The 2025/26 NHL season was an overall struggle for the Calgary Flames, and while there were positives, there were many young players that went through their own individual ups-and-downs. From Zayne Parekh to Yan Kuznetsov to Matvei Gridin, many Flames rookies struggled to find their way early in their NHL tenures, but now, the majority of them seem fairly settled into their role.
That was something that became apparent after the trade deadline, as the Flames moved Rasmus Andersson, Mackenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri, opening up significant new roles for those young players. It appeared as though that also coincided with Head Coach Ryan Huska taking the reigns off some of his young players, and that was a move that Connor Zary was seemingly happy to call out during his exit interview on Friday.
A common complaint among Flames fans recently has been the lack of trust placed in the young players, and after Zayne Parekh's stunning goal on Thursday, it became even more apparent that these players need to be given the green light. Zary is one that hasn't been given that green light in recent years, instead he's been sent up and down the lineup, and at any sign of struggle, he's been reigned in far too quickly.
While he didn't call out Ryan Huska by name, Zary unleashed his frustrations on Friday, explaining why young players in the NHL need to be given the opportunity to succeed or fail on their own merits on the ice, and how the opportunity to go out and make mistakes is what builds confidence.
"When you have younger guys with talent and skill, you don't want to hold them back. You don't want to put a leash on them, right? At the end of the day, who gives a shit if they go out there an make a mistake. It's going to happen."Connor Zary
Connor Zary is bang on with this take.
— Robert Munnich (@RingOfFireCGY) April 17, 2026
"When you have younger guys with talent and skill, you don't want to hold them back. You don't want to put a leash on them, right? At the end of the day, who gives a shit if they go out there an make a mistake. It's going to happen." pic.twitter.com/SIWGZ7SSO1
While Zary didn't show much frustration and kept his answer very polite, no one would be surprised if he found himself frustrated many times throughout the 2025/26 season, as an injury and constant line shuffles once again stifled what could have been a breakout campaign. Overall, Zary ended the season with 12 goals and 25 points in 74 games, but with constant limitations and being stuck in the bottom-six for much of the season, it's hard for him to find any type of consistency.
Ultimately, it's unlikely to be this comment that forces the Flames front office into moving Zary, as there is a chance this is the way they make room for someone such as Aydar Suniev or Samuel Honzek, but if this is Zary's last time as a Flame, he went out dropping a major truth bomb on the coaching staff.
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