walk away with their 4-0 victory.
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“I don’t know why we thought we were down four goals going into the third period,” MacKenzie Weegar told reporters postgame. “We just lacked our structure. The first one, kick in, the second one, two-on-one, third one, three-on-one, fourth one [was a] turnover. And we didn’t score any. That’s what I saw.”
While a lack of goals was expected with this Flames team heading into the season, the poor play defensively was not given how well this team played in front of Dustin Wolf in 2024-25. While there is still time to turn that side of their game around, it’s concerning that they’ve struggled so much defensively through the first 16 games of the season.
Parekh Leaves Game with Injury
Zayne Parekh has been no stranger to strong checks in his rookie season, and that was the case once again in this one. The 19-year-old was rocked by Nick Foligno early in the second period on a hit he didn’t properly brace himself for. He wound up leaving the game and did not return.
“He’s going to miss a little bit of time,” Huska said to reporters. “I don’t know the extent of it yet. We’ll find out more tomorrow.”
Based on Huska’s comments, it sounds at the very least as though Parekh won’t be suiting up for Sunday’s game versus the Minnesota Wild. It continues what has been a disappointing rookie season to this point for Parekh, as he’s managed just one assist through his first 11 games.
This Season Will Be a Long One
If it wasn’t already abundantly clear, the 2025-26 season appears as though it’s going to be a long and gruelling one for Flames fans. While the fan base grew to love this hard-working group a season ago, they’ve come back down to life and aren’t showing any signs of turning things around.
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Playoffs are seemingly out of question at this point, as this team lacks the star power to be able to get themselves out of the mess they’ve put themselves in. While fans should hope to see better efforts going forward, at this point it appears as though finishing low in the standings and landing a high pick at the 2026 draft may be exactly what this organization needs to turn things around in future years.
Looking Ahead for the Flames
As mentioned, the Flames will be on the road on Sunday to face the Wild in their final game of the week. They will remain on the road for a game versus the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday, before heading back to Calgary for games on Wednesday and Friday night versus the San Jose Sharks and Winnipeg Jets.
