The Calgary Flames were off on Sunday after completing a four game Central Division road trip with a 3-1 win in Winnipeg.
The Flames don&#8217;t play another game until Thursday, when they host the Buffalo Sabres. Thursday&#8217;s game begins a stretch of 10 games over 17 days leading into the 4 Nations Face-off break.
As we enjoy this brief calm before the storm, let&#8217;s delve into the mailbag!
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Lots of chatter on why/should flames resign or trade Anderson. Can you differentiate why 1) keep Weegar over Anderson 2)keeping both 3) trading both?
&mdash; Derek (@KohutD) <a href="https://twitter.com/KohutD/status/1881036868772646979?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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We&#8217;ll have some discussion on the site later today breaking both sides of the Andersson debate down in detail&#8230;
But to me, here&#8217;s my thought process: MacKenzie Weegar and Rasmus Andersson are both very good NHL blueliners. Weegar can play either side. You can play them together. You can play them on different pairings with different partners. It feels like Kevin Bahl has found a home in the top two pairings and is a long-term asset. The Flames have some young blueliners that they&#8217;re pretty high on in Hunter Brzustewicz, Henry Mews and Zayne Parekh. But development isn&#8217;t a linear path, and even a player as well-regarded as Andersson – a second-rounder in 2015 – didn&#8217;t become a full-time NHLer until his third year of pro hockey.
Yeah, you would need to pay both Weegar and Andersson, and that&#8217;s not nothing. But if you keep Weegar and Andersson, it allows you to bring your kids along slowly and build them up.
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What teams, if any, do the Flames avoid like the plague when it comes to trade discussions? And which might be accommodating teams to do business with?
&mdash; Ed Helinski 🇺🇸🇵🇱 🌴 (@MrEd315) <a href="https://twitter.com/MrEd315/status/1881071354897891694?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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There are two categories of teams I would avoid: desperate teams, and Edmonton.
Desperate teams would be teams that need to &#8220;win&#8221; a trade, and so their dealing with them might become complicated and more trouble than they&#8217;re worth. And Edmonton is Edmonton, a team the Flames have only made three trades with ever, and none of those trades are fondly remembered.
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With the Wranglers roster being depleted by call ups, do you expect any AHL signings? How many of the Flames&#39; recent draft picks would you expect to see on the Wranglers next season?
&mdash; scott funfer (@scottfunfer) <a href="https://twitter.com/scottfunfer/status/1881034336029561222?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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At this point, I don&#8217;t expect many AHL signings, as I suspect the Wranglers will fill in the gaps with some of their signed players currently playing in the ECHL with Rapid City. I&#8217;ll give some credit to Brad Pascall and his scouting group, as the Wranglers have gotten some really effective contributions from folks like goalie Connor Murphy and forward Brett Davis so far.
Later in the season, we&#8217;ll likely see some drafted prospects show up on the Wranglers roster as their junior seasons end and their teams get eliminated from the playoffs. For now, it&#8217;ll probably be call-ups from the ECHL.
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Is Zayne Parekh allowed to play in the AHL next season and, if not, would he be eligible to play NCAA hockey considering he&#39;s signed to an NHL contract and has played in NHL preseason games?
&mdash; Marc (Never Again For ANYONE) Carvalho (@iggyfan2001) <a href="https://twitter.com/iggyfan2001/status/1881078350699212876?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Based on our current understanding of the NCAA&#8217;s rules – and bear in mind, they may change – if you&#8217;ve signed an NHL contract, you&#8217;re no longer eligible to play college hockey. As such, since Zayne Parekh has signed a deal with the Flames, his options for next season as a 19-year-old are playing in the NHL or playing in the Ontario Hockey League.
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Is Luke Misa quietly emerging as a bit of a steal by the Flames? Training camp in September with Misa, Parekh, Mews, Battaglia is going to be very interesting
&mdash; kingcambie (@kingcambie) <a href="https://twitter.com/kingcambie/status/1881028399696888166?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Prospects that are exceeding expectations? Ones that are underperforming?
&mdash; Nilbog (@nilbog21) <a href="https://twitter.com/nilbog21/status/1881072086816587803?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Arguably under-performing are the organization&#8217;s two Russian goalies, Kirill Zarubin and Yegor Yegorov. Neither has been out-and-out bad, but neither has really grabbed hold of a full-time starting gig – Zarubin has been splitting time with AKM Tula, while Yegorov bounced around a bit before landing with the Soviet Wings&#8217; junior side. They&#8217;re both young and needs reps to improve, and they haven&#8217;t gotten a ton this season.
In terms of exceeding expectations, I&#8217;m going to single out three players that have taken big steps forward offensively: UMass sophomore Aydar Suniev, Kingston forward Jacob Battaglia, and Brampton standout Luke Misa. But the Flames have had a lot of youngsters making progress this season, so this is far from an exhaustive list.
Got a question for a future mailbag? Contact Ryan on Twitter/BlueSky at @RyanNPike or e-mail him at Ryan [at] TheNationNetwork.com! (Make sure you put Mailbag in the subject line!)
<h2>The FlamesNation Monday Mailbag is presented to you by Village Honda</h2>
Looking to sell your vehicle? Village Honda wants to buy it. We offer complimentary, no obligation appraisals, payment in 24 hours, top value trade in values and best of all, no stress. Skip selling your vehicle privately and stop in Village Honda today. No appointment necessary.
Village Honda is proud to be your dealership for life in Calgary since 1987. We are located in the Northwest Auto Mall under the giant Canadian flag or online at <a href="http://www.villagehonda.com/">www.villagehonda.com</a>.
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The Calgary Flames were off on Sunday after completing a four game Central Division road trip with a 3-1 win in Winnipeg.

