The start of the 2023-24 NHL season is still a few months away and the Calgary Flames’ players are likely enjoying their time away from the spotlight. However, for fans and media, the offseason is the prime time to speculate. While the focus is usually on who may be traded and what for, this article will be an opportunity to appreciate what the Flames already have. After a promising 2022 offseason, a tumultuous campaign followed in which the team failed to make the playoffs and lost a franchise-record 17 games in either overtime or the shootout in addition to 13 losses by a single goal. Their 260 total goals-for in 2022-23 ranked 19th out of 32 clubs, and their 252 surrendered were 13th. The team recently shipped off winger Tyler Toffoli and there are trade rumours circling pending free agent forwards Elias Lindholm and Mikael Backlund.
Related: 6 Eye-Opening Stats From the Calgary Flames’ 2022-23 Season
It is clear that the Flames need a difference-maker or two. They still employ some quality players and are surely hoping for bounce-back seasons from Jonathan Huberdeau, Jacob Markstrom, and Andrew Mangiapane, among others. Unless a big name comes back in a trade, the current roster is looking like it will remain mostly unchanged heading into training camp.
Despite there being some solid players still available via free agency, the Flames are approximately $213,333 over the cap according to CapFriendly. The player(s) that move(s) the needle may need to come from within. Luckily they have some very talented young men that will be looking to make the roster for the first time or full-time in 2023-24, and they could be exactly what this team needs. Here are three rookies that have the best potential to impact the team this upcoming season.
Jakob Pelletier, Forward
Starting off, we have immensely skilled French-Canadian forward Jakob Pelletier. He was the Flames’ first-round pick back in 2019, selected 26th overall. Now, we know what you’re thinking, he’s not a rookie, he played 24 NHL games last season, and you’re half right. He did play 24 games but according to NHL rules, 25 or more games in a preceding season is what disqualifies a player from being deemed a rookie. So Pelletier, therefore, is as experienced an NHL rookie as possible. He also happens to be quite established at the American Hockey League (AHL) level with 99 points in 101 games. In his 24 NHL games, the 22-year-old didn’t light it up by any means with just three goals and four assists, but he showcased a lot of his intangibles and offered a great deal of promise.
Pelletier was drafted in the first round due to his playmaking and offensive creativity. This is an area he seemingly wasn’t given very much leeway in with former head coach Darryl Sutter and his staff, who prioritized shot volume and maintaining puck possession over taking risks in order to generate high-danger scoring chances. Sutter also only played Pelletier 14:11 a night, and the two men reportedly didn’t get along. Even so, Pelletier responded with 48 shots on goal and a dominant 61.7 Corsi For percentage.
With a new coaching staff that includes offensive specialist Marc Savard, Pelletier could take his game to another level. Savard got the St. Louis Blues’ power play from 30th in the league to third in three years (2017-2020), which is an area Pelletier thrives. Three of his seven points came on the man advantage and 12 of his shots on goal. His 6.3 shooting percentage should likely go up as well. Look for him to have a prominent role on both the power play and in the top nine in 2023-24.
Matthew Coronato, Forward
Next is the Flames’ 2021 first-rounder, Matthew Coronato. The team scooped him up at 13th overall after a standout career in the United States Hockey League. The 20-year-old American had committed to Harvard University beforehand and played the next two years with the Crimson. During that time he tallied an impressive 72 points in 68 games, was named to the All-Rookie and Second All-American teams, and won an ECAC championship. Instead of continuing his college career, Coronato decided to turn pro and signed his entry-level contract with the Flames this March. He got to make his NHL debut in the season finale against the San Jose Sharks where he went scoreless with four shots and a plus-1 rating in 14:38 of ice time. Most recently he suited up for Team USA at the World Championship and scored eight points in ten games as his squad came in fourth place.
Much like with Pelletier, Coronato may find himself thrust into more of a notable role should Lindholm and/or Backlund get traded. He is a legit goal-scoring threat whenever he is on the ice and has underrated puck distribution skills to boot. Being that he can comfortably play either centre or wing, he is decidedly more valuable. For what it’s worth, he is also one of just three forwards (Lindholm and Walker Duehr being the others) currently on the active roster that shoot right-handed.
Coronato spent a great deal of time at Harvard and in junior playing on the power play as well as the penalty kill and performed well in both situations. While playing big minutes in the AHL may be better for his development, his offensive prowess and versatility may prove too valuable for the Flames to stash away. Ideally, he finds an NHL home in the middle six and perhaps some time on special teams this season.
Dustin Wolf, Goaltender
That’s right, I think 2023-24 will be Dustin Wolf‘s NHL coming-out party. Undoubtedly the current best goalie not in the NHL, the 2019 seventh-round draft pick of the Flames has just come off of another dominant AHL season with the Calgary Wranglers. He went 42-10-2 and captured league MVP and his second consecutive Goaltender of the Year award after leading the entire league in wins, shutouts, goals-against average (GAA), and save percentage (SV%). This came after his first pro season in which he was 33-9-4 and was selected for both the First All-Star and All-Rookie Teams. Just a couple of days ago he was named this year’s recipient of the AHL President’s Award for player excellence. As with Coronato, he got to make his NHL debut in the season finale against the Sharks and stopped 22 of 23 shots in a 3-1 victory for the Flames.
Despite the Flames already employing two capable NHL netminders in Jacob Markstrom and Dan Vladar, that tandem struggled profoundly in 2022-23. The two men will take up a total of $8.2 million of the team’s cap space this season and combined to author a dismal .893 SV% and a 2.90 GAA last season. That simply won’t cut it in today’s NHL. Couple that with having a potential star in the waiting and the Flames may be forced to move on from one of them.
Wolf will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season and would probably like to either be in the NHL or have a clear path to get to it before signing his name on the dotted line with the Flames. Hopefully either one of Markstrom or Vladar is traded or the Flames roll with three goalies on the roster, something that is awkward but has been done by plenty of teams before. Wolf is simply too proficient to remain in the AHL and the Flames would be wise to give him an extended run this upcoming season.
To sum it all up, I believe that the three young men listed would provide the Flames lineup with more benefits than drawbacks. Two have already proven themselves as competent professional hockey players and the other is not far behind. The Flames are cash-strapped and entry-level contracts can provide great bang for one’s buck, and the team has organizational needs after a disappointing 2022-23 season. They need more goals and more saves this season, something that these three rookies can most definitely provide.