Adam Klapka has been on a path of improvement ever since he made his debut in North America. His rookie season in the AHL brought a few growing pains that made him a little inconsistent scoring wise but he really starting making strides in the last quarter of that first season.

Klapka’s development really took another step in 2023-24 as he was the top scorer for the Wranglers in the regular season and post-season. In that same season, he also earned his NHL debut with the Flames. This summer he earned a one-year contract extension and the big-bodied forward is expecting more time with the NHL club in 2024-25.

Adam Klapka is going into his third year with the Flames organization and has been a noticeable addition for the last two years. In his rookie season, he played in 60 games with the Wranglers and put up 13 goals and 12 assists for a total of 25 points. He had five power-play goals, two game-winning goals and his PIMs finished up at 80. That year in the post-season, he played in nine games and put up four goals.

In his second year, he played in 65 games with the Wranglers and nearly doubled his point production with 21 goals and 25 assists for a total of 46 points. His PIMs were slightly higher at 90 and his power play goals improved by one finishing at six. He had four game-winning goals last season.

Klapka earned a call-up with the Flames during the back half of the season starting with a four game stretch in late-January. He made his NHL debut on Jan. 20, 2024, against the Edmonton Oilers and was sent back to the Wranglers in February. He returned to the Flames at the end of the season for two games and put up his first NHL goal on Apr. 18, 2024, against the San Jose Sharks.

This huge confidence boost really carried him through the Wranglers’ post-season run where he was playing with more of a jump in his step and making contributions on the scoring side of things. In the AHL playoffs last season, he averaged over a point per game with seven points in six games. He finished with a +3 rating, two goals, five assists and 10 PIMs.

If Adam Klapka is to surprise everyone this year, he will be a regular player for the Flames playing in the majority of games. He doesn’t have a lot of historical performance to go off of in the NHL, but if he were successful, he could be a third or fourth liner around the 15-20 point range or higher. This would approach the type of performance we saw out of Martin Pospisil and Connor Zary last year.

Based on what we have seen from Klapka, he seems to fit decently in a rotating fourth line role. He might be someone who plays 25-35 games depending on his runs of production. He is on a two-way contract so that will likely be leveraged for him to start down with the Wranglers or go back down to the Wranglers as needed for some confidence building. Klapka should be on the shortlist for call-ups if he does not make the opening night roster.

For Klapka to perform in a way that is below expectations, he would pretty much need to turn off all aspects of his game. Historically, when he is not contributing on the scoresheet, he hasn’t hesitated to bring a more physical aspect to his game. You’d see him finish his checks more and even fight if the opportunity presented itself. He also makes a great screen in front of the opposing net with his stature alone.

If his skating wasn’t an area he was able to improve over the summer, there is a chance he may fall behind the NHL pace. In that case, quicker feet may take his place. Klapka may spend more time with the Wranglers than the Flames next season. He may only make a handful of appearances in select situations involving injuries or games towards the end of the season that may not have as much on the line.

Adam Klapka is starting to get to that point where he’s done nearly everything he can do to prove himself at the AHL level. There’s no denying he has the size to be in the NHL, he just has to keep working on his skills to find a role that best suits the Flames.

Klapka has familiarity and chemistry as he has played with many of the young players who have recently made their jump to the Flames. As more opportunities come up with the Flames, more guys like Matt Coronato, Ilya Solovyov, and Dustin Wolf will get their NHL minutes and Klapka will have more former teammates to work with.