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Flames Recall Matthew Coronato, Jakob Pelletier

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The Flames recalled wingers Matthew Coronato and Jakob Pelletier before today’s game against the Panthers, per CapFriendly. Both were ferried to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers on deadline day to make them eligible to suit up in the Calder Cup Playoffs. With ample cap space, no corresponding transactions were necessary.

Coronato, a 5-foot-10 rookie, gets his fourth recall of the season and his second this month. Calgary made him the 13th overall pick in the 2021 draft coming out of the USHL’s Chicago Steel, followed by two seasons at Harvard before signing his entry-level deal in March of last year. He’s been one of the best rookie performers in the minor leagues this season, notching 42 points and a +8 rating in 40 games with the Wranglers, leading them in scoring by a wide margin.

The Flames’ top forward prospect, Coronato will need to battle to remain in the Flames’ lineup as they try and make a miracle playoff run once A.J. Greer and Connor Zary are ready to return from injuries. Both are expected back by the end of the month. He’s fared decently in 16 games with the big club this year, scoring a goal and three assists with a -5 rating while averaging 14:03 per game. Perhaps his best professional outing came just prior to the deadline in a 6-3 win over the Lightning on Thursday, in which he recorded an assist and a +3 rating. His possession metrics have improved from an early-season lull, recording a 51.3 CF% at even strength and a 48.6 xGF%.

Pelletier, 23, was a first-rounder two years before Coronato. A shoulder injury cost him most of the season to date, but he’s notched three points in four games with the Wranglers and three points in nine games with the Flames since returning in January. He’ll slot into a top-six role alongside Nazem Kadri and Andrei Kuzmenko and, like Coronato, will need to show dependability to remain in the lineup ahead of Greer and Zary if they remain in the playoff hunt over the next few weeks.

These transactions were not made under emergency conditions, according to CapFriendly, so the Flames have used up half of their four post-deadline standard recalls. Thus, expect Coronato and Pelletier to remain on the roster – even if they fall out of the lineup – through the end of the season unless unforeseen cap complications force the Flames to reassign them.

Flames Sign Kevin Rooney To Extension

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The Flames have inked pending UFA center Kevin Rooney to a one-year, $1.3MM extension, per a team announcement.

Rooney didn’t make his season debut until February 6th, missing the first four months of the season after undergoing shoulder surgery. He’s since slotted into Calgary’s fourth-line center role, recording one point in 13 games – though he hasn’t scored in 11 games – while averaging over 10-and-a-half minutes of ice time each game. Rooney also played in four AHL games during a conditioning stint, scoring one goal. It’s his first year back in a full-time NHL role after spending much of last season in the minors, playing in 51 AHL games and scoring 17 points. It was his first extended stint in the AHL since the 2018-19 season.

Rooney has totaled 240 career games in the NHL, scoring 25 goals and 47 points. He joined the Flames in free agency ahead of the 2022-23 season, signing a two-year, $2.6MM contract. His new deal keeps his cap hit the same, extending him through the end of next year. While the extension shows Calgary’s affinity for Rooney, he’ll still need to find an extra edge if he wants to maintain his lineup spot when Connor Zary and A.J. Greer return from injury, and Martin Pospisil returns from a suspension.

Flames Acquire Nikita Okhotiuk From Sharks

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The Flames have acquired left-shot defenseman Nikita Okhotiuk from the Sharks as the deadline passes, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff confirms. A 2024 fifth-round pick is heading to San Jose in return, per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Okhotiuk has appeared in 43 NHL games this season, scoring one goal and eight points and adding 44 penalty minutes and a -22. It’s his official rookie season in the league, though he played in 15 games with the New Jersey Devils across the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. He’s totaled three goals and 11 points across his three-year career, also adding x points in 116 AHL games since debuting in 2020-21. The 23-year old was originally drafted in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft, turning pro after three seasons with the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s.

Okhotiuk is yet another new face to a Calgary blue-line that’s recently added Joel Hanley, Daniil Miromanov, and Brayden Pachal. Together, the quartet will fill the holes left by Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin, both traded by the Flames ahead of the Trade Deadline. Hanley has earned top-line minutes in the fallout of Calgary’s moves, playing in nearly 18 minutes in his first game with the Flames. The four new defenders will compete with each other for consistent spots in the lineup, though one will likely have to serve as Calgary’s seventh defenseman, unless the team opts to keep Dennis Gilbert in that role.

