No. 36 Overall: C Ryder Cali, North Bay (OHL)
Last year, the Flames took a shot on not one, not two but three centres with their first three selections (Reschny, Potter, Stockselius), and this year, they'll need to take a shot on at least one, if not two more in the first three rounds.
At No. 36, The Athletic have the Flames taking a shot on Ontario native Ryder Cali, who had limited opportunities across two seasons in the OHL, appearing in 47 games for the North Bay Battalion a year ago. In that time, the 17-year-old had 16 goals and 36 points, and while the Flames drafted for skill down the middle a year ago, Cali would give them size at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds.
If this was the pick for the Flames, it would represent the lowest ceiling of centres drafted in the first two-rounds under Conroy, but given the size and the potential he showed at a young age, he could be a steal for the Flames here.
No. 35 Overall: G Tobias Trejbal, Youngstown (USHL)
This is the pick that the Calgary Flames used in the Simon Nemec trade, but given that they once owned the 35 and 36 pick, keeping this pick in for this article will allow Flames fans to get a sense of who will be available at the selection.
For the second time in the pre-draft process, The Athletic have gone with a puzzling move for the Flames, drafting Tobias Trejbal, a goaltender from the USHL. Sure, he's got great size and has been dominant, but given that the Flames already have Dustin Wolf, Devin Cooley, Kirill Zarubin and Arsenii Sergeev in the organization, it's simply not a need this high in the draft.
Trejbal is considered the best goaltender in the draft, but if the Flames use their only second now at the top of the round to draft a goalie, it will be the first major mistake of Craig Conroy's tenure in the draft.
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