NHL Prospect Roundup: Calgary Flames’ Connor Zary is electrifying the AHL

Steven Ellis
Steven Ellis
NHL Prospect Roundup: Calgary Flames’ Connor Zary is electrifying the AHL
Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports

A key player from last week’s roundup deserves some extra love.

Since writing about Joshua Roy’s great start with the Laval Rocket, the Montreal Canadiens prospect scored three goals and five points against Rochester on Friday before adding another two assists on Saturday. The 20-year-old rookie now leads the league with 11 points in five games, which is quite remarkable.

Habs fans, rejoice.

Speaking of the AHL, we’re headed back there as the lead for another week after an exciting second weekend of action. I’ve said before that NHL fans need to keep a closer eye on the second-tier pro league because the list of prospects is remarkable.

So, let’s kick things off:

AHL

– At 22, Connor Zary is on the older side on this list. But he’s having the best start to his AHL career with eight assists in four games with the Wranglers, including four assists against Abbotsford on Saturday in a wild 7-6 overtime win. That’s good for second behind Roy after two weeks of play. Drafted 24th overall by the Calgary Flames, the skilled playmaker is still seeking his first NHL game after spending the past three years in the AHL. After recording 21 goals and 58 points last year, he’s getting closer to forcing Calgary’s hand to bring him up as a top call-up option.

– One of the most impressive seasons by any prospect last year came from Jiří Kulich, whom the Buffalo Sabres stole at No. 28 in the first round of 2022. Many scouts were surprised to see him last that long given his tremendous end to the season in Czechia, so his success in the AHL was nice to see. He had 24 goals and 46 points, marking one of the best U-19 seasons from an NHL prospect in the AHL. He’s been strong again in the AHL, recording a hat-trick against Laval this past Wednesday. He was held off the scoresheet on Friday, but he had six points in his first three games, showing why he’s one of the best scoring threats in Buffalo’s system.

NCAA

Among other University of Michigan departures over the spring, the team lost Adam Fantilli, Mackie Samoskevich and Luke Hughes, depleting a huge percentage of the team’s offense. But Winnipeg Jets prospect Rutger McGroarty leads the league with 11 points in six games, helping the team to a 3-2-1 record early. He started off strong with eight points in his first three games, giving the team a few big victories to kick things off. McGroarty will be an integral top-six piece on USA’s world junior roster, no doubt.

– Once viewed as a top prospect before starting his junior hockey career, Jack Devine was ultimately drafted by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round in 2022. He had a big sophomore season with the University of Denver with 14 goals and 31 points last year, a nice step up from his 19 points the year before. Devine also earned himself a spot at USA’s world junior camp but was one of the team’s final cuts. He’s already off to an incredible start in his junior campaign with Denver, opening the season off with four points in the season-opener on Oct. 7. Since, he has put up six points over the past three games, giving him 10 in four outings. The net-front dynamo is second in NCAA scoring and shows no signs of slowing down, giving a weak Panthers’ pipeline a bit of hope.

WHL

– Jagger Firkus knows something about putting pucks in the net. He’s up to 10 goals and 20 points and is well on his way to smashing his 40-goal, 88-point season with Moose Jaw last year. Drafted 35th by the Seattle Kraken in 2022, Firkus had five goals in his past two games, while registering an incredible 25 shots over the past three games. His Warriors teammates know to give him the puck and let him do his magic.

– Outside of being 5-foot-8, one of the biggest knocks against Andrew Cristall‘s game was his skating. The Washington Capitals took him 40th overall in 2023, which looks like one of the biggest steals of the draft already. He’s up to a whopping 23 points in 10 games, which includes nine points over his past three games. And the best part? It looks like his skating coaches helped him big time over the summer. Cristall is playing at a 154-point pace this year, which seems… unlikely. But will it be enough to earn a roster spot on Team Canada, or will he be pushed out due to his lack of size?

QMJHL

– Jordan Dumais started the season with an injury suffered during the preseason with the Columbus Blue Jackets and only just got back into game action on Friday. The Halifax Mooseheads star clearly didn’t miss a beat, scoring three goals and five points in a 6-4 win over Rouyn-Noranda. That’s exactly the response we’d expect from the 5-foot-9 forward coming off an outstanding 140 points in 64 games last year. Dumais should be in the conversation to make Canada’s world junior team, which would take him out of a few games, but he’s on pace for more than 170 points this year. And I wouldn’t doubt he hits it, either.

OHL

– The San Jose Sharks have a good one in Kasper Halttunen. The 18-year-old winger moved over from Finland, where he struggled for ice time against men, and joined the OHL’s London Knights for 2023-24, and it’s been a massive success. He’s up to nine goals and 11 points in 11 games, and even saw a four-game run with six shots a night. When he scores, he does it in bunches, with four two-goal nights this year. Halttunen is one of the hardest-hitting forwards I’ve ever seen in person, and now the Knights are benefiting from his all-out attack.

USHL

– Julian Lutz was an incredible addition to the USHL’s Green Bay Gamblers, scoring four goals and eight points in his first six games. The German national team star needed a few games to get up to pace after originally starting the year with EHC Munchen, but a four-point effort on Oct. 13 showed he was ready to go. The Arizona Coyotes prospect should be Germany’s most important forward at the 2023 world juniors, but a good rest of the year with the Gamblers should help him fly up Arizona’s depth chart.

SHL

– Jonathan Lekkerimäki’s 2022-23 campaign with Djurgardens was a disappointment, scoring just three goals and nine points in 29 regular season games – only to further struggle at the world juniors. But his 15 points in 15 qualification round games to close out the Allsvenskan year gave Vancouver Canucks fans a bit of hope for their star Swedish winger, and he’s off to an outstanding start. Lekkerimaki now has seven goals and 10 points in 12 games with Orebro, good for 12th in league scoring and first among NHL prospects in the SHL. He looks confident, quicker and determined to make something happen every single shift.

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