One of the Calgary Flames’ most promising young prospects could be making his 2025-26 season debut in the final game of their homestand.

On Monday, the Flames summoned blueliner Hunter Brzustewicz from the American Hockey League’s Calgary Wranglers, at least in part due to an injury suffered by blueliner Jake Bean. Adding Brzustewicz gave the Flames seven healthy defenders in case someone caught the flu or were hurt in warm-up. But you don’t bring up the organization’s top AHL blueliner without at least some temptation to use him in games to see how he could fare at the NHL level.

After Tuesday’s optional practice at the Saddledome, head coach Ryan Huska was asked by Sportsnet’s Eric Francis if there was a “good chance” that Brzustewicz might play against Detroit on Wednesday night.

“Yeah, pretty good chance,” replied Huska, via Flames TV. “I mean, we’re still talking about it right now, but he is a Michigan boy. So sometimes stuff like that factors into it as well.”

Brzustewicz made his NHL debut at the tail-end of last season in a Flames road win over the Los Angeles Kings.

A product of Washington Township, Michigan and a third-round selection by the Vancouver Canucks back in the 2023 NHL Draft, Brzustewicz joined the Flames organization via the Elias Lindholm trade, along with a Andrei Kuzmenko, Joni Jurmo, 2024 first-round pick (used to select Matvei Gridin), and a 2024 fourth-round pick (subsequently traded down and used to select Eric Jamieson and Luke Misa).

Brzustewicz is in his second season of pro hockey and has emerged as a very good all-situations defender for the Wranglers. His erstwhile blueliner partner last season, shutdown ace Yan Kuznetsov, was called up about a month ago and has carved himself out a spot on the left side of a very effective pairing alongside MacKenzie Weegar. No slouch himself, Brzustewicz could find himself on the right side of the third pairing on Wednesday, possibly alongside Joel Hanley.

The Flames have not thrown in the towel on the 2025-26 campaign, and their recent 7-2-1 run has them gaining ground on the playoff pack. But they also seem to have their eyes on the big picture, as the recent call-ups for Kuznetsov and Brzustewicz seem to suggest.

The Flames conclude their four game homestand on Wednesday against Detroit. They’ve won the first three games of that homestand. We’ll see if they can run the table.

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