Scott Wheeler's Prospect Pool Rankings 2025

[IamNotKenKing]

As of this morning, 4 of the top 16 scorers in the OHL are Flames' draft picks (25%), including the two highest scoring D-Men, who are 14th and tied for 15th in overall scoring...

3 of the remaining 16 are draft eligible this year, with one (Ryan Roobroeck) draft eligible in 2026.

So, of the 12 drafted players, the Flames have 4/12, or 33%.

That's pretty, pretty, pretty good...

[Ba'alzamon]

Parekh is on pace to set a new career high in goals despite a career-low shooting %.

Yeah, he's pretty good.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by IamNotKenKing

As of this morning, 4 of the top 16 scorers in the OHL are Flames' draft picks (25%), including the two highest scoring D-Men, who are 14th and tied for 15th in overall scoring...

3 of the remaining 16 are draft eligible this year, with one (Ryan Roobroeck) draft eligible in 2026.

So, of the 12 drafted players, the Flames have 4/12, or 33%.

That's pretty, pretty, pretty good...

Add to that they have 2 of the top 12 U-21 NCAA scorers in Suniev and Hoskins.

And 2 of the top 5 U-23 scorers in the AHL in Stromgren and Kerins, and Poirier is 4th among U-23 d-men in scoring in the AHL.

I'd love to see Kerins, Stromgren, Poirier, and Kuznetsov all get more of a look here in the final 30 games or so.

[looooob]

Originally Posted by IamNotKenKing

As of this morning, 4 of the top 16 scorers in the OHL are Flames' draft picks (25%), including the two highest scoring D-Men, who are 14th and tied for 15th in overall scoring...

3 of the remaining 16 are draft eligible this year, with one (Ryan Roobroeck) draft eligible in 2026.

So, of the 12 drafted players, the Flames have 4/12, or 33%.

That's pretty, pretty, pretty good...

and I think 4 others were 2022 or 2023 draftees, so 4/8 of the 24s

[looooob]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Add to that they have 2 of the top 12 U-21 NCAA scorers in Suniev and Hoskins.

And 2 of the top 5 U-23 scorers in the AHL in Stromgren and Kerins, and Poirier is 4th among U-23 d-men in scoring in the AHL.

I'd love to see Kerins, Stromgren, Poirier, and Kuznetsov all get more of a look here in the final 30 games or so.

and Gridin top 10 in the Q...and Honzek and Brz competing in the AHL as D+2s...not bad not bad

[Jiri Hrdina]

It is interesting to keep watching these rankings and ask one's self what prospect pools, ranked above the Flames, would you take over Calgary's stable. There is of course risk of bias here but these are my takes.

#12 - Anaheim: I would rank the Ducks and Flames pretty much in a dead heat. Anaheim similarly has one top end prospect (Sennecke) and then a longer list of interesting prospects. I think this largely comes down to preference, including between each franchise's #1 prospect

#11 - Buffalo. I would rank the Sabres slightly ahead of the Flames on the strength of a few guys at the top with high end potential: Kulich, Helenius leading the way. I'm not high on Levi. But the bigger issue is they have too many of the same type of prospects. Overall though, slightly better

#10 - Seattle. I would rank the Kraken behind the Flames slightly. Catton is in my view a similar quality prospect to Parekh. Seattle has more boom/bust types with higher ceilings, but also more questions. I would say this is the case with all of Rehkopf, Firkus and Sale. If any of them make it, they likely play prominent offensive roles, but all 3 could completely bust out. These rankings always tend to value potential (which I don't disagree with) so I'm not surprised Seattle is ahead. But then I look at guys like Bru, Mews, etc and I don't think the Flames lack high ceiling prospects, and have more guys with a higher floor.

[activeStick]

Wheeler was on Flames Talk the other day and if you think you're excited about Parekh right now, you should listen to the interview and Wheeler's take on Parekh's outlook.

[Funkhouser]

Originally Posted by activeStick

Wheeler was on Flames Talk the other day and if you think you're excited about Parekh right now, you should listen to the interview and Wheeler's take on Parekh's outlook.

Too lazy to find (yet able to write this post amazingly!)

Link please?

[MrButtons]

Originally Posted by Funkhouser

Too lazy to find (yet able to write this post amazingly!)