Tony DeAngelo, Seven Others Placed On Waivers

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March 8: Katchouk is heading from the Blackhawks to the Senators, Lagesson is going from the Maple Leafs to the Ducks, and Björnfot is going from the Golden Knights to the Panthers. The five other players on waivers yesterday cleared.

March 7: Eight players, including Hurricanes defenseman Tony DeAngelo, were placed on waivers Thursday, per Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. The full list is as follows:

Calgary Flames
D Jordan Oesterle

Carolina Hurricanes
D Tony DeAngelo
F Brendan Lemieux
G Antti Raanta

Chicago Blackhawks
F Boris Katchouk

Florida Panthers
G Evan Cormier

Toronto Maple Leafs
D William Lagesson

Vegas Golden Knights
D Tobias Björnfot

Of note, players who are assigned to the minors after clearing waivers tomorrow will be eligible to play in the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs. Players must be on loan to the AHL at the time of the trade deadline to be cleared to play in postseason action.

The Hurricanes’ trio of waived players is purely for roster flexibility ahead of tomorrow’s trade deadline, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic says. It’s unclear if any of the three players will be assigned to AHL clubs if they pass through unclaimed. The Hurricanes are the only NHL team without a dedicated AHL affiliate.

Raanta, a pending UFA with a $1.5MM cap hit, has a decent chance at being claimed by a team looking to add a backup netminder for free by tomorrow afternoon. That could very well include the Flyers, who have struggled to find consistency in the crease outside of breakout starter Samuel Ersson. Raanta has struggled this season with a .872 SV% and 2.99 GAA behind a stout Hurricanes defense, but he’s now posted a SV% above .900 in each of his last three appearances and could be on the upswing at just the right time. With Frederik Andersen returning to health after a months-long absence and both Pyotr Kochetkov and Spencer Martin playing well, Raanta appears unlikely to be back with Carolina this season regardless of whether he gets claimed.

Oesterle will likely head to the minors after being pushed down the Flames’ defensive depth chart. The club has brought in Joel Hanley off waivers and Daniil Miromanov via trade from the Golden Knights this week, eliminating the need for Oesterle as a depth option on the roster for now. The 31-year-old has two assists and a -6 rating in 22 games.

Assigning Katchouk to AHL Rockford will allow Chicago to clear a necessary roster spot ahead of Saturday’s game against the Capitals. Both Andreas Athanasiou and Nikita Zaitsev are expected to play, per Mark Lazerus of The Athletic, and will need to come off injured reserve to do so. The Blackhawks only have one open roster spot, so one more needed to be cleared.

Cormier was not signed to an NHL contract, so the Panthers inked him to a one-year, two-way deal ($775K NHL/$75K AHL) for the remainder of the season before waiving him, per PuckPedia. The 26-year-old has a .868 SV% and 1-2-2 record in five games for AHL Charlotte this season and a .910 SV% and 8-5-3 record in 18 games for ECHL Florida. By signing him to an NHL contract, he’ll be eligible to be on the Panthers’ roster in the postseason as added goaltending insurance if necessary.

Toronto’s waiving of Lagesson was reported earlier Thursday. He’s been designated non-roster while on the waiver wire, creating the necessary roster space for Joel Edmundson, who was acquired from the Capitals today. He’s dressed in 30 games for the Leafs, notching four assists and a +5 rating while averaging 14:31 per game.

Meanwhile, Björnfot, a 2019 first-round pick of the Kings, lands on waivers for the second time this season. Vegas claimed him off waivers from Los Angeles in January, but he played in just two games for them while battling injuries, posting a -2 rating while averaging 14:01 per game. Assigning him to AHL Henderson would create an open roster spot ahead of tomorrow’s trade deadline, allowing the Golden Knights to make a potential third acquisition after bringing in Noah Hanifin and Anthony Mantha.

Calgary Flames Acquire Riley Damiani From Dallas Stars

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The Calgary Flames and Dallas Stars have swapped a pair of minor-league forwards, with Calgary sending Emilio Pettersen to Dallas in exchange for Riley Damiani. Both 23-year-olds have spent the entire season in the minor leagues.

Pettersen has scored more out of the pair, with 30 points in 54 games with the Calgary Wranglers. He’s maintaining a strong scoring pace, though he’s not quite scoring at the 0.72 points-per-game pace he managed last year when he totaled 19 goals and 44 points in 61 games. He has been in the AHL since the 2020-21 season, moving to the league after two seasons with the University of Denver. Pettersen has also represented his home country of Norway on a variety of levels, including the World U18 Championship in 2016 and 2017, the 2019 World Juniors Division A tournament, and at the World Championship in 2021. He was productive in his World Juniors appearances, scoring at a point-per-game pace at minimum in each tournament, but managed just one goal at the World Championship. Pettersen joined the Flames when they drafted him in the sixth-round of the 2018 NHL Draft.

