Zayne Parekh will make his Flames preseason debut tonight
The Calgary Flames open up their preseason schedule tonight as they head to the West Coast for a game against the Seattle Kraken.
This is the first game of the new season for the club and will give fans their first glimpse into what this year’s group will look like. With it being preseason, the Flames won’t be running their complete NHL lineup tonight, but there will be a few exciting young players who will be making their debut in Flames jerseys, including 2024 ninth-overall pick Zayne Parekh.
The 18-year-old defenceman will don the iconic flaming C jersey for the first time against the Kraken, alongside other rookies such as Hunter Brzustewicz, Matvei Gridin, and Samuel Honzek.
Kids are getting a chance tonight in Seattle when the Flames open preseason.
Top line is Stromgren, Morton and Gridin and all eyes will be on the organization’s top two blue line prospects, Parekh and Brzustewicz who will play on different pairings. pic.twitter.com/Qg7FP2UBRT— Eric Francis (@EricFrancis) September 22, 2024
The Flames have opted to ice quite an inexperienced roster for their preseason opener. Calgary has decided not to play some of their top players with all of Mikhail Backlund, Mackenzie Weegar, Nazem Kadri, Jonathan Huberdeau, Yegor Sharangovich, and newcomer Anthony Mantha being held out.
Instead, Calgary will lean on some of their younger NHL players to lead the charge. Jakob Pelletier and Matthew Coronato are two players that the Flames will be hoping to take a step forward this season and should get a lot of minutes against the Kraken tonight.
Hometown kid Jake Bean is also expected to make his preseason debut with the Flames tonight. There are a few veterans sprinkled throughout this lineup such as Kevin Rooney and Martin Frk, but they are not guaranteed spots on the NHL club this season.
Between the pipes, it will be a duo of Dustin Wolf and Connor Murphy. It’s unclear if the goaltenders will split the game tonight or if one will get the full 60 minutes. While Wolf is expected to fight for the starter’s job this season, Murphy is more than likely headed to either the AHL or ECHL.
Puck drop in Seattle is set for 8 pm MT and can be streamed for free online on the Flames’ website.