Link please?

https://www.sportsnet.ca/960/flames-...rys-prospects/

Also on spotify and probably most podcast providers.

[Leeman4Gilmour]

I thought Wheeler's take on the kind of D prospects we are currently carrying was interesting. Too many of the same type of player with not enough spots for them. I know trading picks and prospects at this point of the current Flames rendition doesn't feel like the best move, but it's a good point. Parekh, Mews, Bru, Poirier, Morin all are competing for the same slot essentially. At this moment, Parekh is penciled in as future PP1 guy. Trading one or two of the d-prospects for centre prospects may be a way to start filling in that hole.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Leeman4Gilmour

I thought Wheeler's take on the kind of D prospects we are currently carrying was interesting. Too many of the same type of player with not enough spots for them. I know trading picks and prospects at this point of the current Flames rendition doesn't feel like the best move, but it's a good point. Parekh, Mews, Bru, Poirier, Morin all are competing for the same slot essentially. At this moment, Parekh is penciled in as future PP1 guy. Trading one or two of the d-prospects for centre prospects may be a way to start filling in that hole.

It's a catch 22

If they know which of the five are going to turn out ... say the best 2 then sure trade the other three now when they have some hype intact.

If they don't you almost have to ride it out and let them develop.

I remember when the team had Kylington, Andersson and Fox all on the prospect list at the same time.

In the end I guess all three made it, but I didn't have Fox as #1 for sure.

[Ba'alzamon]

I disagree with Morin being in that category, personally. He's not an offensive defenseman. He's a strong transition player, and can still contribute on the PK and with secondary/tertiary scoring at even strength.

Not a powerplay specialist at all.

[Leeman4Gilmour]

Originally Posted by Bingo

It's a catch 22

If they know which of the five are going to turn out ... say the best 2 then sure trade the other three now when they have some hype intact.

If they don't you almost have to ride it out and let them develop.

I remember when the team had Kylington, Andersson and Fox all on the prospect list at the same time.

In the end I guess all three made it, but I didn't have Fox as #1 for sure.

Making a call like that right now would be a butt clencher for sure. But, if you wait, you could end up with 3 mediocre players which give you a minimal return. Wheeler does have me thinking that the Flames should use this position of strength to help balance out the weakness at center if the right situation arises.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Leeman4Gilmour

Making a call like that right now would be a butt clencher for sure. But, if you wait, you could end up with 3 mediocre players which give you a minimal return. Wheeler does have me thinking that the Flames should use this position of strength to help balance out the weakness at center if the right situation arises.

But if you look at the list, which of those guys could be realistically used to acquire a strong centre prospect.

Parekh - yes. But they aren't doing that.
Poirier? Nope. Injuries and still hasn't established his readiness.
Mews? Tons of upside. Probably worth now when drafted, but questions remain about if he is an NHL dman.
Bru? Similarly value is probably a little from when he was traded. But is he going to net you a good centre prospect? Doubtful
Morin? Doubtful.

Right now it is a position of potential strength. But that potential hasn't yet been realized.

[CliffFletcher]

You’re not going to get an under 25 centre for any of those guys excerpt Parekh. But any deal is going to involve prospects going the other way. A 1st alone is unlikely to get you the kind of player Conroy is looking for.

[Leeman4Gilmour]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

But if you look at the list, which of those guys could be realistically used to acquire a strong centre prospect.

Parekh - yes. But they aren't doing that.
Poirier? Nope. Injuries and still hasn't established his readiness.
Mews? Tons of upside. Probably worth now when drafted, but questions remain about if he is an NHL dman.
Bru? Similarly value is probably a little from when he was traded. But is he going to net you a good centre prospect? Doubtful
Morin? Doubtful.

Right now it is a position of potential strength. But that potential hasn't yet been realized.

