Nemec & Bahl Emerging as Reliable Top Pairing For Flames

The Calgary Flames marked their fourth straight victory and their fifth in six games after a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night. After the game, head coach Ryan Huska offered glowing remarks about several of his players and their play during this stretch.

Most notably, Huska was asked about Šimon Nemec and how he has fared in tough matchups against superstars like Auston Matthews and Kirill Kaprizov. “I think he’s done a really good job over the last little while, since we put that pair together with Kevin Bahl. They’ve been a really good shutdown pair for us,” he said.

“I think he’s another younger guy that’s learning time and place, as to when he can get involved offensively, and now he’s doing a better job of that,” Huska continued. “So he’s not putting himself in situations where he has to defend too much. His play keeps getting better and better,” which has been a big driver behind the team’s turnaround.

Flames’ Effort to Rebuild the Blue Line

Management has mainly focused on building their blue line for the future over the last few seasons. It started by drafting Zayne Parekh ninth overall in 2024, then Carson Carels sixth overall in 2026. Most recently, the riskiest swing was general manager Craig Conroy sending a package that included two first-round picks, a second-round pick, and defenseman prospect Etienne Morin to the New Jersey Devils for 22-year-old defenseman Simon Nemec, then signing him to a five-year contract worth $7.25 million average annual value.

It was a bold move for a somewhat unproven NHL defenseman, at least for that price tag. At the time, the move was met with some criticism; however, since he hit the ice in Stampede City, it’s clear why Conroy was willing to make such a big bet. Alongside Bahl, they have the potential to become a top pairing the Flames can build around for seasons to come.

Nemec Thriving in Opportunity With Flames

Nemec is the type of blueliner that needs opportunity to thrive. As Huska alluded to in his postgame interview after Monday’s contest, early in the Flames’ five-game losing streak to start the season, Nemec tried to force things. That likely contributed to his 22.22% on-ice goal share at five-on-five over that stretch, even though the Flames got 58.20% of expected goals with Nemec on the ice throughout the losing streak (via Natural Stat Trick).

Despite this, his potential was obvious; he was helping make things happen, but he was doing it in a way that created chaos. Huska hit the nail on the head with his “time and place” improvement comment. Through the first five games, opponents were averaging a combined 140.35 shot attempts per 60 minutes when Nemec was on the ice, nearly 30 attempts above the league average of 112 per 60 minutes this season.  

Over the last six, that number has dropped to 107.34 per 60 minutes while maintaining the other underlying percentages that have led to the second-best expected goal share among Flames defensemen at five-on-five, behind only his partner on the blue line.

This has created a much more stable environment when he’s on the ice, and it’s shown in his on-ice jumping to 50.00% in some very tough matchups during Calgary’s hot streak. It’s also allowed Huska to trust him in all situations, playing more than 21 minutes in four straight games, a number he only reached three times in the Flames’ first six contests.

Fit With Bahl Shouldn’t Come as a Shock

Of course, when the deal happened, the fit was clear: Bahl’s strengths in retrieving pucks and battling on the boards complement Nemec’s puck-moving and transition play. It wasn’t hard to see that these two would make a solid pairing. But looking further, the blueprint was already there when the two were teammates on the Devils in 2023-24 and played 198 minutes together to a 53.39% expected goals percentage.

Both players now have more experience, and they’re replicating and improving on that success in a tougher environment, posting a 61.74% expected goals percentage as a pairing in 130 minutes together at five-on-five this season, ranked 13th in the league among the 69 pairings to play 80 minutes or more together at five-on-five.

Seeing this, along with Parekh having much more of an impact this season, especially on the power play, while also accounting for Carson Carels having a great start to his freshman season in the NCAA with four assists in six games for the University of North Dakota, there is a real belief that this is a group of defensemen who will be able to lead a Stanley Cup contender a few seasons down the line.

We’ll see if Nemec and Bahl can keep showing elite top-pairing potential as the Flames head to Edmonton to square off against Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl’s Oilers on Wednesday night.