CALGARY — The Calgary Flames enter this week's NHL Draft with more draft capital than the franchise has ever had, and general manager Craig Conroy is determined to leverage every option available.
Holding 11 selections, including sixth overall and eight in the top 68, the Flames are positioned to be among the draft's most active teams.
In a wide-ranging Q & A with Sportsnet, Conroy said he believes the uncertainty surrounding the order of how top-tier talent will be selected could create opportunities for movement, whether that means trading up, packaging picks, or targeting young players already in the professional ranks.
While Calgary's need for offensive firepower has sparked speculation the club will prioritize a forward, Conroy insists the focus remains on identifying the "right player" rather than simply filling a positional need.
With four second-round selections drawing interest from rival clubs, and trade discussions expected to intensify as draft day approaches, the Flames appear poised to play a central role in what Conroy expects to be one of the more unpredictable drafts in recent memory.
Sportsnet: With 11 draft picks to make, is this the most important — or biggest — draft for the organization since you’ve been there?
Craig Conroy: This is a huge draft, but every year always seems like it's the most important. With eight picks in the top 68, that's big, and it gives us a lot of ammunition to either make picks, move them or make trades. The options are definitely one of the things that makes it exciting for us. I don't think it's clear-cut who's going to go where, at what position.
SN: Do you think you have a good idea of how the top six is going to shake out?
CC: I don't. I think it's one of those years where they're all really good players. People say "take the best player," but I think each player has a different trait that might be something that a team feels is better because he does XYZ. In years past, it was like, These are the top players, this is the order, this is how it's going to go, and usually we're pretty right on, for the most part. The one year we didn't see the way the draft was going was the (Matthew) Tkachuk year (he was selected sixth in 2016 by Calgary). Maybe people didn't expect (Beckett) Sennecke going third (in 2024) either, but that's how I feel like this draft could be — it won't be set in stone. They never are, but I don't think it would be crazy to see different names go in the top five.
SN: Are there a lot of conversations being had right now between GMs owning the top five or 10 picks, discussing the what-if scenarios that could lay the groundwork for a draft-day deal?
CC: We ask a lot, "Are you willing to move the pick if your guy's not there?" They're not going to tell me now, but on draft day, they can say, "Hey, the guy we targeted is this. If he's there, we're making the pick. If not, we're open to moving." Those are the conversations right now. They're not going to tip their hand this early, and I wouldn't either. But as the day of the draft closes in, those conversations really start picking up.
SN: What are the odds you can move up from the sixth-overall pick?
CC: You're always looking to move up, so you want to see what it costs, or if there's even a possibility. You hear the rumours and read online that a team is willing to move, but until it gets to the draft day, I think everybody keeps their cards pretty close. They're not really sharing a ton on the draft. It's always tough to move up, especially in the top five.
SN: Is it fair to say that it’s probably pretty remote that you'll use all 11 picks?
CC: You could, but are there chances for our second pick (30th overall) to move up? Are there trades? Are there age-appropriate players (ages 21-23) out there? Is there a young guy who maybe needs a change of scenery? You're looking at all those options.
The one thing I will say, as we get closer to the draft, is I get a lot of calls from teams that maybe don't have a second- or third-round pick, or want to add a pick. Our picks in the second round are a little bit earlier than other teams, and those are great picks too. So, there are definitely lots of calls and conversations with teams about all our picks, especially like the second-round picks. Having four of them definitely gives us a lot of different avenues we can go, and we're going to explore all of them to try to do what's best for the team. So we're dialled in on making the picks, but we're also exploring all those different options to go in different directions.
SN: Doesn’t it start to get tricky to accommodate all your prospects in your organization if you make all 11 picks?
CC: Yeah, but everyone's going to be at different stages. If you took 11 guys, you're going to have some guys that go to college and you're going to have up to four years on those guys. When the majority of those players were coming out of major junior, you had two years to make a decision. That's very quick. You do have a little bit more runway now. We could easily make all 11 picks, and they would be spread out, some would come out next year, some would come out in three or four years. But you're right, it's a lot of picks and that's why you're trying to figure out on draft day if we can move up. Last year, we had a couple times where maybe we could’ve moved up, unless they had a player that they wanted. The deal fell through, we couldn't move up. You're prepared for every scenario, and that's the key.
SN: It appears the Flames slot perfectly for any number of defencemen at No. 6, but the organization needs scoring. What do you say to fans and media types imploring the club to draft a forward?
CC: I understand. When you're one of the lower-scoring teams in the NHL, I 100 per cent understand why they look at it that way. But a lot of times your defence drives offence from the back, the way they move pucks up, the way they join rushes, the way they help create more offence. I understand where they come from with a forward, but I also think if you can get a solid defenceman, that's going to be very important to your team too.
You're always trying to figure out ways to help the scoring up front, and the most logical way is, "Hey, let's get a front-line forward that can score and put up 80 points," but they're just not that easy to find. You have to usually draft and develop, and it takes some time. Come draft day, we want to make sure we take the right player for us. I'm not going to the best player, I'm going to say the right player.
SN: Can you elaborate on that?
CC: Because it's hard to say who's going to be the best player. These guys are four or five years away from saying who's the best player. Look back, where's (Sean) Monahan fit in? Where does Tkachuk fit in? Where does Bennett fit in? Those were high picks for us, but maybe on draft day people were saying, "Hey, they're not the highest," or "They were a steal."
Now, we look back, and Tkachuk is probably the second-best player in that draft. Sam Bennett winning a Conn Smythe Trophy — exactly where should he be, or should he be higher? Should he be lower? You can debate years later, but it always makes me laugh when people say you won or lost at the draft. Nobody's played a game yet. You’ve got to give it until the kid is in the league, and see how they play, and what they can do.
