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Flames Sign Waltteri Ignatjew To One-Year Deal

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Update: CapFriendly reports Ignatjew is signed to an entry-level deal, meaning he can be assigned to the ECHL without player approval.

The Flames have signed goaltender Waltteri Ignatjew to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2024-25 season, per a team announcement. Financial terms were not disclosed. He’s destined for minor-league assignment next season and won’t be loaned out to Europe, reports Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960, although Flames Nation’s Ryan Pike points out he could reject an assignment to ECHL Rapid City because he’s signed to a standard player contract, not an entry-level one.

Ignatjew, 24, has spent nearly all of his professional career in second-tier pro leagues in Finland and Sweden. His only top-level experience came via a five-game stint with Jukurit in the Finnish Liiga in 2021-22.

Undrafted, the 6’3″ Finn seemed to find his footing this season with Mora IK in Sweden’s second-tier league, HockeyAllsvenskan. 2023-24 was the first time Ignatjew hadn’t changed teams or loaned to an affiliate club mid-season, erupting as Mora’s bonafide starter and appearing in 45 of 52 regular-season games. He managed a strong .918 SV% and 2.34 GAA, compiling a 26-18 record with four shutouts. Mora finished fifth in the league and advanced to the semifinal, losing to the recently demoted Djurgårdens IF. They’ve spent most of the last 15 years in the Allsvenskan, save for a two-year SHL stint in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Ignatjew was a big part of their playoff run to the final four, mirroring his regular-season showing with a .918 SV% and 2.16 GAA in 12 games.

The Helsinki native likely wasn’t on many teams’ radars, and he lacks international experience to complement his resume, but he’s a low-risk signing who can be buried in the minors without needing waivers to start. Calgary only had three goalies under contract next season with farmhand Oscar Dansk on an expiring deal, so Ignatjew could be in line to replace Dansk’s spot as the backup for AHL Calgary behind top prospect Dustin Wolf if he’s not in the majors to begin 2024-25.

Ignatjew will be an RFA in the 2025 offseason upon completion of his deal.

Flames Recall Adam Klapka

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The Flames announced that they’ve recalled forward Adam Klapka from AHL Calgary. The Czech big man could be in line to see NHL ice over their final two games of the season.

Klapka, 23, went undrafted and had to rise through the Czech junior and professional ranks and the United States Hockey League before landing an entry-level contract in free agency with Calgary before last season. He’s played in 64 games for the Wranglers this season, leading the team with 21 goals and 45 points. It’s a sizable step forward for the massive 6’8″, 245-lb winger, who mustered only 25 points in 60 AHL games last year.

He’s been hot to end the season, too, notching eight points in his last 10. He made his NHL debut on a four-game recall back in January, but averaged just 6:08 per game and posted a -1 rating without recording a point. He took one minor penalty (rookie numbers compared to his 88 PIMs in the minors) and logged 13 hits.

If he gets back into the lineup, it’s likely to be in a fourth-line role again. Klapka needs a new deal this summer as a pending RFA with arbitration rights, something Flames GM Craig Conroy will likely be amicable toward after his minor-league breakout. He’s owed a qualifying offer of $814K.

Joel Hanley, Blake Coleman Return To Practice

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  • At the team’s skate this morning, Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet reported that Calgary Flames defenseman Joel Hanley has returned to practice after missing the last five games due to an undisclosed injury. As expected, the Flames organization thinned out their defensive core at this year’s trade deadline, bringing in Hanley via waivers from the Dallas Stars to keep quality depth within their system. In 10 games since being claimed by Calgary, Hanley has scored one goal and two points in total, averaging 14:32 of ice time per night.
  • Staying in Calgary, in the same report from Steinberg, he reported that forward Blake Coleman also returned to the ice for practice, but not as a full participant. Coleman has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, and may not be able to hit the 30-goal threshold for the first time in his career. Nevertheless, Coleman has had an impressive offensive season based on his previous years, scoring 29 goals and 52 points over 77 games for the Flames this season.