The Flames don't play another game until Thursday, when they host the Buffalo Sabres. Thursday's game begins a stretch of 10 games over 17 days leading into the 4 Nations Face-off break.

As we enjoy this brief calm before the storm, let's delve into the mailbag!

https://twitter.com/KohutD/status/1881036868772646979

We'll have some discussion on the site later today breaking both sides of the Andersson debate down in detail...

But to me, here's my thought process: MacKenzie Weegar and Rasmus Andersson are both very good NHL blueliners. Weegar can play either side. You can play them together. You can play them on different pairings with different partners. It feels like Kevin Bahl has found a home in the top two pairings and is a long-term asset. The Flames have some young blueliners that they're pretty high on in Hunter Brzustewicz, Henry Mews and Zayne Parekh. But development isn't a linear path, and even a player as well-regarded as Andersson – a second-rounder in 2015 – didn't become a full-time NHLer until his third year of pro hockey.

Yeah, you would need to pay both Weegar and Andersson, and that's not nothing. But if you keep Weegar and Andersson, it allows you to bring your kids along slowly and build them up.

https://twitter.com/MrEd315/status/1881071354897891694

There are two categories of teams I would avoid: desperate teams, and Edmonton.

Desperate teams would be teams that need to "win" a trade, and so their dealing with them might become complicated and more trouble than they're worth. And Edmonton is Edmonton, a team the Flames have only made three trades with ever, and none of those trades are fondly remembered.

https://twitter.com/scottfunfer/status/1881034336029561222

At this point, I don't expect many AHL signings, as I suspect the Wranglers will fill in the gaps with some of their signed players currently playing in the ECHL with Rapid City. I'll give some credit to Brad Pascall and his scouting group, as the Wranglers have gotten some really effective contributions from folks like goalie Connor Murphy and forward Brett Davis so far.

Later in the season, we'll likely see some drafted prospects show up on the Wranglers roster as their junior seasons end and their teams get eliminated from the playoffs. For now, it'll probably be call-ups from the ECHL.

https://twitter.com/iggyfan2001/status/1881078350699212876

Based on our current understanding of the NCAA's rules – and bear in mind, they may change – if you've signed an NHL contract, you're no longer eligible to play college hockey. As such, since Zayne Parekh has signed a deal with the Flames, his options for next season as a 19-year-old are playing in the NHL or playing in the Ontario Hockey League.

https://twitter.com/kingcambie/status/1881028399696888166

https://twitter.com/nilbog21/status/1881072086816587803

Arguably under-performing are the organization's two Russian goalies, Kirill Zarubin and Yegor Yegorov. Neither has been out-and-out bad, but neither has really grabbed hold of a full-time starting gig – Zarubin has been splitting time with AKM Tula, while Yegorov bounced around a bit before landing with the Soviet Wings' junior side. They're both young and needs reps to improve, and they haven't gotten a ton this season.

In terms of exceeding expectations, I'm going to single out three players that have taken big steps forward offensively: UMass sophomore Aydar Suniev, Kingston forward Jacob Battaglia, and Brampton standout Luke Misa. But the Flames have had a lot of youngsters making progress this season, so this is far from an exhaustive list.

Got a question for a future mailbag? Contact Ryan on Twitter/BlueSky at @RyanNPike or e-mail him at Ryan [at] TheNationNetwork.com! (Make sure you put Mailbag in the subject line!)
<h2>The FlamesNation Monday Mailbag is presented to you by Village Honda</h2>
Looking to sell your vehicle? Village Honda wants to buy it. We offer complimentary, no obligation appraisals, payment in 24 hours, top value trade in values and best of all, no stress. Skip selling your vehicle privately and stop in Village Honda today. No appointment necessary.

Village Honda is proud to be your dealership for life in Calgary since 1987. We are located in the Northwest Auto Mall under the giant Canadian flag or online at <a href="http://www.villagehonda.com/">www.villagehonda.com</a>.

<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-116342" src="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/11/Village-Honda-for-Monday-Mailbag.jpg" alt="" width="727" height="404" />

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