Damiani stands out because, unlike Pettersen, he’s already made his NHL debut – playing in seven games and scoring two points in the 2021-22 season. He’s since spent all of his time in the AHL, recording 13 goals and 31 points in 59 games last season and 23 points in 53 games this year. Damiani went exactly one round before Pettersen in the 2018 Draft, getting selected 137th-overall by Dallas.

Pettersen stands out thanks to head-strong forechecking and not shying away from physicality, despite standing at a 5’10” frame. Damiani, also 5’10”, fits a slightly different style – serving as a burst of speed in the middle lane that creates tempo well. Both players show strong puck control and an ability to command their linemates. A change of scenery could work wonders for both, as they work towards climbing the depth charts of their new team.

Flames Sign Daniil Miromanov To Two-Year Extension

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The Calgary Flames have signed their newest member, Daniil Miromanov, to a two-year, $2.5MM contract extension, per Miromanov’s agent Dan Milstein. The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun shares that the new deal will carry an annual cap hit of $1.25MM. Calgary acquired Miromanov alongside a first-round pick and a conditional third-round pick in the Wednesday evening trade that sent Noah Hanifin to the Vegas Golden Knights. He was set to become a restricted free agent this summer, finishing off a two-year, $1.525MM deal signed with Vegas in June of 2022.

Miromanov joined the Golden Knights organization in March of 2021, signing as an undrafted free agent at the end of the KHL season. He recorded two assists across 11 AHL games to close out the year, including the playoffs. The 2021-22 season would more formally kick off Miromanov’s career, and the excitement around him, after the defenseman managed 11 goals and 40 points in 53 AHL games and recorded his first 11 NHL games in spot starts throughout the season. He’s since continued to split time between the AHL and NHL, proving plenty productive in the minor leagues but struggling to carry that scoring to Vegas. Miromanov has 72 points in 84 career AHL games, but just seven points in 29 career NHL games.

An undisclosed injury earned Miromanov a place on Vegas’ season-opening injured reserve. He was activated to play on February 4th and has since played in five AHL games and four NHL games.

The Calgary Flames are clearly excited about Miromanov’s long-term outlook, signing the 26-year-old to a seven-figure extension before he played 30 games in the league. The Flames’ defense has been completely dismantled this season, with the team trading Hanifin, Nikita Zadorov, and Chris Tanev and losing Nick DeSimone on waivers. This has created plenty of opportunity for new defenders to carve out a big role, with Miromanov likely set to compete with former Golden Knights teammate Brayden Pachal for the right-hand spot on Calgary’s third pairing. Calgary currently carries eight defensemen, including recent waiver claim Joel Hanley and healthy scratch Dennis Gilbert.

Golden Knights Acquire Noah Hanifin From Flames

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9:23 p.m.: The Vegas Golden Knights have announced the full trade package – sending a 2025 first-round pick, a conditional 2025 third-round pick, and defenseman Daniil Miromanov to the Flames. The first-round pick carries top-10 protection, while the third-round pick will upgrade to a 2024 second-round pick if Vegas advances to the second round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Vegas also sent a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Philadelphia Flyers to broker the deal. Calgary retained 25 percent of Hanifin’s $4.95MM cap hit, while Philadelphia retained 50 percent, meaning he’ll only count towards $1.2375MM of Vegas’ salary cap. Philadelphia sent the rights to 27-year-old centerman Mikhail Vorobyov to Vegas to facilitate the salary retention.

Vorobyov played in 35 NHL games across the 2018-19 and 2019-20 season, scoring two goals and five points. He’s spent each of the last four seasons in Russia’s KHL, including the last three with routine heavyweight SKA St. Petersburg. Vorobyov has 112 points across 194 KHL games since the 2020-21 season.

5:28 p.m.: Even after acquiring Anthony Mantha from the Washington Capitals yesterday, the Vegas Golden Knights were not done adding to their current roster. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed that the Golden Knights would be acquiring defenseman Noah Hanifin from the Calgary Flames. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that defenseman Daniil Miromanov is heading from Vegas to Calgary as part of the return.

Not only will Vegas be adding a top defenseman to their already loaded defensive core, but Darren Dreger of TSN reports the two sides are working on a contract extension as well, although Friedman did pour some cold water on that scenario later. Since Hanifin will be a member of the Golden Knights before the trade deadline, he is eligible to sign an eight-year deal in Vegas.

