We’re talkin’ playoffs! A Calgary Flames prospect update
By Ryan Pike
2 months agoThe Calgary Wranglers were in the spotlight this past week, as they entered the AHL’s Calder Cup playoffs as the lowest seed in the Pacific Division… and beat the Tucson Roadrunners twice on their home ice to sweep their way into the division semi-final round.
Because the series was a two game sweep and the Wranglers went with 11 forwards and seven defenders in the series, the line and pairing usages were pretty interesting.
Up front, Trent Cull used two offensive-minded lines:
- Jakob Pelletier – Cole Schwindt – Matt Coronato
- William Strömgren – Sam Morton – Adam Klapka
And then there were two checking lines:
- Brett Sutter – Clark Bishop – Klapka or Riley Damiani
- Mitch McLain – Ben Jones – Damiani or Klapka
On the blueline, it shook out like this:
- Jordan Oesterle – Ilya Solovyov
- Colton Poolman – Jeremie Poirier or Yan Kuznetsov
- Jonathan Aspirot – Mark Pysyk
Dustin Wolf started both games, backed up by Oscar Dansk.
Now, the challenge for the Wranglers is they’re essentially entirely healthy now. And they got bodies back from the Flames. So that means that a bunch of good regular AHL roster players weren’t in the lineup for the first round. Among them: Alex Gallant, Lucas Ciona, Rory Kerins, Brady Lyle and Artem Grushnikov. But if the Wranglers are hoping to push a strong Coachella Valley team in the second round, they’ll need that depth.
Round 2 begins on Friday night in Calgary.
Let’s dive into this week’s prospect update!
Parker Bell – LW/C, Tri-City Americans, WHL / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
20; Calgary’s fifth round pick (155th overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| WHL season to date | 59 | 33 | 31 | 64 | 50 | 35 | 31 | 231 | 26.86 |
| AHL season to date | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 2022-23 (WHL) | 55 | 25 | 39 | 64 | 51 | 36 | 28 | 187 | 28.82 |
Bell didn’t dress in first round.
Jake Boltmann – D, University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish, NCAA/Big 10
22; Calgary’s third round pick (80th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 30 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 36 | 1.82 |
| 2022-23 (NCAA) | 37 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 42 | 3.69 |
Boltmann’s NCAA season is complete. He’s transferred to Northeastern University for the 2024-25 season.
Hunter Brzustewicz – D, Kitchener Rangers, OHL / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
19; Vancouver’s third round pick (75th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft; Acquired in a trade with Vancouver
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| OHL season to date | 67 | 13 | 79 | 92 | 46 | 65 | 34 | 140 | 36.37 |
| AHL season to date | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2022-23 (OHL) | 68 | 6 | 51 | 57 | 32 | 31 | 21 | 110 | 22.20 |
Brzustewicz didn’t dress in the first round.
Lucas Ciona – LW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Calgary’s sixth round pick (173rd overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft; 11th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 55 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 67 | 4.35 |
| 2022-23 (WHL) | 63 | 28 | 47 | 75 | 53 | 54 | 37 | 194 | 29.48 |
Ciona didn’t dress in the first round.
Matt Coronato – RW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Calgary’s first round pick (13th overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft; 2nd-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 41 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 28 | 27 | 17 | 140 | 40.82 |
| 2022-23 (NCAA) | 34 | 20 | 16 | 36 | 31 | 19 | 16 | 141 | 24.31 |
Coronato had a goal and an assist against Tucson, including a very patient empty-netter in Game 1.
Riley Damiani – C, Texas Stars/Calgary Wranglers, AHL
23; Dallas’ fifth round pick (137th overall) in the 2018 NHL Draft; Acquired in a trade with Dallas
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 66 | 11 | 13 | 24 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 94 | 14.49 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 59 | 13 | 18 | 31 | 24 | 18 | 14 | 87 | 20.94 |
Damiani spent much of the Tucson series playing in a checking role, but he managed to score a goal off the rush.
Artem Grushnikov – D, Texas Stars/Calgary Wranglers, AHL
20; Dallas’ second round pick (48th overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft; Acquired in a trade with Dallas
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 63 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 65 | 3.80 |
| 2022-23 (OHL) | 65 | 8 | 9 | 17 | 10 | 14 | 9 | 116 | 6.93 |
Grushnikov didn’t dress in the first round.
Samuel Honzek – LW/C, Vancouver Giants, WHL / Slovakia, WJC / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
19; Calgary’s first round pick (16th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft; 4th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| WHL season to date | 33 | 10 | 21 | 31 | 22 | 16 | 11 | 86 | 23.26 |
| WJC season to date | 5 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 | n/a |
| AHL season to date | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 2022-23 (WHL) | 43 | 23 | 33 | 56 | 40 | 36 | 26 | 134 | 32.25 |
Honzek didn’t dress in the first round.