As of today, I'd keep Parekh and Mews. Admittedly the easy/safe choice. The Flames were pretty quick to sign Morin to an ELC so they must see something there. Do the remainder get you a good centerman by themselves. No. But that cupboard is so bare right now. Assuming Rooney is gone next year, we only have two 'true' NHL centerman next year. Hopefully Zary keeps doing what he's doing and that certainly helps (I don't believe in Sharangovich as a centerman, but hope I'm wrong). Flames need prospects for future and players for near future. If you need a pick and a prospect to get what the Flames are looking for, this pool of prospects would be where I'd dip into. Or just trade a B-level d prospect (I believe that is the tier Wheeler has most of these guys) for a B-level center prospect, this is also something the Flames may consider. They could also just draft nothing but centerman this year and flip the script entirely.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Leeman4Gilmour

As of today, I'd keep Parekh and Mews. Admittedly the easy/safe choice. The Flames were pretty quick to sign Morin to an ELC so they must see something there. Do the remainder get you a good centerman by themselves. No. But that cupboard is so bare right now. Assuming Rooney is gone next year, we only have two 'true' NHL centerman next year. Hopefully Zary keeps doing what he's doing and that certainly helps (I don't believe in Sharangovich as a centerman, but hope I'm wrong). Flames need prospects for future and players for near future. If you need a pick and a prospect to get what the Flames are looking for, this pool of prospects would be where I'd dip into. Or just trade a B-level d prospect (I believe that is the tier Wheeler has most of these guys) for a B-level center prospect, this is also something the Flames may consider. They could also just draft nothing but centerman this year and flip the script entirely.

I think that's all fair, but I think you may need to provide a better d prospect to get a worse c prospect. In other words a B+ dman might get you a B- Centre b/c of the scarcity of true centre prospects (lots may play centre in junior but project to wingers at the NHL level).

So for instance who could you offer to say get the likes of Cole Beaudoin (utah), Oskar Fisker Molgaard (Seattle), David Goyette (Seattle) etc. Does a Morin get you that? Not sure because every team needs more centre prospects. Makes it tough.

You have unique situations where one becomes available like Gauthier (though not a realistic play for the Flames). Or maybe you can leverage an Rasmus deal to get one (e.g. Lambert from Winnipeg)

But directionally we agree that it needs to be a priority, which means you are either dealing from where you have depth in the pipeline (D) or making it a priority at the draft.

[Calgary4LIfe]

I remember Huska glowingly talking about Gridin when he was sent down. He stated (loosely from memory): "I expect Gridin to come in next season and challenge for a spot on the team. He isn't that far away." The only other prospect I heard him really referencing contending for a spot on the team next season was Parekh.


As for the defencemen, I think there are variations between them, rather than they competing with one another. I sort of see the break-downs like this:


Parekh - in his own class of being a true #1 defencemen like Makar, Hughes, Fox.
Morin - I see him in the mold of Giordano, Weegar, Andersson - strong defensively, strong offensively
Brzustewicz/Mews - offensive dynamos to headline a strong 2PP and be the #3 defencemen continuing play-driving after Parekh steps off the ice - I see these two compete with one another more with Bahl being the stabilizing defensive force on that pair.

Poirier - Magic hands, but a tougher time pinpointing where he would end up in. He is waiver eligible, so I would love to see him get inserted into the lineup this season for a long look. At worst (assuming he develops into an NHL'er - of course the absolute worst is not making it, but speaking specifically about turning into an NHL'er) I think he would be a PP option. I think he has worked hard at defence, so maybe he is closer to Brz/Mews' ceiling than I give him credit for (which is why I really want to see him in the NHL at some point).

I also think this is the modern NHL. You don't need Regehrs any longer (and I loved Regehr). I think the model is to go for Giordano/Doughty types - defencemen with good offensive games who are equally strong defensively, and who excel on the transition. The "modern defencemen" now. Lots of talent there, and perhaps higher ceilings in some cases than we (or at least myself) expect.

[Jay Random]

Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe

I also think this is the modern NHL. You don't need Regehrs any longer (and I loved Regehr). I think the model is to go for Giordano/Doughty types - defencemen with good offensive games who are equally strong defensively, and who excel on the transition. The "modern defencemen" now. Lots of talent there, and perhaps higher ceilings in some cases than we (or at least myself) expect.

I've been banging this drum off and on for decades. Scoring was down in the dead puck era partly because the league was in love with big, hulking, hitting defencemen who had little to contribute offensively, while also expecting (most) forwards to play a two-way game. You're not going to score a lot when you're attacking 3-on-5. When the whole five-man unit is involved in the offensive game, scoring goes up, as we are seeing nowadays.

[Bonded]

It’s never hard to trade a good young dman. Keep them all and keep building