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Blake Coleman Out, Two Prospects Added

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The Calgary Flames will be without forward Blake Coleman, who is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, per Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg (Twitter link). Coleman suffered the injury on a hard hit from San Jose Sharks defenseman Kyle Burroughs, though he finished out the game.

Coleman has found a new layer to his game on the struggling Flames roster, posting an impressive 29 goals, 23 assists, and 52 points in 77 games. Each of those represents a career-high for the 32-year-old, who hasn’t topped even 40 points in any of his seven seasons up to this point. He and winger Yegor Sharangovich—who’s posted 30 goals of his own—have been pivotal to the Flames this season, setting the pace for the team’s limited offense.

The Flames are well outside of a playoff spot, removing some of the stress of finding a fill-in for Coleman. Kevin Rooney is expected to slot into the lineup for the short term. Calgary has five games left in its season.

One player who won’t be filling in is 2023 first-round pick Samuel Hoznek, who is in Calgary after the end of his WHL season, though he’s nursing an injury that could hold him out, per Ryan Pike of Flames Nation (Twitter link). Calgary signed Honzek last summer, loaning him to the WHL’s Vancouver Giants for the season. He returns to the Calgary organization alongside WHL teammate Jaden Lipinski, who has signed an amateur try-out contract with the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers. Honzek will also close out the season with the Wranglers once he’s cleared to play.

Calgary Flames Reassign Etienne Morin To AHL

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With his 2023-24 season coming to an end with the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL, the Calgary Flames announced that Etienne Morin has been reassigned to the organization’s AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers. Having yet to sign his entry-level contract with the Flames organization, Morin will play with the Wranglers for the remainder of the season on an amateur tryout agreement.

Morin originally came to the Flames organization by way of the 48th overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft. In his draft year, Morin was a very efficient defenseman for the Wildcats, scoring 21 goals and 72 points in 67 games while also achieving a +/- rating of 29.

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Pacific Notes: Kylington, Lindholm, McCann, Dunn

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The Calgary Flames have confirmed that defenseman Oliver Kylington is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Kylington left Saturday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers after a collision with teammate Nazem Kadri. The 26-year-old didn’t practice with the team today and could miss the rest of the season depending on the severity of the injury. The Flames have just six games left in the season and will miss this year’s playoffs.

Kylington returned to the Flames in late January after taking a year and a half away from the team and dressed in 28 games since then, posting two goals and three assists to go along with 18 hits and 44 blocked shots. He appeared to get more comfortable as the season went on before this past weekend’s unfortunate injury.

In other Pacific Division notes:

  • Vancouver Canucks play-by-play voice Brendan Batchelor tweeted that forward Elias Lindholm re-joined the team today for the morning skate after an extended absence. The 29-year-old last played on March 23rd and missed six games due to an undisclosed injury. The Canucks high-priced acquisition has not fit in with Vancouver the way they expected as he has a disappointing five goals and four assists in 22 games. The Canucks have struggled without Lindholm, going 2-4 in his absence, and their penalty kill has fallen off without him going 68.2% in the six games he missed.
  • Kate Shefte of The Seattle Times Sports tweeted that Seattle Kraken forward Jared McCann and defenseman Vince Dunn are unlikely to dress tomorrow night when the team takes on the Arizona Coyotes. Both players missed practice today and were labelled doubtful for tomorrow by Kraken head coach Dave Hakstol. McCann has had another strong season with 28 goals and 32 assists in 75 games, while Dunn has also been terrific with 11 goals and 35 assists in 59 games. The Kraken have just two home games left in a disappointing season that will see them miss the playoffs.

Flames Recall Ilya Solovyov

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The Flames have recalled defenseman Ilya Solovyov from AHL Calgary, per a team announcement. He comes up from the Wranglers after Oliver Kylington left Saturday’s loss to the Oilers late after colliding with teammate Nazem Kadri. Calgary has yet to give Kylington an official injury designation.

