Calgary Flames defenseman Zayne Parekh left Friday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks after sustaining an upper-body injury in the second period.
Parekh, 19, left the game early in the second period after being on the receiving end of a heavy hit along the boards by Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno. The Flames officially ruled their rookie defender out of the rest of the game later in the period.
Before leaving the game, Parekh logged 6:25 of ice time over seven shifts. Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar suffered an injury of his own earlier in the game after colliding awkwardly with Joel Farabee and was also ruled out by his team during the second period.
Friday’s game at the Saddledome was marred by physicality and post-whistle engagements, with three fights over the first two periods. The Blackhawks led the Flames by a 1-0 score off a Tyler Bertuzzi power-play goal after 40 minutes.
The Flames originally selected Parekh with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. The 6’0″ right-handed defenseman spent the 2024-25 season with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit, collecting 33 goals and 107 points in 61 games; he also made his NHL debut with the Flames in their season finale against the Los Angeles Kings, scoring his first NHL goal.
Through 11 games with the Flames this season, Parekh has collected one assist while primarily playing bottom-pairing minutes. The Markham, Ontario product is one of the youngest players in the NHL and has been in and out of the Flames’ lineup as part of their development plan for him.
Parekh remains eligible to play for Team Canada at the upcoming IIHF World Junior Championship, provided that he is in good health at that time, the Flames allow him to participate, and — most importantly — that Hockey Canada elects to include him on their roster after leaving him off last year.
