Calgary Flames recall 2020 first-rounder Connor Zary from AHL’s Wranglers

In the aftermath of the Heritage Classic, the Calgary Flames have made a roster move. The club has announced the recall of 2020 first-round selection Connor Zary from the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers.

Zary, who’s played primarily as a left-winger this season on the Wranglers’ top line, has one goal and 10 points in six games for them so far this season. He’s three points off the AHL scoring lead and tied with Springfield’s Nathan Walker for seventh in AHL scoring. (There’s a lot of guys clustered at the top of that list.) It’s his first-ever NHL recall.

The 22-year-old Zary was selected 24th overall by the Flames in 2020’s NHL Draft and he’s been a really reliable player for their AHL club for the past few seasons. He’s got this season and next season remaining on his entry-level deal and he’s shown some nice progress in the AHL. He can play centre or the wing, and he boasts a skill-set that allows him to do a lot of things in a lot of game situations.

With this recall, the Flames have essentially replaced Ilya Solovyov on the 23-man roster with Zary. They’re now carrying 23 players: two goaltenders, seven defencemen and 14 forwards. We’ll see where he slots into the Flames’ lineup at Tuesday’s practice.