2. Samuel Honzek
Heading into the past two seasons, Samuel Honzek has been a training camp standout for the Flames, and after he put on 15 pounds last year, he won a spot on the roster coming out of the pre-season. Unfortunately, an injury ended Honzek's campaign after just 18 games played, but in that time he posted 2 goals and 4 points, finding himself more and more comfortable on a line with Blake Coleman and Mikael Backlund.
This year, he'll need to find new linemates if he wants to make a push for a middle-six role, but with Coleman's departure and the uncertainty around Jonathan Huberdeau, the time is now for Honzek to take one of those spots on a full-time basis.
At this point in time, Honzek is the type of player that the Flames should be prioritizing, and while places like Daily Faceoff don't yet have him in the top-12 forwards, with a good training camp, he should have a key place in the Flames lineup.
1. Jonathan Castagna
Last year, the Flames made some major moves, and for the most part, the focus of those moves were future draft pieces, as the team added several first and second round picks in the years to come. However, the deal for Mackenzie Weegar included one key prospect in Jonathan Castagna, a centre that won the Defensive Forward of the Year award in the ECAC with Cornell University.
He's not just defense however, as the 21-year-old also had his best offensive campaign, posting 15 goals and 34 points across 34 games played, and now, he's signed his Entry Level Contract set to begin in 2026/27. While he's not going to push for a top-six spot in Calgary, Castagna shapes up as the perfect long-term Mikael Backlund replacement in the bottom-six, and this season, there's a good chance he gets the first opportunity to prove himself in the NHL.
At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, Castagna has the balance as a player to be a very good NHLer one day, and while the team may want him to get some seasoning down in the AHL first, with a good training camp and pre-season, he could be a dark horse to take a bottom-six centre role next season.
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