This is the 23-year-old Belarusian’s third career recall. The Flames brought him up for a four-day stint in late October and again for over two weeks in December. Both of those recalls were standard ones, while today’s comes under emergency conditions, according to CapFriendly.

The 2020 seventh-round pick has made six appearances across his two previous recalls. In that time, Solovyov captured his first two NHL points, both assists, and recorded a -3 rating with four PIMs, nine blocks, and eight hits. He did so in bottom-pairing minutes, averaging 14:59 per game.

Calgary has eight defensemen on the NHL roster, six of them healthy. Other than Kylington, Joel Hanley is day to day with an undisclosed injury. If Solovyov remains on the roster longer than necessary for the Flames to ice a minimum of six defenders, they’ll need to place him on their roster from his emergency loan.

Solovyov has put together a solid body of work since joining the Flames’ system in 2021, displaying his strengths as a confident outlet passer with a physical edge. He isn’t much of a factor in the offensive zone, but the 6’3″, 207-lb blue-liner has proven valuable in transition. He has 40 points and a +25 rating in 169 games with AHL Calgary and Stockton over the past three seasons, including 14 points and a +2 rating in 50 contests this season.

He’s in the final season of his three-year entry-level contract. He has arbitration rights if he reaches restricted free agency this summer, and he’s due a qualifying offer of $814K.

Martin Pospisil Will Not Receive Supplemental Discipline

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  • In the Calgary Flames most recent matchup against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night, forward Martin Pospisil delivered a check to Jets’ defenseman Josh Morrissey, with Pospisil’s elbow appearing to make contact with Morrissey’s chin. Pospisil was ejected based on the play; however, it does not appear that the league will be giving him supplemental discipline (X Link). Earlier this year, Pospisil hit Kraken defenseman Vince Dunn from behind and was suspended for three games by the Department of Player Safety.

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Andrew Mangiapane Could Return Thursday

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  • Flames winger Andrew Mangiapane could return tomorrow against the Jets after a three-game absence, head coach Ryan Huska told Pat Steinberg of Sportsnet 960. The 27-year-old sustained an undisclosed injury against the Blackhawks on March 26, causing his third, fourth and fifth absences of the season. It’s been another season of solid middle-six production for the diminutive winger, tied for sixth on the team in scoring with 13 goals and 38 points in 69 games. He’s averaging 16:06 per game, down from last season’s career-high of 16:49.

Joel Hanley Leaves Game Early

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New York Rangers reporter Vince Z. Mercogliano writes that Rangers defenseman Erik Gustafsson could return to the lineup tonight when they take on the New Jersey Devils. The 32-year-old journeyman told reporters yesterday that he was 100% after he practiced with the team wearing a regular contact jersey.

Gustafsson has been out of the lineup since taking an elbow to the head from Florida Panthers forward Sam Reinhart on March 23rd. He missed four games since but took his usual spot on the Rangers third pairing alongside Braden Schneider. The native of Nynashamn, Sweden has six goals and 24 assists this season in 70 games while averaging 17:15 of ice time per game.

In other morning notes:

  • Ryan Pike of Flames Nation tweeted that the Calgary Flames didn’t have an update on defenseman Joel Hanley after last night’s 5-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks. Hanley started the game on the Flames top unit but played just six shifts for 3:44 in the first period and left the game without completing the period. The 32-year-old didn’t appear on the team’s bench for the second or third period and not much is known about what sort of issue kept him off of the ice. Hanley was acquired off waivers from the Dallas Stars on March 5th and has dressed in ten games for Calgary, tallying a goal and an assist.
  • Former Philadelphia Flyers forward Jordan Weal has signed a two-year extension to remain in the KHL with Dynamo Moskva. Weal just completed his third KHL season, and second with Dynamo and is now locked up through the 2025-26 season. Weal hasn’t dressed in an NHL game since the 2020 playoffs when he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens. Weal had a breakthrough offensive season this year, finishing fourth in KHL scoring with 30 goals and 47 assists in 66 games having the most successful season by a Canadian forward in KHL history

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