Axel Hurtig – D, Rögle BK, J20 Nationell/SHL / Kristianstads IK, HockeyEttan
18; Calgary’s seventh round pick (208th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| J20 season to date | 27 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 11 | 7 | 54 | 15.10 |
| SHL season to date | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| HockeyEttan season to date | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | n/a |
| 2022-23 (J20) | 34 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 47 | 3.82 |
Hurtig’s season is finished.
Ben Jones – C, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
24; Free agent signing; 12th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 72 | 21 | 22 | 43 | 34 | 28 | 22 | 208 | 23.80 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 71 | 17 | 37 | 54 | 41 | 28 | 21 | 202 | 30.31 |
Jones didn’t hit the scoresheet in the first round.
Joni Jurmo – D, Ilves Tampere/KooKoo Kuovola, Liiga/CHL / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Vancouver’s third round pick (82nd overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft; Acquired in a trade with Vancouver
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Liiga season to date | 46 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 63 | 4.03 |
| CHL season to date | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | n/a |
| AHL season to date | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2022-23 (Liiga) | 52 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 8 | 11 | 6 | 118 | 9.27 |
Jurmo didn’t dress in the first round. He was released from his amateur try-out deal on Tuesday.
Rory Kerins – C, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Calgary’s sixth round pick (174th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft; 14th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 54 | 16 | 16 | 32 | 27 | 22 | 18 | 115 | 23.62 |
| 2022-23 (ECHL) | 38 | 17 | 20 | 37 | 31 | 25 | 21 | 117 | 22.36 |
Kerins didn’t dress in the first round.
Adam Klapka – RW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
23; Free agent signing; 18th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 65 | 21 | 24 | 45 | 34 | 31 | 22 | 182 | 27.59 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 60 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 18 | 16 | 11 | 103 | 16.61 |
Man, Klapka came back to the AHL with some swagger, and he was one of the better Wranglers against Tucson. He had three assists over two games and was used in a lot of different roles.
Demetrios Koumonztis – D/RW, Idaho Steelheads, ECHL
23; Calgary’s fourth round pick (108th overall) in the 2018 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 47 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 11 | 14 | 10 | 84 | 9.28 |
| 2022-23 (NCAA) | 37 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 67 | 13.28 |
Idaho advanced in the ECHL’s playoffs, but Koumontzis didn’t dress at all.
Yan Kuznetsov – D, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Calgary’s second round pick (50th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft; 17th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 63 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 88 | 8.22 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 63 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 11 | 19 | 11 | 65 | 12.02 |
Kuznetsov played alongside Poolman on the second pairing, with his usage skewed towards defensive situations.
Jaden Lipinski – C, Vancouver Giants, WHL / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
19; Calgary’s fourth round pick (112th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft; 16th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| WHL season to date | 67 | 24 | 42 | 66 | 47 | 33 | 23 | 181 | 24.39 |
| AHL season to date | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 2022-23 (WHL) | 66 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 36 | 35 | 23 | 152 | 19.14 |
Lipinski didn’t dress in the first round. He was released from his amateur try-out deal last week.
Cade Littler – C, Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, USHL / Penticton Vees, BCHL
19; Calgary’s seventh round pick (219th overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| USHL season to date | 13 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 30 | 19.43 |
| BCHL season to date | 24 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 17 | 9 | 6 | – | 5.51 |
| 2022-23 (BCHL) | 51 | 29 | 39 | 68 | 47 | 36 | 27 | – | 8.75 |
Littler returned to the Vees’ lineup for the second round and helped them advance to the conference finals, though he has yet to register a playoff point.
Brady Lyle – D, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
24; Free agent signing
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 47 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 9 | 7 | 3 | 102 | 12.72 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 51 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 16 | 13 | 6 | 124 | 24.22 |
Lyle didn’t dress in the first round.
Etienne Morin – D, Moncton Wildcats, QMJHL / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
18; Calgary’s second round pick (48th overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft; tied for 5th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| QMJHL season to date | 58 | 12 | 37 | 49 | 32 | 21 | 13 | 191 | 19.67 |
| AHL season to date | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 2022-23 (QMJHL) | 67 | 21 | 51 | 72 | 47 | 34 | 21 | 213 | 25.03 |
Morin didn’t dress in the first round. He was released from his amateur try-out on Tuesday.
Sam Morton – C, Minnesota State University Mankato Mavericks, NCAA / Calgary Wranglers, AHL
24; Free agent signing
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| NCAA season to date | 37 | 24 | 10 | 34 | 32 | 20 | 19 | 151 | 24.00 |
| AHL season to date | 13 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 25 | 21.46 |
| 2022-23 (NCAA) | 10 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 28 | 21.00 |
Morton scored a goal in Game 1 against Tucson.
