The Calgary Flames wanted progress this season. What they’ve shown is uncertainty.
Calgary enters the week sitting tied for last in the NHL standings and the frustration is mounting. At 1.67 goals-per-game, the offence is stagnant, and the defensive structure is unraveling.
Now the whispers around the team have already shifted toward the long game — or more precisely, the 2026 NHL Draft and expected first-overall pick, Gavin McKenna. The potential of adding a franchise-changing forward is tempting, but – hypothetically speaking – what kind of environment would he be walking into?
That’s the real question for Calgary.
General Manager Craig Conroy made his intentions clear last season: this organization isn’t about shortcuts. It’s about competing, developing, and sustaining a culture that hates to lose. Tanking, at least philosophically, isn’t part of the plan. But with a 1-5-0 start and a minus-15 goal differential, the Flames look far from the kind of team that embodies that mindset.
Saturday’s 6–1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights was the latest example of their problems. Vegas dictated the pace, picked apart the Flames’ defensive coverage, and exposed just how disorganized Calgary has been in its own zone. Odd-man rushes, missed assignments, and poor coverage around the crease continue to hang goaltender Dustin Wolf out to dry.
Wolf, fresh off signing a seven-year deal, hasn’t been perfect — but the defensive breakdowns in front of him have made it nearly impossible to evaluate his play. For a goaltender expected to anchor the next era of Flames hockey, the lack of structure around him is concerning.
The path forward is murky. Calgary needs defensive stability, but trading a top-pair blueliner like Rasmus Andersson (as rumoured in the offseason) seems almost counterintuitive. Veterans such as Nazem Kadri or Blake Coleman could bring value back, but both are key dressing-room voices on a team already light on identity.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s been the effort from the fourth line— particularly Ryan Lomberg and Adam Klapka. Lomberg’s energy and willingness to step up physically, including his fight with Colton Sissons in response to an earlier hit on rookie Zayne Parekh, injected some spark. Klapka’s forechecking, fighting and physical presence have followed suit. However, when your fourth line is your best line, it’s a symptom of a bigger problem.
The schedule doesn’t get easier — two games against Winnipeg and a visit to Montreal loom. While it’s far too early for Conroy to make panic moves, the questions are starting to pile up faster than the answers.
If the Flames truly want to build a culture around competitiveness, it has to start showing up in the results. As tempting as the McKenna sweepstakes might be, culture and complacency don’t coexist — and right now, Calgary is teetering dangerously close to the wrong side of that equation.
