Calgary’s season finale Wednesday night was mostly an empty reminder of what could have been. But despite Game 82 being rendered meaningless with the team’s elimination from playoff contention earlier in the week, there was a silver lining.
Flames fans, many of whom had been clamouring for a youth infusion for months, got to see just that vs. San Jose. It added real excitement to a night that otherwise would have felt more like a preseason game in April.
Matt Coronato, the 2021 first-round pick signed out of Harvard a few weeks prior, made his NHL debut. Goaltender Dustin Wolf, in the midst of a historic sophomore season in the American League, also played his first NHL game. And Jakob Pelletier, a 2019 first-round pick, returned to the lineup after missing 10 straight games as a healthy scratch.
Even better: all three impressed in Calgary’s 3-1 win over the Sharks. Wolf made 23 saves to pick up the win in his Flames debut. Coronato finished with four shots and six attempts and looked dangerous throughout. Pelletier, playing on the same line as Coronato, had two shots and three attempts and added the zip and enthusiasm we’ve come to expect.
But perhaps the important and exciting element is that the season isn’t over for two of the players in question. Pelletier and Wolf, along with fourth line standout Walker Duehr, were assigned to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers on Thursday morning. The trio will join a farm team with legitimate eyes on a Calder Cup championship later this spring.
Due to the contract he signed as an NCAA player, Coronato isn’t eligible for AHL action until next season. His on-ice year is done and Coronato plans on returning to Harvard this weekend to finish his sophomore year studies.
“It’s nice, especially to play here in front of Flames fans, it’s going to be awesome,” Pelletier told our Flames Talk postgame show when asked about returning to the Wranglers. “I’m excited, I think we can clinch a first seed…Friday, so I think we have to focus on that and we’ll see what’s going to happen.”
Pelletier is correct. After missing their first opportunity on Wednesday, the Wranglers can clinch top seed in the AHL’s Pacific Division as early as Friday. With that comes a bye through a dreaded best-of-three first round series. Regardless, though, it’s championship or bust in the team’s first year sharing a city with their parent NHL club.
With Wolf in net, Calder Cup expectations are fair. The 2019 seventh-round pick is a shoo-in for a second straight AHL Goaltender of the Year nod. Wolf also has a solid case to be the first goaltender since 2004 to win the AHL’s Most Valuable Player award. Coincidentally, that honour is held by current Flames goaltending coach Jason LaBarbera when he was a member of the Hartford Wolf Pack.
Wolf’s numbers are ridiculous. He leads the American League in wins (41), goals against average (2.08), save percentage (0.932), and shutouts (7). The 6-foot, 166-pound Wolf is also the third AHL goaltender since the 1960s to record 40 or more wins in a season, joining Peter Budaj (2015-16) and Ryan Miller (2004-05) in that exclusive club.
“I marvel at the consistency he plays with,” said Wranglers head coach Mitch Love earlier this week on Flames Talk. “For almost two years now, we almost come to expect that Dustin’s going to be competitive and give us a chance to win each and every night.
“I think it’s that thing between the ears. He’s a little unflappable in terms of what he provides. He’s a competitor, (we’ve seen) the emergence a little bit of his leadership and that’s been important for him. I think he’s a kid really driven at the end of the day by: I’m a small goalie, I was drafted in the seventh round and, you know what, I’m going to prove to everyone in the hockey industry that I can play in the NHL one day and I’m going to try and do it.”
Getting Pelletier back will be huge for Love’s club, too. Despite spending a good chunk of time in the NHL, Pelletier has 16 goals and 36 points in 33 games with the Wranglers this season. In less than two full seasons, Pelletier has proven himself an elite AHL forward while holding his own in 24 NHL games.
The chance for prospects like Wolf, Pelletier, and Duehr to gain additional experience in the AHL playoffs is a unique opportunity for the Flames. They’ll join other top prospects like Connor Zary and AHL All-Rookie defenceman Jeremie Poirier on a powerhouse team. Led by homegrown product and pending UFA Matthew Phillips, the Wranglers are an absolute wagon.
You can choose the negative emotion that fans in Calgary are feeling after 82 NHL games. Frustration, anger, hurt, and pessimism all fit the bill after the nightmare season the Flames just put them through.
But, after watching the future finally get a shot in Calgary’s NHL season finale, those same fans get to follow most of the organization’s top prospects play meaningful hockey in North America’s second-best league.
It’s not the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but seeing Wolf and Pelletier keep their seasons going as part of a long playoff run is a decent consolation prize.
Knowing how the past 10 months have gone, most Flames fans will take any positive story.