The Calgary Flames have gotten off to a rough start to the 2025-26 NHL season and are already facing plenty of questions just past the quarter mark of the campaign. Chief among them is what to do with one of their best young players, Zayne Parekh.
The 19-year-old has played in just 11 NHL games this season and has averaged a mere 14:46 of ice time per night. With his remaining eligibility in the CHL, as well as a potential opportunity with Hockey Canada at the World Juniors, what could the next few months hold for him and the Flames?
Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis joined Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff Live with hosts Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton to break down the plans around Parekh.
Yaremchuk: What should the Flames be doing with Zayne Parekh? He’s played in only about 60 percent of the team’s games, has only one point, and last played against the Chicago Blackhawks 10 days ago, with just six minutes of ice time. What do they do with Parekh for the rest of the year?
Ellis: I wouldn’t mind him staying with the NHL team up until the World Juniors, and then sending him to that training camp, letting him get that confidence back and then kind of evaluate from there.
Maybe the best plan for him is to go back to the Saginaw Spirit. They’ve got some good players there, and just focus on getting stronger. That, to me, was one of the big things about him going to the next level: Is he going to be able to handle that physical game? It feels like he’s been out-muscled way too often this year. He’s got a lot of skill with the puck, but they’re not really playing him in those premier power play positions there either.
Calgary is obviously playing terribly right now…. Go win a gold medal and maybe try and lead Saginaw to the Memorial Cup again and see what happens there. It’s still a wait-and-see. But right now, don’t send him down to the OHL before the World Juniors, just let him stick with the NHL coaching staff, learn from those pros, and then go from there.
You can catch the whole Next Wave segment and the rest of Monday’s episode right here…
