The Calgary Flames‘ impressive 2024-25 season seems to be a fluke more than a sign of things to come in the eyes of many. Despite bringing back essentially the exact same roster as the team that missed the playoffs by a single point a season ago, the Flames are once again not expected to have much success in 2025-26.
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This is by no means unfamiliar territory for the Flames, who were expected to be an NHL Draft Lottery team heading into the 2024-25 season. Instead, they battled extremely hard under head coach Ryan Huska on a nightly basis, and despite not scoring many goals, were able to prevent many from going in their own net. They should be a very resilient bunch once again in 2025-26, though many don’t believe they will be in the playoff race as they were last season.
The Athletic Projects Flames Near Bottom of Standings
One particular outlet not giving the Flames a lot of love is The Athletic. In fact, they aren’t giving them any sort of love at all. In a new series in which they did projections for all 32 NHL clubs, the outlook they gave on the Flames caught some eyebrows. After finishing 15th in league standings with a 41-27-14 record for 96 points, The Athletic has them projected to finish 24th in the 2025-26 standings with just 80 points. (from’ Dom Luszczyszyn, Sean Gentille and Shayna Goldman: Calgary Flames 2025-26 season preview: Playoff chances, projected points, roster rankings,’ The Athletic 09/23/25).
“The Flames probably aren’t a true talent 96-point team based on their roster. Hell, they weren’t even that based on their minus-13 goal differential, benefitting from a strong record in one-goal games,” Dom Luszczyszyn, Sean Gentille and Shayna Goldman wrote. “What’s probably closer to reality is last season’s expectations: around 80 points. It’s a season of semi-competitive hockey that likely nets a high draft pick at the end of it.”
The high draft pick note at the end is something that will excite some of the fan base. There are many out there who would prefer to see the Flames tank this season, believing they don’t have enough high-end talent on their roster – particularly up front – to ensure long-term success. The three columnists appear to agree with that sentiment, pointing out that a 16-point drop in the standings wouldn’t mean things are going awry in Calgary.
“Another playoff push won’t define whether the Flames’ season is a success; this is a retooling club, after all. Instead, the focus has to be on Calgary’s up-and-coming talent taking the next steps — whether those players gain seasoning in meaningful games, or in a year that lands the team a top pick.”
Flames Will Be Better Than Projected
Based simply on statistics of last season, you can understand why many would be hesitant about the Flames heading into this season. Their lack of goals was a major point of concern, as they finished the season with only two players posting north of 60 points (Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri.)
While Huberdeau is a bit of a wild card, however, it should be expected that Kadri is very effective once again in 2025-26. Fans should also expect continued growth from the likes of Matt Coronato and Connor Zary, who should be able to increase their production further and help better support the overall offence going forward.
Meanwhile, the back end, lead by MacKenzie Weegar, is slowly falling into place. Kevin Bahl proved to be a great fit and is expected to remain rock steady. Rasmus Andersson should be expected to have a bounce-back season for however long he remains a Flame, and Zayne Parekh, who by all accounts is NHL ready, should be able to make a positive impact even if there are some growing pains along the way.
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The biggest reason the Flames should be able to play at a similar — if not better — pace than last season is because of goaltending. Dustin Wolf proved he is the real deal, and should be able to continue to improve as he’s done at every level throughout his playing career. Should he do so, the Flames will not only surpass The Athletic’s projection, but could very well get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2021-22.
