Harrington Signed, Brzustewicz Down: Calgary's Opening Night Roster Takes Shape Around Its Gaps

The Flames locked up forward Chase Harrington on a three-year, entry-level contract Tuesday, the same day they finalized an opening-night roster that already has Jonathan Huberdeau on IR. Brzustewicz was among those assigned to the AHL when Calgary trimmed to 27 earlier in camp. Neither move is dramatic on its own. Together they sketch the front office's posture heading into 2026-27: sign what you can develop, park what isn't ready, and manage the holes left by injury.

Huberdeau starting on IR is the headline underneath the headline. He played only 41 games last season, and the Flames went into the offseason knowing his availability would again be a variable they couldn't fully plan around. That reality pushed the organization toward the kind of depth accumulation we've watched all camp — Nylander converting a PTO into a one-year, two-way deal, Othmann extended, Harrington now locked in for three years at the entry level. None of those names fixes the top-six. They fill the shelf below it.

Suniev not making the opening roster is the more interesting subplot. The coverage around that decision frames it as patience rather than rejection, and that framing is probably right — he'll be back. But Brzustewicz heading to the AHL alongside him means Calgary is leaning on veterans and fringe signings to open the year while the prospects it actually believes in wait their turn.

The roster crunch resolved itself the way these things usually do: messily, with a waiver claim lost (Detroit grabbed Andreas Englund) and a few contracts signed under deadline pressure. The Flames open the season thinner up front than they'd like, with their most expensive forward unavailable and their most intriguing young options in the minors. That's a familiar place for this group.