Five Chances to See Prospects on TV This Week

 

 

Folks, the last six weeks have been a dry, hockey-less desert the likes of which we haven’t seen in years. Flames fans have been reduced to watching such weird sports as baseball and golf instead of being able to turn on our televisions and view hockey games.

No more. There are five chances for you to watch hockey featuring Flames prospects on your television without having to learn Russian or anything like that:

Start your week off with some hot-shot junior hockey. Quebec’s up first in the Super Series, tangling with the hated Team Russia. Russia has Nail Yakupov, so Flames fans can get accustomed to booing him early. In addition, Calgary draft pick Ryan Culkin is patrolling the QMJHL blueline in both games. He’ll be easily identifiable by the number 7 on his jersey, as well as the fact that he’s one of the better offensive defenders in the Quebec league.

Wednesday, November 7: Edmonton Oil Kings vs. Kelowna Rockets (Shaw TV; 8:05pm MT)

The Flames have Edmonton’s star goalie Laurent Brossoit in the fold. Sure, he hasn’t put up stellar numbers so far this year, but he was the playoff MVP last year. In addition, use this game to scout defender Madison Bowey from Kelowna, who’s expected to go quite high in this year’s draft. Maybe not in the first round, but he’s an offensive threat for the Rockets.

Friday, November 9: Vancouver Giants vs. Portland Winterhawks (Shaw TV; 8:30pm MT)

This will be fun, but in a morbid way. The Giants are a bad, bad team (with a 5-12-0 record right now). Calgary prospect Brett Kulak plays for the Giants and has been quite good this year (aside from his -5 rating). Portland, on the other hand, is a very good team (with a 12-3-1 record). They boast the likes of Flames pick Tyler Wotherspoon as well as hot-shot 2013 NHL Draft hopefuls Seth Jones, Oliver Bjorkstrand and Nic Petan. This one could get as out of hand as a Harlem Globetrotters game, but it will also show off how good Kulak is at holding a bad team together.

Saturday, November 10: Abbotsford Heat vs. Oklahoma City Barons (Sportsnet; 8pm MT)

Finally, end your week of enjoying the sweet, sweet nectar of televised hockey with the AHL’s version of the Battle of Alberta. Sven Baertschi, Roman Horak and the Heat take on Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and the Baby Greasers. Both of these clubs are loaded with talent, and fans will be able to see how much hate young Sven has in his heart for the Oilers this early into his pro career.