Flames fans ecstatic with both draft picks in first round: “Love it”

The Calgary Flames may not have ended up with Tij Iginla, but it was by no means an unsuccessful draft night last evening.

With Iginla being selected sixth overall by the Utah Hockey Club, the Flames had to make a decision, and wound up choosing defenceman Zayne Parekh ninth overall. The 18-year-old led all draft-eligible defencemen in goals this season with 33, while also managing 96 points in 66 games with the Saginaw Spirit. He has true star potential, and Flames fans are very excited.

That was one of two first-round selections for the Flames yesterday. With their 28th pick, which they received from the Vancouver Canucks in the Elias Lindholm trade, they drafted Matvei Gridin.

This selection was a bit more off the board, with few mock drafts projecting Gridin to go in the first round. That said, while he is a bit more of a long-term project, he put up an impressive 83 points in 60 USHL games this past season, indicating he has plenty of potential. Once again, the majority of Flames fans were pleased with the pick.

Despite choosing to put the team through a retooling process, general manager Craig Conroy seems to really have the support from the Flames fan base at this point in time. Though the next few seasons could be rough, prospects like these two above help make the future look quite bright.

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