AHL team: Abbotsford Heat
NHL affiliate: Calgary Flames
Home rink: Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre, Abbotsford, B.C.
NHL experience on 2012-13 roster: T.J. Brodie, Roman Horak, Krys Kolanos, Steve McCarthy
2011-12 record: 42-26-3 (2nd, North Division; lost in second round of
playoffs to Toronto)
2011-12 leading scorer: Krys Kolanos, 61 points (in only 47 games)
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What you need to know:
All eyes will be on 2011 13th-overall pick Sven Baertschi. After a reign of safe drafting by former general manager Darryl Sutter, the Flames have begun to swing for the fences lately under Jay Feaster. Baertschi has top-line NHL talent and has started his 2012-13 season with a bang, tallying four points in the Heat’s first two games, including this beauty of a goal:
Technically, there aren’t any players from the Calgary Flames roster from last season playing for the Abbotsford Heat this season, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t players with NHL experience on this team.
After being decimated by injuries last year, the Flames were forced to call up several players from its AHL affiliate in Abbotsford. Benefiting from a depleted blue line, T.J. Brodie stepped up and played
54 games for the Flames last year. The former fourth-rounder will quarterback the Heat power-play and will be the No. 1 puck-handling option from the back end, despite being the team’s youngest defender. Second-year head coach Troy Ward says Brodie “has to learn to simplify and keep things really simple. He has great feet; we need to work on his vision.”
Roman Horak will also be a steadying force down the middle after logging 61 games for the Flames last year. Other players who gained exposure with the big club in 2011-12 include Lance Bouma (27 games), Paul Byron (22), Krys Kolanos (13), Greg Nemisz (nine), Leland Irving (seven), Baertschi (five), Joe Piskula (five), and Akim Aliu (two).
Fun fact: The Heat are a bit isolated as the westernmost team in the AHL. They are the only club in the league within the Pacific Time Zone and there aren’t any teams in the Mountain Time Zone, leaving the Heat quite distanced from their rivals.
Cheapest ticket:$15
