This is the Dec. 17-21 edition of the Flames prospect round-up, where we look at how Calgary Flames prospects have done every week. Specifically, we’ll look at players playing overseas, in junior hockey, or at the college level, as the American Hockey League prospects will have an article of their own in the Wranglers Recaps.

Only five prospects played last week, while six teams were in action. So, we’ll also look at how the standings are shaping up and who’ll play this coming week. Let’s dig in to this week’s edition of the Flames Prospect Roundup!

Yan Matveiko

Yan Matveiko remains out with an injury, but Red Army won both games they played this past week, both against JHC Dynamo-M. On Dec. 18, they won 2-1 in a shootout, followed by a 4-3 victory on Saturday. As it stands, Matveiko has 13 goals and 28 points in 29 games, already surpassing his totals from last season.

It’s unclear when the Flames’ seventh rounder in 2025 will return. However, Red Army plays two games this coming week, with a matchup against JHC Spartak on Tuesday and Sunday.

Jacob Battaglia

The Kingston Frontenacs may be the weirdest team in the Ontario Hockey League. Just a few weeks ago, they were on a nine-game winning streak, before beginning a three-game winning streak last week. Well, that’s increased to five games, as they defeated the Brantford Bulldogs and Brampton Steelheads this past week, both by the score of 4-2.

Flames’ second-rounder in 2024, Jacob Battaglia, missed the game against the Bulldogs, then got a game misconduct against the Steelheads in the third period. As far as I can tell, there has been no suspension for the Frontenacs captain, as he was held pointless in the two games. Battaglia now has 12 goals and 23 points in 32 games.

The Frontenacs head up Highway 15 (a great, beautiful drive) to face the conference-leading Ottawa 67’s on Sunday.

Kirill Zarubin

Kirill Zaurbin and Mikhailov Academy played two games this past week, both against JHC Spartak. The Flames’ prospect sat in the first one, a 3-2 win, while stopping 32 of 37 shots in the second game, a rare game with a sub .900 save percentage for the Russian netminder. Still, he has a .936 save percentage and 1.88 goals against average in 24 games played this season.

There’s the potential for two Flames netminders to go head-to-head on Monday morning, as Mikhailov Academy plays Yegor Yegorov and JHC Spartak-MAX on Monday. They’ll also play Yegorov’s former team, Krylya Sovetov, on Sunday.

Hunter Laing

Hunter Laing and the Saskatoon Blades played a single game this past week, falling 3-2 in a shootout to the 2026 Memorial Cup hosts, the Kelowna Rockets. Laing picked up an assist in that game, giving him 15 goals and 31 points in 31 games this season.

The Blades return to action on the weekend, as they play a home-and-home against the Regina Pats on Saturday and Sunday.

Yegor Yegorov

Yegor Yegorov and JHC Spartak-MAX played a single game this past week, falling 6-2 to Dinamo-Shinnik. The Flames’ netminder started that game, stoping 38 of 44 shots for an .864 save percentage. This season, Yegorov has a .923 save percentage and 2.91 goals against average in 17 games played.

As stated in Zarubin’s section, the two teams match up on Monday morning, which will be covered in next week’s article. They’ll also play JHC Dynamo-M on Saturday.

Axel Hurtig

Lastly, Axel Hurtig and the Calgary Hitmen played two games this past week, smashing the Swift Current Broncos 9-2, before falling 3-2 in overtime to the Brandon Wheat Kings. The Flames’ defence prospect picked up an assist and a fight in their victory (along with seven shots), as well as an assist in their overtime defeat. This season, the Flames’ seventh rounder in 2023 has three goals and eight points in 28 games.

The Hitmen are back in action on Saturday, as they begin a four-game road trip to British Columbia, with a matchup against the Kamloops Blazers on the 27th.

Other players to play this coming week…

Cole Reschny has essentially made Team Canada’s World Junior team, with their opening game on Boxing Day. He’s joined by the Flames’ top prospect, Zayne Parekh. Their other first round pick in 2025, Cullen Potter, was off this week, but will return to action on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28 with a matchup against Dartmouth.

