Over their history, the Flames track record of picking sixth has been hit or miss. It really comes down to two picks in the late 1990s, with the organization having better luck in the turn of the millennium.

Let’s explore the history of the sixth overall pick.

Cory Stillman, 1992

The first time the Flames picked sixth overall was in 1992, using it to select Cory Stillman. He spent parts of seven season with Flames, potting 109 goals and 235 points in 393 games. Stillman’s best season with the Flames was in 1998-99, when he scored 27 goals and 57 points in 76 games.

But on Mar. 13, 2001, the Flames sent him to the St. Louis Blues for current general manager Craig Conroy. Stillman spent parts of three seasons with the Blues, but was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 2003 off-season. He went on to win back-to-back Stanley Cups, one with the Lightning in 2004, then another with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006.

Overall, he finished his career with 278 goals and 727 points in 1,025 games, with an additional 19 goals and 51 points in 82 playoff games. The forward was never named an All-Star, and the production isn’t quite what you’d expect from a sixth overall pick, but it was a solid career nonetheless.

Daniel Tkaczuk, 1997

That couldn’t be said for the next two sixth overall picks they had. In 1997, they selected Daniel Tkaczuk from the Ontario Hockey League’s Barrie Colts. He played just 19 games in the NHL, scoring four goals and 11 points in 19 games. Sadly, he suffered a major concussion and never really recovered, at least to the player he was pre-concussion.

The highlight of his career came in 2000-01 with American Hockey League’s Saint John Flames, as he helped the team win the Calder Cup. In the regular season, he scored 15 goals and 36 points, but added 10 goals and 19 points in 14 post-season games.

Rico Fata, 1998

The Flames picked sixth overall in the 1998 draft as well, selecting London Knights’ forward Rico Fata. He played 20 games in 1998-99, but was sent down to the OHL after mustering just one assist.

Playing most of his 1999-2000 with the Saint John Flames, he scored 29 goals and 58 points, but appeared in just two NHL games. It was much the same in 2000-01, as he and Tkaczuk won the Calder Cup.

The Flames eventually cut bait with Fata, with the Rangers claiming him. He totalled just 46 games over two seasons with the Original Six team, before being traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was there where he had his career-best season, potting 16 goals and 34 points in 73 games.

That turned out to be an anomaly, as Fata played another 57 games in the NHL, 20 with the Penguins, six with the Atlanta Thrashers, and 31 with the Washington Capitals. He departed overseas and never played in North America again.

Sean Monahan, 2013

Moving to the two active players, Sean Monahan was selected sixth overall in the 2013 draft from the Ottawa 67’s.

The centre was a consistent producer over his first eight seasons, totalling 204 goals and 439 points in 591 games, or 28 goals and 60 points every 82 games. But his numbers took a hit in 2021-22, scoring eight goals and 23 points, all while his teammates were having career-years.

During the 2022 off-season, the Flames attached a 2025 first to get out of Monahan’s salary, sending him to the Montréal Canadiens. Eventually, the Canadians flipped Monahan, acquiring a 2024 first from the Winnipeg Jets.

The Flames first was packaged to land Noah Dobson, while the Habs used the Jets’ 2024 first to move up the order, selecting Michael Hage 21st overall. Nice piece of business for the Canadiens, not so much the Flames, though.

Matthew Tkachuk, 2016

The lone Flame picked sixth overall to be named to an All-Star is Matthew Tkachuk, whom the Flames drafted sixth overall in the 2016 draft.

Tkachuk, a power forward, made an immediate impact for the Flames, scoring 48 and 49 points in his first two seasons. He broke out in 2018-19, scoring 34 goals, but just 23 goals and 61 points in 2019-20. His best season as a Flame was in 2021-22, when he potted 42 goals and 104 points in 82 games.

That marked the end of Tkachuk’s tenure as a Flame, as he and a fourth were sent to the Florida Panthers for MacKenzie Weegar, Jonathan Huberdeau, Cole Schwindt, and the 32nd overall pick (Cullen Potter).

