Flames select Tyler Parsons at 54th overall

After a bit of waiting, the Calgary Flames have made their second selection of the 2016 NHL Draft. At 54th overall, with the pick obtained from trading Jiri Hudler to the Florida Panthers, they have selected goaltender Tyler Parsons of the London Knights.

Ranked 3rd among North American goalies by the NHL’s Central Scouting Service and 68th by Future Considerations, Parsons back-stopped the Knights to Ontario Hockey League and Memorial Cup championships in his second season in the OHL. He played 49 games for the Knights and posted a really impressive .921 save percentage on a high-end club, following that up with a .925 mark in the OHL post-season. The Knights may have given him some goal support, but Parsons still had to make some saves along the way. Future Considerations projects him as a starting NHL goaltender in their Draft Guide.

It’s the second time in three seasons that the Flames have used a second round pick on a goaltender, the last being Mason McDonald in 2014, and Parsons is the second London Knight taken by the Flames in the 2016 Draft. They selected two Barrie Colts in last year’s draft – Andrew Mangiapane and Rasmus Andersson – and that’s turned out well so far.

The lesson? Maybe they just think their OHL scouts know their stuff.

It may be a bit early for a goaltender for our tastes, but Parsons definitely has earned his reputation as a top-end junior goalie during his time with the Knights.