These Calgary Flames players won't require waivers next season
The Calgary Flames are charging full steam ahead with their rebuild.
Based on roster projections by Elite Prospects for the 2026-27 season, the Flames will have the fourth-youngest team in the NHL with an average age of 26.78. A large part of that is a result of GM Craig Conroy moving out some older veterans in MacKenzie Weegar, Nazem Kadri, and Blake Coleman.
The good news for the Flames is that their roster does appear to be pretty well set in stone aside from a few small battles in training camp. The bad news? They don’t have many players on their expected roster that are waiver-exempt.
That said, there are a select few expected to crack the opening night roster who won’t need to go through waivers if re-assigned to the AHL. Here’s a look at the four:
1. Zayne Parekh
Though things did improve near the end, Zayne Parekh’s rookie season featured a lot of growing pains. A large factor in that was due to the fact that he wasn’t able to play in the AHL aside from a brief conditioning stint. That now changes thanks to him being a year older.
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Parekh, 20, is very likely to start the 2026-27 with the Flames. While fans are hoping to see bigger strides made at the NHL level, it is extremely beneficial to the organization that they now have the option to send him to the Wranglers if his struggles continue.
2. Matvei Gridin
Based on what we saw in 2025-26, it is hard to imagine Matvei Gridin spending any more time in the AHL. The 20-year-old winger suited up for 37 games with the Flames, scoring six goals and 20 points.
Unfortunately, improvement is not always a linear path. While the hope is that Gridin can be a big offensive contributor this coming season, there’s a reason the term ‘sophomore slump’ exists. Should he struggle, the Flames have the option to send him to the Wranglers without the risk of losing him.
3. Sam Honzek
Unlike the two mentioned above, Sam Honzek will need a strong training camp to crack the Flames’ opening night roster. He’s been able to do so in each of the past two seasons, but has logged a total of only 23 NHL games due to a number of injuries.
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With all the prospects the Flames have added in recent years, it’s easy to forget that Honzek is still just 21 years old. There’s no need to rush him if the coaching staff feels he isn’t ready, which makes his waiver exemption a big deal.
4. Hunter Brzustewicz
After closing out the 2025-26 season with the Flames, it seemed safe to assume that Hunter Brzustewicz would be on the opening night roster in 2026-27. After picking up Simon Nemec and Jake Middleton, however, that may no longer be the case.
The Flames also have Kevin Bahl, Zach Whitecloud, Joel Hanley, Brayden Pachal, and Yan Kuznetsov under contract. With Brzustewicz being waiver-exempt, he may wind up being the odd-man out. It’s far from the worst situation, as he’s still just 21 years old and may benefit from continuing to play big minutes with the Wranglers.
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