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With Kevin Bahl done for the season, what are the Flames’ blueline options?

Photo credit: Photo Credit: Eric Boldt/Calgary Wranglers

By Paige Siewert

Nov 10, 2026, 09:00 ESTUpdated: Nov 10, 2026, 00:04 EST

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The Calgary Flames are down a defenceman for the rest of the season due to an Achilles injury to Kevin Bahl. For now, the solution has been to put Joel Hanley back in the lineup after being the seventh blueliner for the first month of the season. Now as an extra, they have Brayden Pachal back from the AHL.

This situation raises questions and presents scenarios where others in (or outside of) the Flames’ organization may be able to take an NHL spot. So who do they have?

NHL contracts in the AHL

The Flames currently have five defencemen on the Wranglers signed on two way deals. Of these five, only Hunter Brzustewicz and Abram Wiebe have played regular season games with the Flames so far. The opening was for a left shot defenceman to backfill Bahl. By calling up Brayden Pachal, who is a right shot defenceman, it seems like that move was to put a guy they know in the press box for a bit if needed instead of taking developmental and ice time away from young prospects.

Hunter Brzustewicz (Right Shot)

Brzustewicz is one of the most popular defensive options to consider based on his experience with the Flames. He split last season between the AHL and NHL and would know the system the best. However, he is playing top minutes, quarterbacking the power play and is currently being that top guy for the Wranglers. This is allowing him to maximize his game opportunities. If he is to be called up, he should be called up to play. Or at least to be able to battle for a spot.

Hunter Brzustewicz started off slower on the scoring side than he did last season but has looked more confident in recent games. He is tied with Mike Benning for the lead in defensive points with one goal and six assists. Another note on Brzustewicz is that he very rarely plays his off-side. There have been situations on the ice that have called for it but he doesn’t line up at that position. Some NHL shifting would need to happen to make a spot for him.

Mike Benning (Right Shot)

Benning has been a great add to the Wranglers blue line and plays a game that feels matured beyond his age of 24. Benning has been an offensive defenceman and a defensive defenceman for this team. His point total is the same as Brzustewicz’s but he just has an extra goal, with two goals and five assists on the season. Benning has shown more physicality in his game and is not afraid to get into the middle of scrums. He has also been consistent on the back end and not a guy you need to worry about. This bodes well for an opportunity to be called up. Same with Brzustewicz though, he is a right shot and has played a little bit on the left but not in a way you’d expect up at the NHL.

Abram Wiebe (Left Shot)

Abram Wiebe could very well be a top option for the left side of the blue line. He played in four games with the Flames at the tail end of last season after he wrapped up his collegiate career at the University of North Dakota. He has not put up his first NHL point just yet but he had a taste of the big league and did show signs of his junior play but didn’t stick out for bad reasons. For the Wranglers, he’s felt ahead of a first year pro but still someone you’d want to manage properly.

In 14 games in the AHL, he has five assists and has most recently been playing on the top pairing with Hunter Brzustewicz. He’s been getting special teams minutes and top ice time and should be a guy to get a stretch of Flames games again this year. Is this the time though? Unless that extra d-man is in high demand, it doesn’t seem to suit him to be the extra guy in the press box for the Flames right now. That’s not to say that might not change in a few weeks to a few months time.

Axel Hurtig (Left Shot)

The former Hitmen captain is adjusting well to the AHL and put up two goals in his second game of the season. He’s played in all 14 Wranglers games and is up to three goals and two assists. He is tied for the best plus/minus out of the defencemen with a plus-3 at this point in the year. Hurtig has also been the guy to get things going with a fight in three games this year and two fights in his last three games.

Axel Hurtig’s establishing himself in this league and while his confidence rises, it might be best to keep him on that track. Hurtig is still young at the age of 21 and might be about a year out from a stretch of games in the NHL but could still be a guy that appears in the mid to later days of the season. He does have the advantage of being a left shot in this Bahl scenario with the Flames.

Jake Livingstone (Right or Left)

Livingstone is Calgary’s true veteran on the back end at the age of 27. He has been a regular in all 14 games and was playing with Pachal before he was called up. Most recently, he was paired up with Kyle Walker in Calgary’s game against the Eagles over the weekend. Livingstone has the ability to play both sides but does feel low in the order of call-ups on the Wranglers. If offence is needed, he is the lowest regular defender in the points total with just two assists on the year.

A call up for Livingstone would be a safe move to keep young guys playing and not as harmful to him as the player if he needs to be out of the lineup and out of game action for a while. However, as we’ve seen with the forwards this year, call-ups have been treated as rewards for solid play and Livingstone has guys ahead of him in that category.

Depth AHL defencemen

The Wranglers have a few guys on minor-league deals and of those guys, Kent Anderson and Kyle Walker have actually skated in games with the Wranglers this year so far. Anderson was the captain of the NCAA Championship winning University of Denver last season and came for an AHL preview just days after this win. He plays more on the defensive side and is a right shot defender. Anderson has played in three AHL games so far.

For Walker, he is on the left side but the third or fourth guy on the left. Walker is an Alberta-native and a product of MRU. He has only played in the one game for the Wranglers this year but another injury on the left side on the NHL or AHL would allow him to rise in the ranks as a defensive prospect.

Both of these guys could be eyeing an upgrade to an NHL contract now and it’s up to them to earn it in the extra game time they will be getting down the stretch. Both have only had limited looks but if a larger role is needed out of them, it will be interesting to see how they can be leveraged in a variety of game scenarios.

Outsourcing?

There is always the “open market” option of keeping an eye on waivers assignments and seeing if a left-shot defenceman who would fit this organization is available. What seems to make this scenario less of a possibility is just the overall rebuild mentality the Flames are going through. If the future forward, prospect building strategy is what they’re looking to maintain, bringing in new blood when there are other options within feels a bit backwards. That being said, if the guys are struggling and the prospects aren’t able to click in the NHL just yet, you might need a veteran guy.

The other option would be a trade. Names have been floated around the league since before the season even started but it doesn’t feel like there is an urgency to ship anyone out. If you’re packaging some guys or someone who is too good to pass on becomes available, that changes the scenario. For now, it might be a bit of a rotation of finding that next guy and seeing who rises to the occasion.

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