Ilya Nikolaev – C/LW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL / Rapid City Rush, ECHL
22; Calgary’s third round pick (88th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| AHL season to date | 29 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 33 | 8.25 |
| ECHL season to date | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 16 | 30.61 |
| 2022-23 (ECHL) | 40 | 13 | 20 | 33 | 21 | 22 | 15 | 97 | 18.94 |
Nikolaev didn’t dress in the first round.
Jakob Pelletier – LW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
22; Calgary’s first round pick (26th overall); 3rd-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 18 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 45 | 26.57 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 35 | 16 | 21 | 37 | 32 | 18 | 14 | 92 | 42.13 |
Pelletier had an assist in the Tucson series.
Jeremie Poirier – D, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
21; Calgary’s third round pick (72nd overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft; tied for 5th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 23 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 44 | 22.53 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 69 | 9 | 32 | 41 | 20 | 21 | 13 | 172 | 23.68 |
Poirier played alongside Poolman on the second pairing, with his usage skewed towards offensive situations.
Cole Schwindt – C/RW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
22; Florida’s third round pick (81st overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft; Acquired in a trade with Florida; 9th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 66 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 27 | 23 | 15 | 128 | 21.74 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 70 | 14 | 18 | 32 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 118 | 18.22 |
Schwindt had a goal and an assist in the Tucson series.
Ilya Solovyov – D, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
23; Calgary’s seventh round pick (205th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft; 8th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 51 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 10 | 14 | 10 | 88 | 11.72 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 68 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 9 | 16 | 8 | 82 | 10.55 |
Playing on the top pairing with Oesterle, Solovyov was dynamite in all three zones for the Wranglers in round one. He scored a key goal in Game 2, and he was a shot-blocking machine throughout the series.
William Strömgren – LW, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
20; Calgary’s second round pick (45th overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft; 19th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 68 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 23 | 18 | 15 | 74 | 15.82 |
| 2022-23 (SHL) | 45 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 31 | 8.69 |
Strömgren continues to be on a tear since the New Year. He had a goal and an assist against Tucson, including a doozy of a goal that stood up as the series-deciding marker.
Aydar Suniev – LW/C, University of Massachusetts Minutemen, NCAA/Hockey East
19; Calgary’s third round pick (80th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft; 13th-ranked prospect
| GP | G | A | P | P1 | 5v5 P | 5v5 P1 | SH | NHLe | |
| Season to date | 35 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 19 | 16 | 12 | 100 | 23.02 |
| 2022-23 (BCHL) | 50 | 45 | 45 | 90 | 73 | 47 | 40 | – | 11.81 |
Suniev’s season is finished.
Daniil Chechelev – G, HC Vityaz, KHL / Ryazan-VDV, VHL
22; Calgary’s fourth round pick (96th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft
| GP | TOI | SV% | |
| KHL season to date | 1 | 58 | .880 |
| VHL season to date | 5 | 271 | .908 |
| 2022-23 (ECHL) | 39 | 2135 | .892 |
Chechelev’s season is finished.
Arsenii Sergeev – G, University of Connecticut Huskies, NCAA/Hockey East
20; Calgary’s seventh round pick (205th overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft; 15th-ranked prospect
| GP | TOI | SV% | |
| Season to date | 16 | 934 | .913 |
| 2022-23 (NCAA) | 19 | 1104 | .912 |
Sergeev’s season is finished. He’ll be joining Penn State for the 2024-25 season.
Dustin Wolf – G, Calgary Wranglers, AHL
22; Calgary’s seventh round pick (214th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft; 1st-ranked prospect
| GP | TOI | SV% | |
| Season to date | 36 | 2082 | .922 |
| 2022-23 (AHL) | 55 | 3239 | .932 |
Wolf was spectacular against Tucson, stopping 85 of 88 shots on net.
Yegor Yegorov – G, MHK Dynamo Moskva, MHL
18; Calgary’s sixth round pick (176th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft
| GP | TOI | SV% | |
| Season to date | 25 | 1319 | .917 |
| 2022-23 (MHL) | 15 | 786 | .915 |
Yegorov’s season is finished.
Hey, hockey heads! Get ready for The Daily Faceoff Playoff Parlay Challenge! Each game day, answer four playoff prediction questions like who will win the first game, will points be over or under or what will be the highest-scoring period? Daily winners snag gift cards, while each round’s champs pocket cash! Play now at games.dailyfaceoff.com and prove your puck prowess! It’s fast, it’s fun, and it’s all about hockey! Let’s go!
Recent articles from Ryan Pike
