Matt Pelech And The 2005 Draft For The Calgary Flames

The 2005 NHL Draft came to Ottawa as the 2004-2005 season lock out drew to a close.   Draft spots were selected by lottery, and the Calgary Flames ended up picking 26th overall.  First pick overall went to the Pittsburgh Penguins who selected Sidney Crosby, to no one’s surprise.  For Calgary’s first selection they went with a defenseman Matt Pelech from the London Kinghts.

Pelech had only 5 games with the Calgary Flames and has just completed a season with the Worcester Sharks in the AHL, he did manage 3 points in those 5 games.  Pelech was unfortunately not used to his full potential as a fighter by the Flames.  Whether they did not realize his skill set lay in a brutal pounding or chose not to tailor their game to that style of play, the pick of Pelech seems now almost a waste.

Who else went during Pelech’s draft year?

• Steve Downie
• Matt Niskanen
• James Neal
• Marc-Edouard Vlasic
• Paul Stastny
• Mason Raymond
• Kris Letang
• Jonathan Quick
• Keith Yandle
• Patric Hornqvist

Could have been a very different Calgary Flames team coming out of that draft.  While Pelech did not turn out well for the Flames, he did manage to have a successful career with the Sharks organization.