Tuneup time is over. The next one counts in the standings.
The Calgary Flames concluded their exhibition slate with Friday’s 3-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets at the Saddledome.
The Flames, after a 5-2-1 record during their dry runs, will now turn their attention to Wednesday’s regular-season opener against the Canucks in Vancouver. General manager Craig Conroy has some work to do in the meantime, needing to send four to the minors prior to Monday’s roster deadline.
“I think we’ve done a good job in practice and games to work on the things that we needed to work on and now next game, it’s game on,” said Flames captain Mikael Backlund. “Now, we’re focusing on Wednesday and you can tell guys are excited already that it’s coming up.”
Both teams dressed the majority of their stars Friday, with Backlund and Jonathan Huberdeau doing the lamp-lighting for the home side, both on dandy deflections in the final frame.
There is some concern about Flames sharpshooter Yegor Sharangovich, who headed immediately to the locker-room after an awkward fall while tangled up with an opponent in the late stages. During his post-game presser, coach Ryan Huska did not have an update on Sharangovich, Calgary’s leading marksman last season.
Here are three takeaways from Friday’s exhibition capper, including our best guess at the 23-man roster …
HELLO HONZEK?
It’s been quite a while since a teenager cracked the Flames’ opening roster. You’d have to go back to the days of Sean Monahan, Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk.
Sam Honzek, at 19, should be the latest addition to the list.
The difference is those other dudes were all ineligible for the AHL when they made their debuts in the Flaming C logo. Honzek could be assigned to the AHL’s Wranglers — and that transaction wouldn’t require waivers — but this pre-season revelation has undoubtedly earned a look at the big-league level.
This power-forward prospect appeared in six exhibition games, pacing the team with seven points and a plus-8 rating in his six opportunities to impress the brass.
While Honzek was held off the scoresheet in his final audition, the young Slovak didn’t do anything his play his way out of a roster spot. At least not from this vantage point.
He was clearly mindful of his defensive responsibilities, a non-negotiable when you’re skating along Calgary’s top shutdown centre in Backlund, and continued to show confidence with the puck and zero hesitation in his board battles. (Honzek was on the ice for Winnipeg’s winner, but he wasn’t the one guilty of a missed assignment. That was Connor Zary’s man.)
“I did everything I could,” Honzek said after Friday’s final buzzer. “Now, it’s not up to me. It’s up to coaches and management to decide what’s next and what’s good for me.
“I can say, ‘You know, I did the job I had to do here.’ I think I left a good message here.”
THE BACKSTOP BATTLE
You’d love to be a fly on the wall at the Saddledome — or part of the camera crew for ‘The Chase’ — as the coaches debate who will be between the pipes for the curtain-raiser against the Canucks.
It was the big question at the start of training camp, and both Dan Vladar and Dustin Wolf made a case for the Night 1 nod.
Vladar, 27, is the most experienced option, having served as Jacob Markstrom’s backup for the past three winters. He stopped 14 of 17 on Friday, including a gorgeous glove on Vladislav Namestnikov. Among the pucks that did sneak past him, a pair came from guys who had slipped their checks.
The 23-year-old Wolf, typically billed as the Flames’ goaltender-of-the-future, posted a .900 save percentage in 160 minutes of exhibition action. That stat-line was far more spiffy before the Jets scored three unanswered in Wednesday’s third period in Winnipeg. (Similarly, Vladar’s numbers took a hit Friday, with his save percentage dipping to .895.)
Devin Cooley also had a strong camp, showing flashes of why the Flames were so excited to get him signed this summer, but he will likely wait his turn with the AHL’s Wranglers.
“I think they all know that they’re going to play,” said Flames goalie coach Jason LaBarbera after Friday’s morning skate. “You don’t know when you’re going to play, but you know you’re going to get opportunities. If you’re not the guy that is in the first night, it doesn’t matter. You obviously want that assignment, but you know you’re going to get a chance to play quite a bit of hockey.”
PROJECTING THE 23
After eight pre-season games, and after careful consideration of the waiver implications, taking a crack at the Flames’ opening roster …
FORWARDS
Yegor Sharangovich-Nazem Kadri-Andrei Kuzmenko
Jonathan Huberdeau-Martin Pospisil-Anthony Mantha
Connor Zary-Mikael Backlund-Blake Coleman
Ryan Lomberg-Kevin Rooney-Adam Klapka
Extras: Sam Honzek, Jakob Pelletier
DEFENCEMEN
Kevin Bahl-Rasmus Andersson
MacKenzie Weegar-Daniil Miromanov
Jake Bean-Brayden Pachal
Extra: Tyson Barrie
GOALIES
Dan Vladar
Dustin Wolf
FINAL CUTS — G Devin Cooley (requires waivers), RW Matt Coronato, D Joel Hanley (requires waivers), C Cole Schwindt (requires waivers).
The rationale: Honzek should be rewarded with a spot on the roster, although he may have to wait until Game 2 or Game 3 before he is tapped for his solo lap. Unless Honzek is demoted, three of these four dudes — Cooley, Hanley, Pelletier and Schwindt — will be placed on waivers to be assigned to the Wranglers. There’s some fear that Cooley could be plucked, but if it comes down to protecting your third-string goalie or one of your recent first-round picks, shouldn’t that be an easy decision? That’s why we’re opting to keep Pelletier. He’s still only 23 and if there’s an early injury (or if Honzek hits the wall as a rookie and requires a reset in the AHL), he’s a guy that you’d like to keep in the organization. If Sharangovich will miss time, you could reunite Zary with Kadri and Kuzmenko and Honzek could suit up in Vancouver, where he was playing junior last winter for the WHL’s Giants.