Ranking the 10 best Calgary Flames draft picks in recent memory
By Nathan Smith
9. Jeremie Poirier – No. 72 overall in 2020
The Calgary Flames are relying heavily on some of their top prospects down in the AHL to develop, and one name that the entire franchise have their eyes on is Jeremie Poirier, the 21-year old that showed fantastic improvements throughout the 2022-23 AHL campaign with the Calgary Wranglers. With their ageing blue line, the Flames desperately need one of their defensive prospects to come through the system in a big way, and after 9 goals and 32 assists for 41 points in his first AHL season, the future looks bright for Poirier.
In four seasons at the QMJHL level, Poirier managed to put up 168 points, and with his defensive play improving massively with the Wranglers, he may just be what the future of this team needs, and after landing him in the third round, it may turn out to be one of their best picks of this era.
8. Dillon Dube – No. 56 overall in 2016
While the Calgary Flames have landed some star level players in the draft, sometimes, they find themselves solid players who are capable of contributing at the NHL level, and while some believe Dillon Dube is capable of more, he has simply been reliable to this point in his career. The Flames landed the Team Canada World Junior Classic captain in the second round of the 2016 draft, and at just 24-years of age, he’s got 282 games of NHL experience under his belt, putting together 54 goals and 66 assists for 120 points over that time, making him a solid depth piece for Calgary.
After seeing time on the first line for much of the 2022-23 campaign, Dube put together a career high 45 points, and if he continues to grow and develop, getting him in the second round will look like an absolute steal for Calgary one day.