With Alec Martinez being placed on the team’s injured reserve earlier this morning, Vegas had an opening next to top defenseman Alex Pietrangelo. Factoring in the recent activation of Shea Theodore, the Golden Knights have once again put together a top defensive core leading into the Stanley Cup playoffs.

As the defending Stanley Cup champions, Vegas will likely represent Hanifin’s best opportunity to win Lord Stanley’s trophy for the first time in his career. There are some personal ties as well for Hanifin in Nevada, as he did play with star center Jack Eichel a decade ago on the United States National Junior Development Team.

Suppose the Flames are willing to retain 50% of Hanifin’s salary. In that case, a deal became feasible, as Vegas was only $500k from being able to absorb Hanifin’s full salary for the rest of the season. Still holding on to their first-round pick of the 2024 NHL Draft, and a moderate prospect pool to deal from, the makings of a deal came to fruition rather quickly between the two teams.

Flames’ Martin Pospisil Suspended Three Games

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The NHL Department of Player Safety announced Wednesday that Flames winger Martin Pospisil has been suspended for three games for boarding Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn in the third period of Monday’s game. His suspension opens a roster spot for the Flames as they continue to work out a trade to send top-four blue-liner Noah Hanifin to the Golden Knights.

Pospisil was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct on the play. Dunn sustained an apparent head injury and did not return for the game’s final minutes.

The Department of Player Safety said Pospisil’s actions constituted supplemental discipline because “the onus is on Pospisil to avoid this hit entirely, change his angle of approach and deliver this check legally, or, at the very least, minimize the impact of this hit. Instead, with time to make a different decision, Pospisil chooses to drive Dunn forcefully into the boards from behind.”

Pospisil, 24, has not been fined or suspended throughout his 45-game NHL career. Since making his Flames debut in early November, the 2018 fourth-round pick has worked his way into a full-time role, posting six goals, nine assists, and 15 points with a +8 rating. The Zvolen, Slovakia native has demonstrated a willingness to play on the edge and has gotten burned for it, garnering 72 PIMs. It’s otherwise been a promising rookie season for Pospisil, who boasts a 53.5 CF% at even strength and a +0.9 expected rating while logging 12:06 per game.

His suspension means Nazem Kadri is now without both his most common linemates this season, Pospisil and rookie Connor Zary. Zary is on injured reserve and listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. In their absence, Kadri is expected to center midseason trade pickup Andrei Kuzmenko and 2019 first-round pick Jakob Pelletier.

Martin Pospisil To Have Hearing With Department Of Player Safety

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  • Calgary Flames forward Martin Pospisil is set to have a hearing for boarding Seattle Kraken’s Vince Dunn yesterday evening, according to the Department of Player Safety. During the play in question, Dunn received the puck below the goal line in Seattle’s defensive zone, with his back completely turned to the rest of the ice. Pospisil delivered a body check to Dunn while he was in a vulnerable spot, and was issued a five-minute major penalty on the play.
  • Sticking in Calgary, Ryan Pike of Flames Nation is reporting that the Flames have placed forward Connor Zary on the team’s injured reserve, retroactively to the team’s game on Saturday. This allowed Calgary to open up a roster this afternoon to claim defenseman Joel Hanley off of waivers from the Dallas Stars.

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Calgary Flames Claim Joel Hanley Off Waivers

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The Calgary Flames have claimed defenseman Joel Hanley off waivers from the Dallas Stars, per a team announcement. In now his 9th season in the NHL, Hanley has spent the last six years of his career in Texas.

Less than a week after trading pending unrestricted free agent Chris Tanev to the Stars, the General Manager of the Flames, Craig Conroy, has added a Stars defenseman to their arsenal. Primarily used as an extra defenseman throughout his tenure in Dallas, Hanley will now have the opportunity for more playing time, especially as Calgary continues to move out expiring pieces from the organization’s blue line.

A defensive defenseman through and through, Hanley has suited up in 32 games for the Stars this season, tallying three assists in the process. Averaging over 13 minutes a night for the fourth time in his career, Hanley regularly averages one blocked shot and one hit a game.

Until more trades are made in Calgary, Hanley will likely suit up on the bottom-pairing alongside fellow waiver claim, Brayden Pachal. Furthermore, Hanley may be able to replace either Noah Hanifin or Oliver Kylington on the left side of the team’s penalty-killing units if either is moved out before the trade deadline.

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