Still waiting: Porter Martone (2025)
Last years No. 6 overall pick was Porter Martone of the Philadelphia Flyers, and while he's still in the 'still waiting' tier, there's a very good chance that we won't be waiting to move him up a tier (or even two) for long. After a stellar season at Michigan State, Martone arrived in Philly late in the season, posting an impressive 4 goals and 10 points in his first 9 games with the organization.
Then, the Stanley Cup Playoffs rolled around, and while Martone's impact wasn't as big against Carolina, he came up huge with some big goals against Pittsburgh, ending the post-season with 2 goals and 5 points in 10 games. He may not have the highest ceiling coming out of the 2025 draft, but right now, Martone looks like a potential star, and if the Flames landed a player of this quality, they'd no doubt be very, very happy.
Tij Iginla (2024)
Tij Iginla was a name many linked to the Flames back in 2024, but when they came to the board at No. 9, he had already been announced as the first pick in Utah Mammoth (then Hockey Club) history. As a result, the team went with potential star of the future Zayne Parekh, but how are things looking for the son of a Calgary Flames legend?
Iginla has unfortunately dealt with some injury issues, but when healthy, he's been a star in the WHL for the Kelowna Rockets, posting 55 goals and 122 points in just 69 games over the past two seasons. The 19-year old is yet to make his NHL debut, but if he can be anywhere near as effective as he has been throughout his junior career, the expectation is that he will be at least a good NHLer when he finds his way to the next level, likely in 2026/27.
Dmitry Simashev (2023)
The Arizona Coyotes were very swing and miss on their prospects late in their franchise life cycle, and in 2023, the team took a massive swing on Russian defenseman Dmitry Simashev. Given his size at 6-foot-4, 198 pounds, it was an easy choice to make for Arizona, and while his development has been slow, at 21-years of age in 2025/26, he took a major leap forward.
This past season in the AHL, Simashev tallied 8 goals and 35 points in 40 games played, and while he had just 1 assist across 28 games in his first NHL campaign with the Utah Mammoth, the potential is still clearly there. Whether he'll be a top pairing blue liner or not, only time will tell, but given the amount of defenseman in the 2026 NHL Draft, it's likely the Flames could look to a similar style player as Simashev.
David Jiricek (2022)
David Jiricek's professional career has been a rollercoaster ride thus far, as he has been traded not once, but twice by the age of 22, going from Columbus to Minnesota and this past season, to Philadelphia.
In the AHL, Jiricek has been very productive, but at the highest level, he's struggled to find consistency, tallying just 2 goals and 13 points in 85 games played between the three franchises. Unfortunately, the ceiling for Jiricek in the NHL continues to fall, and while he once had immense potential, right now that appears to be wasted, and if the Flames end up in this situation, it will be a major failure for Craig Conroy and the organization.
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