As you likely know, the Panthers went to three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals, winning two of them.

Other notable 6th overall picks

As for the plethora of other sixth overall picks, the spot didn’t produce its first All-Star calibre player until 1976, which was 14 years after the introduction of the amateur draft. Don Murdoch, selected by the New York Rangers, went on to score 121 goals and 237 points over his 320 games.

The following draft saw the first ever Hall of Famer selected at the position. Defenceman Doug Wilson was drafted by the Chicago Black Hawks, going on to score 237 goals and 827 points in 1,024 games, one of 11 players drafted sixth overall to play 1,000 or more games.

From 1976 until 1980, the sixth overall spot produced, at worst, an All-Star. Behn Wilson, drafted in 1978, Craig Hartsburg in 1979, and Paul Coffey in 1980. Coffey also happens to be one of the best defencemen in the history of the game, and the second Hall of Famer the sixth overall pick produced. Coffey’s 1,531 points aren’t just the most for a player picked sixth, but the second-most for a defenceman, period

Jim Benning was neither an All-Star nor a Hall of Famer, but the spot produced its third Hall of Famer when the Buffalo Sabres selected Phil Housley. Housley’s 1,232 points are the second-most by any player selected sixth, and the fourth-most for a defenceman in history.

The 1983 draft saw John MacLean selected by the New Jersey Devils, going on to become an All-Star and finishing second in goals by players selected sixth overall. Ahead of him is 1986 sixth overall pick, Vincent Damphousse, who scored 432 goals. Along with Coffey and Hously, Damphousse is the only other player picked sixth overall who has reached 1,000 or more points.

There was a drought of elite sixth overall picks, but in 1991, the Philadelphia Flyers drafted the most recent Hall of Famer selected sixth, Peter Forsberg. Despite injuries hampering his career, Forsberg finished with 249 goals and 885 points in 708 games. What could’ve been.

Aside from Forsberg, the 1990s only saw two more All-Stars selected sixth overall, Viktor Kozlov (1993) and Ryan Smyth (1994). Only Housley, Coffey, and Damphousse played more games than Smyth.

Scott Hartnell, Mikko Koivu, and Milan Michálek are the other players selected sixth overall who played in an All-Star game, but are now retired. The other three, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Mika Zibanejad, and Tkachuk are the only active sixth overall picks who’ve played in February’s festivities.

Ekman-Larsson is the oldest player selected sixth overall who is still active, while Brett Connolly is the lone player drafted in the 2010s and beyond who has retired. Hampus Lindholm, 2012’s sixth overall selection, has been named to an All-Star team.

There are a couple of sixth overall picks who are now playing overseas, namely Jake Virtanen (2014) and Filip Zadina (2018). The other players selected in the 2010s are Pavel Zacha (2015), Cody Glass (2017), and Moritz Seider (2019).

Moving to the 2020s, there is just one player picked sixth overall who has yet to make his NHL debut, Tij Iginla (2024). Jamie Drysdale (2020) and Simon Edvinsson (2021) have both become NHL regulars, while David Jiříček (2022) has bounced around teams. Dmitriy Simashev (2023) was the final one of the Arizona Coyotes’ final picks, and he made his NHL debut in 2025-26.

The most recent sixth overall pick is Porter Martone, selected by the Philadelphia Flyers. After a big season at Michigan State, the Peterborough native appeared in nine regular season games, scoring four goals and 10 points. In the Flyers’ 10 post-season games, he scored twice and nish with five assists.

Not including players picked in the last five drafts, there are four players picked sixth overall who never played in an NHL game; they all happen to be picked in the 1960s. Including those four players, there are just 10 players selected sixth overall with fewer than 100 games played in the NHL, including Tkaczuk.

Lastly, there were four goals selected sixth overall, Gary Edwards (1968), Michel Larocque, Brian Finley, and Al Montoya. The latter is the lone goalie drafted sixth overall in the 21st century.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for FlamesNation, Oilersnation, and Blue Jays Nation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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