After almost 60 games, the Calgary Flames currently find themselves nipping at the heels of the last wildcard playoff spot in the Western Conference. However, the franchise is also in an uncommon position; they are in a transitional period where multiple big names are being traded away for assets, but a core of veteran players remain. Rookie general manager Craig Conroy labelled it as a “retool on the fly”, and Flames and media alike have embraced this pathway. The team started last offseason with six impactful unrestricted free agents (UFAs) on the roster: Tyler Toffoli, Mikael Backlund, Nikita Zadorov, Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, and Noah Hanifin. Since then, the team has re-signed Backlund and traded Toffoli, Zadorov, Lindholm, and Tanev, with Hanifin likely slated to follow in their footsteps.
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After those aforementioned trades, the Flames have nine potential selections in the upcoming 2024 NHL Entry Draft. The word “potential” is used because a few of the Flames’ 2024 draft picks have conditions placed on them. Those of note: a fourth-rounder from the Vancouver Canucks will turn into a third if they make the conference finals, and the Montreal Canadiens will get the Flames’ first-round choice this year if it falls between picks 20-32 from the Sean Monahan trade. With the Flames slated to most likely finish in the 10-18th area, this shouldn’t be a worry. Any future trade involving Hanifin should also involve at least one first-round selection in return, so the Flames have a big draft ahead of them with three possible first-round picks. Let’s have a look at the last time the Flames had a big draft, as well as their should-be goals going into the 2024 event.
2013 NHL Entry Draft
To analyze the last time the Flames had multiple first-round picks, we must travel back over ten years ago to 2013. In fact, it is the only time in Flames franchise history that the team made multiple selections in round one. The team was in a much tougher spot then as they had just finished third-last in the west and hadn’t made the NHL playoffs since the 2008-09 season. No pressure. That year, management walked up to the stage for picks six (their own selection), 22, and 28. So the big question is, who did they choose? At six, their first top-ten choice since 2003 (Dion Phaneuf), the team picked Monahan, who would go on to score 212 goals and 462 points in 656 games played. These figures rank him seventh, 11th, and ninth in franchise history, respectively.
The other two young men the Flames selected in the first round that year were Emile Poirier and Morgan Klimchuk. The 22nd pick that was used on Poirier was acquired via the St. Louis Blues, with top defender Jay Bouwmeester going the other way. Klimchuk’s first was gained in one of the worst trades in franchise history: the Jarome Iginla trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins. In return, Klimchuk and Poirier combined to produce zero goals and one assist in nine total games, a stark contrast to what the organization got out of Monahan. In essence, the Flames traded away Iginla and Bouwmeester for nothing. Needless to say, the franchise can’t afford for this situation to repeat itself in the 2024 draft, and the sizeable trades this season cannot be wasted.
Realistic Goals for 2024
With that last draft mismanagement firmly in the rearview mirror, now is the time to look ahead. The Flames must utilize their new-look scouting department and try to hit on all or most of their high picks this year. With the success this year of the Canucks, one can assume their first will likely fall in the 28-32 range. Let’s also say Hanifin gets traded before the deadline for a package including a 2024 first. With a multitude of teams interested and endless mock proposals, it’d be hard to pinpoint a number range for this pick, but one could assume it would fall outside of the top 20. Drafting is not a complete science; for example, in the last seven drafts, only nine of 35 total picks have suited up in at least one or more contests for the Flames (26%). However, they have done well in the last few first rounds with players like Sam Honzek (16th overall, 2023), Matt Coronato (13th overall, 2021), Connor Zary (24th overall, 2020) and Jakob Pelletier (26th overall, 2019) taken off the board.
With almost all of those recent first-rounders and other top prospects now in the NHL or close to it, the Flames’ prospect cupboard is looking thinner. The recent acquisitions of Hunter Brzustewicz and Artem Grushnikov certainly help on the backend. But with older defense prospects like Jérémie Poirier, Ilya Solovyov, and Yan Kuznetsov potentially moving up, another blue liner could be drafted high. The area of focus should be impact forwards; high-ceiling players like Tij Iginla (son of Jarome), Berkly Catton Liam Greentree, Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, and Calgary’s own Andrew Basha could potentially be had with the Flames’ picks. The Flames are particularly short at the center and right-wing positions and should target players who excel in those roles.
In conclusion, The Flames can’t mess this one up. Who knows what the franchise would be in had all three of the 2013 first-round picks been hits? Especially with cap flexibility issues and lengthy, expensive contracts on the books, more emphasis will now be put on finding cheap talent and getting impact players on entry-level contracts. Conroy and Co. have their work cut out for them and need to put the earned trade assets to good use.