Flames Add 5 Prospects on Day 1 of Draft

Fresh off of their RHL title this summer, the Flames were quick to get to make moves to prepare their roster for a title defense.  They had already been gifted the first round pick of the Boston Bruins from last season's Claude Giroux trade, that pick ended up at number 8 as the Bruins were probably the biggest underperformers of the season.  Leading up to draft day, the Flames also made a move to send TJ Oshie to Vegas, in return they got 2 late second round picks and brought Zach Bosogian back onto the roster.

With their first pick, the Flames got their primary target in the number 8 slot, bringing in a physical presence with top tier puck handling skills.  Mason McTavish joins the organization fresh off of a solid performance for the Canadian U18 squad, as well as scoring 42 points in 57 games in the OHL as a 17 year old.  McTavish was praised as a player who brings intensity to every shift with a strong shot who can move the puck through traffic.  The Flames feel they finally have a cornerstone offensive prospect with this pick.

Calgary then sat, and waited for the final pick in the first round.  As their pick approached, they were frantically sending out trade proposals to move up a few spots to get a player they felt was being grossly undervalued.  None of those trades came to fruition, but, when the time came for their pick at number 31, the apple of their eye was still available and they added Russian forward Fedor Svechkov.  Whereas their top pick has the potential to be an offensive super star, this pick is a lock down defender.  Svechkov was universally lauded as the top defensive forward in the draft, but he hasn't exaclty been empty on the offensive end either, putting up 10 points in 7 games for the Russian U-18 squad.  The flames feel that they've added a future top 6 forward and PK shutdown man with this pick.

As the evening wore on, the Flames waited for their pick at number 54, and when Ryder Korczak was still on the board, they jumped at the opportunity to snag the youngster from Saskatchwan.  Another elite puck handler, Ryder has been honing his skills in the WHL, the last two seasons with the Moose Jaw Warriors.  He's really shined as the point man on the power play in Moose Jaw, and his puck distribution skills shoudl prove to be very effective when he's ready to be promoted to the sim.

Then, the waiting game began.  Calgary had been sending out feelers for the last 2 picks of the second round for quite some time, not expecting the board to drop how they had hoped.  As the night wore on, teams began sending offers across, but nothing that was able to convince arcele to give up either of those picks based on how the draft actually did unfold.  With pick 61 the Flames went back to Russia to grab Prokhor Poltapov.  Prokhor could end up being one of the biggest steals of the draft, some publications had him rated as high as the 22nd prospect, a strong puck handler with the skills to finish, expect Prokhor to be a difference maker in Calgary once he's ready come across to NHL.  

The with the next pick the Flames finally selected a blue liner, adding Jack Bar, who is set to start his collegiate career with Harvard this season.  Previously, Bar had been a star for St. Andrews, another solid educational organization.  His hockey IQ (and IQ IQ) are off the charts, and he's not a pure stay at home defenseman.  He's very capable on the offensive side and will do more than just dump the puck in, looking for the right passing lanes to put his team in the right position.

With that, the Flames really beefed up their prospect pool.  Entering the evening, all of their top tier prospects were along the blue line, by adding 4 potentially elite forwards, they've set them selves up for long term success.   It will be years before we see how this draft pans out, but early returns are very strong.