Mace’o Phillips and the Green Bay Gamblers are in the midst of an 11-game winning streak in the United States Hockey League. Unfortunately, their momentum has briefly been halted due to the holiday break. They’ll be back on Dec. 27 in a matchup against the Dubuque Fighting Saints.

Trevor Hoskin and Merrimack are off for the holidays, but will return to action next Monday in a matchup against Vermont.

How the standings look

Four Flames’ prospects play in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference: Cole Reschny, Cade Littler (North Dakota), Cullen Potter (Arizona State), and Eric Jamieson (Denver). North Dakota sits first in the conference with an 8-2-0 record, but Denver isn’t far behind with the same record with one fewer point. Arizona State University currently sits fifth in the division thanks to a 4-5-1 record. Eight of the nine teams in the division make the playoffs in a 1-8 format.

Two Flames prospects play in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Hockey, Ethan Wyttenbach (Quinnipiac) and Aidan Lane (Harvard). Quinnipiac has a 4-2-0 record in-conference, good enough for sixth in the conference, while Harvard’s 5-1-0 record has them as the third-best team in the conference. All 12 teams in the conference make the playoffs, with the first, second, third, and fourth-best teams getting a bye before the bracket becomes a 1-8 format in the quarterfinals.

The Big 10 conference also houses two Flames prospects, Luke Misa for Penn State and Henry Mews for Michigan. Unfortunately, Mews is out for the season as the Wolverines sit second in the conference with a 7-3-0 record. Penn State sits fifth in the conference with a 4-4-0 record, but are tied with Minnesota. All seven teams in the conference make the tournament, with the first-seeded team getting a bye.

Hockey East is the other college division with a Flames prospect in it, as it also has two. Trevor Hoskin plays for Merrimack and Jaden Lipinski plays for Maine. The latter’s team has a 6-5-0 in-conference record, good enough for fourth. Merrimack has a 3-7-0 record, eighth in the conference. All 11 teams will play in the end-of-season tournament, with the first to fifth teams getting a bye to the quarterfinals.

Sadly, there is only one Ontario Hockey League prospect in the Flames system this season, Jacob Battaglia. His Kingston Frontenacs sit sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 15-16-4 record, with the league having a 1-8 format.

Two Flames prospects reside in the Western Hockey League, Axel Hurtig (Calgary Hitmen) and Hunter Laing (Saskatoon Blades). Both play in the Eastern Conference, with the Hitmen posting a 17-9-5 record with 39 points, while the Flames have a 17-14-3 record, just two points behind the Hitmen. Eight teams from each conference make the playoffs.

The Green Bay Gamblers are sitting pretty thanks to an 11-game winning streak, as they lead the United States Hockey League with 41 points due to a 19-7-2 record. Six of the eight teams from the two conferences will make the post-season, with the top two teams from each conference getting a bye.

Russia’s standings are always a blast to figure out how they work. The top five teams in the Gold Division get a bye, while teams ranked fifth to seventh play the top three teams from the Silver Division. Red Army sits second in the Gold Division with a 25-6-4 record, while Mikhailov Academy is seventh in the Gold Division with a 20-9-3 record. Lastly, Yegor Yegorov’s JHC Spartak-MAX sits third in the Silver Division thanks to a 16-12-3 record, owning a better point-percentage than the fourth place Taifun.

As for the two prospects in Sweden, Theo Stöckselius and Jakob Leander, the playoff format is a bit different. It’s a two-conference system with 10 teams in each, with the top 10 teams earning a spot in the winners stage. If the playoffs were to start now, Stöckselius’ Djurgårdens IF U20 would be in that stage as they are fourth in the North Division thanks to an 11-9-2 record.

On the other hand, Leander’s HV71 U20 would be in the losers stage as they have a 7-14-1 record. They’d still earn a chance at joining the playoffs, as the top six teams in the losers stage earn the 11th to 16th seeds. The bottom three teams are relegated. Confusing, right?

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