Our pre-prospect rankings miniseries just keeps chugging along here at FlamesNation. After all, what better way is there to spend these rainy early August days than to read about some of the best-kept secrets in the Calgary Flames’ prospect pool?

The next honourable mention on our list earned top-20 votes from three of our writers, one as high as No. 18, but just barely missed out on a spot on our main rankings. He’s a huge Swedish defenceman who could become a fan favourite in Calgary this season as he treks across the pond to join the Hitmen.

Right away, the name “Axel Hurtig” just sounds tailor-made for a physical middle-pairing defenceman, doesn’t it? On name value alone, the Flames absolutely crushed it in landing Hurtig with their final pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.

But while many players selected in the seventh round of the draft never play so much as a single game in their NHL city, Hurtig is slated to spend the entire upcoming season playing for Calgary’s WHL club. The Hitmen selected the towering blueliner with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2023 CHL Import Draft; now, he’ll spend the 2024-25 campaign under the watchful eye of the Flames’ development staff at the Saddledome.

There’s a solid chance Hurtig starts the upcoming season on a pairing with star defence prospect Carter Yakemchuk, who scored 30 goals in his draft year before being selected by the Ottawa Senators with the No. 7 overall pick. Between Yakemchuk, Hurtig, and projected 2025 first-round pick Reese Hamilton, the Hitmen could have one of the strongest defensive groups in the WHL’s Central Division in 2024-25.

Hurtig is likely never going to be a player who scores all that much. He managed two goals and eight points in 34 games with Rögle BK’s junior affiliate during his draft year; this past season, he collected 11 points in 27 games at the junior level and also dressed for his first seven games in the top-tier Swedish Hockey League, albeit with extremely limited ice time.

In April, Hurtig wrapped up his 2023-24 season by joining Kristianstads IK in HockeyEttan, Sweden’s third-tier pro league, as it entered the yearly qualification stage; he collected one goal and two points in nine games but was unable to help Kristianstads avoid relegation to the fourth-tier HockeyTvåan league.

After taking part in Flames development camp at the beginning of July, Hurtig traveled to Michigan to play for Team Sweden at the World Junior Summer Showcase. Although he’ll likely slot in behind Theo Lindstein (STL) and Leo Sahlin Wallenius (SJ) on his country’s depth chart, Hurtig remains a relatively safe bet to play for Sweden at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship in Ottawa.

But what are the chances Hurtig ever dons the Flaming C in any meaningful games at the Saddledome or Scotia Place in the years to come? He’d probably be higher on the pecking order if he shot right, but for now, Hurtig is firmly behind the likes of Jeremie Poirier, Ilya Solovyov, Artem Grushnikov, and Étienne Morin in the Flames’ system. He faces an uphill battle just to differentiate himself from the pack in Calgary.

It should be a lot of fun to watch Hurtig throw his body around with the Hitmen as he adapts to the smaller ice surfaces in North America this coming season. If all goes well for him down there, he could be in line for an entry-level deal with the Flames at some point over the next calendar year. Hurtig is likely still two years away from being two years away, but he offers an interesting blend of size, physicality, and skill that could help him defy the odds and become an NHLer in the distant future.