Craig Conroy has re-stocked the Flames’ cupboards like never before

Mar 7, 2026, 15:21 ESTUpdated: Mar 7, 2026, 15:23 EST

Craig Conroy has re-stocked the Flames’ cupboards like never before

Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

Before Craig Conroy took over as their general manager in 2023, the Calgary Flames had made multiple picks in the first round of a single NHL Draft just once.

Now, after beating the buzzer to trade Nazem Kadri to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday, Conroy has put the Flames in a position to make two first-round picks in five consecutive drafts.

Under Conroy’s stewardship, the Flames drafted Zayne Parekh and Matvei Gridin in the first round back in 2024. They nabbed Cole Reschny and Cullen Potter within the top 32 the following year.

But the 2026 NHL Draft is on track to be the most important one in Flames history, with the potential for the team to make its first-ever top-3 pick since relocating from Atlanta in 1980. In their 46 years of existence in Calgary, the Flames have never picked higher than No. 4 overall.

Conroy succeeded Brad Treliving as Flames GM ahead of the 2023-24 season and immediately embarked upon one of the most aggressive single-year teardowns in recent NHL history, trading Tyler Toffoli, Nikita Zadorov, Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, Noah Hanifin, Andrew Mangiapane, and Jacob Markstrom all within a span of 12 months.

But was that enough to truly constitute a full-fledged rebuild in Calgary? As many critics noted, the Flames had little choice but to trade those players, with all but one of them only a year removed from being able to leave for nothing as unrestricted free agents. The other, Markstrom, was clearly on the verge of being pushed out by upstart goaltender Dustin Wolf. And the Flames hadn’t truly shown any signs of considering trades for their most established veterans on longer-term contracts, like Kadri or MacKenzie Weegar.

If anything, the Flames seemed content to try their hand at an on-the-fly retool, acquiring younger (but not that young) players like Morgan Frost, Joel Farabee, Yegor Sharangovich, and Kevin Bahl in various trades and continuing to lean on their trusted veteran core in all situations. In the end, they came oh-so-close to making the playoffs in 2025.

Even so, the writing was clearly on the wall for this group, and after they began the 2025-26 season by faceplanting out of the gate, Conroy got to work. Fast-forward to March 7, and Rasmus Andersson, Weegar, and Kadri are all gone, with the latter two having never played in a single playoff game over their three-and-a-half seasons in Calgary.

Weegar, in particular, had played a leading role off the ice in campaigning for the approval and construction of the Flames’ new arena, Scotia Place, which is now scheduled to open in 2027. He’ll undoubtedly get plenty of chances to play in it as a visitor. But if anything, it’s probably better for Calgary to christen that rink with a new era of hockey with as few ties as possible to one of the most disappointing stretches of Flames hockey in decades. With all due respect to Weegar, Kadri, and everyone else who has played their hearts out in Calgary amid difficult circumstances, it’s high time for a fresh start.

The Flames have a decent nucleus of young players already tied to their organization, led by Wolf, Parekh, Gridin, Reschny, Ethan Wyttenbach, Matt Coronato, and Connor Zary. But they need way, way more if they’re going to leap back up the standings at any point in the next few years, and it all starts at the very top of the draft.

Will Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg hear their names called by the Flames this June? With a bit of lottery luck — which the Flames have never had — it could be possible. But in any case, Conroy has given this team a ton of ammunition to add difference-makers at the draft.

Based on the current 2025-26 standings, the Flames currently possess the following 2026 picks in the top three rounds:

First round, No. 2 overall
First round, No. 19 overall (acquired from VGK for Hanifin)
Second round, No. 34 overall
Second round, No. 35 overall (acquired from UTA via NYR for Weegar)
Second round, No. 48 overall (acquired from UTA via OTT for Weegar)
Second round, No. 50 overall (acquired from UTA for Weegar)
Third round, No. 65 overall (acquired from VAN for Zadorov)
Third round, No. 66 overall

That’s two first-rounders, including an incredibly valuable lottery pick; four second-rounders, including the second and third picks of the round; and two third-rounders, which are the first two picks of that round. The 2026 NHL Draft could truly be a watershed moment for this Flames team.

Additionally, after the Kadri and Andersson trades, the Flames have multiple second-rounders in the 2027 and 2028 drafts, on top of the aforementioned two first-rounders in both years. It truly is uncharted territory for a Flames organization that has historically been extremely reluctant to tear its roster down to the studs in this fashion.

During Darryl Sutter’s tenure as general manager in the 2000s, the Flames picked in the second round just twice in eight drafts. Under Treliving, the team subtracted from its original allotment of seven picks a total of seven times in 10 years. Sam Bennett, the No. 4 overall pick in 2014, is the only player the Flames have ever drafted higher than sixth.

Conroy hasn’t just added picks. He’s used all three of Calgary’s salary retention slots for the 2025-26 season, taking full advantage of a tool the Flames seldom used under their previous GM. He’s also taken back bad contracts and cap dumps, betting on players bouncing back with a change of scenery and more playing time, while also weaponizing Calgary’s cap space to strengthen trade returns. Who’s to say Zach Whitecloud, Olli Maatta, and Ryan Strome won’t become valuable trade chips for this Flames team in the future?

The Flames have always favored the sort of on-the-fly changeover that we’ve seen traces of under Conroy, but they’ve clearly pivoted towards an unambiguous rebuild. That word has sometimes been taboo in Calgary, but Conroy signalled something new with a telling quote at his post-deadline press conference on Friday: “I’m not afraid to say it.”

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