Flames Notebook: Backup goalies battle on, Kerins makes impression

CALGARY — Saturday’s game in Winnipeg was supposed to help crystallize which goalie had the edge in the battle for the Calgary Flames’ vacant backup job.

The jury is out on whether it did.

Facing a beefed-up Jets squad, Devin Cooley made 25 saves in a 4-2 loss in Winnipeg. He couldn’t be faulted on any of the goals.

All told, Cooley has stopped 51 of 58 shots in a pair of losses.

Ivan Prosvetov has stopped 53 of 58 shots to go 1-1.

With Dustin Wolf slated to start two of the last three pre-season games, you can bet the Flames goalie gurus will be huddled up Monday, trying to figure out who gets the other start — a gig expected to symbolize who has won the job coming out of camp.

Given how close the battle has been, there’s also a chance they’ll instead split the lone game with both goalies’ short-term futures on the line.

One goalie will be named to the opening night roster and the other will be put on waivers with an eye on sending them to the Wranglers for further seasoning. 

There’s a chance neither would clear waivers, as several teams have expressed interest in Cooley, and a handful of teams were bidding to sign Prosvetov out of the KHL this summer.  

Both are on one-way contracts, meaning the 28-year-old Cooley will get $775,000 regardless of where he plays, and Prosvetov will get $950,000. 

Prosvetov, 26, has the edge in NHL experience (24 games to six), but neither has posted impressive numbers in the bigs.

The Flames have invested a year in building the structure of Cooley’s game, leading him to an AHL all-star nod last season before concussion issues derailed his first campaign with the Wranglers. Prosvetov’s game requires similar adjustments, but they feel that with their help, the staff can help the six-foot-five Russian evolve like Cooley and Dan Vladar did.  

Stay tuned. 

Kerins rolls along 

Rory Kerins continues to impress, making the biggest push of any youngster to break through for an opening night roster spot.

“I thought their line was the best line tonight,” said Ryan Huska of Kerins’ trio with Adam Klapla and Sam Honzek in Winnipeg.

“Every time they were on the ice, I thought they actually pushed back and controlled the majority of play when they were out there. Rory continues to do a good job, as do his linemates.”

Kerins picked up an assist on a power-play goal, hit the crossbar in the third period and did a good job driving play on a night in which he faced off regularly against heavyweight middlemen Jonathan Toews and Mark Scheifele. 

Going 6 for 13 in the faceoff circle isn’t bad against those veterans, giving the 23-year-old centre a good lesson in what it will take to eventually be an everyday NHLer.

Kerins’ situation is one of the most interesting as the regular season nears, as the sixth-round pick would need to clear waivers before being sent to the minors, which is a risk the Flames may not want to take given how disappointed they were a year ago when another promising young centre, Cole Schwindt, was plucked off waivers by Vegas.

Zayne watch  

Zayne Parekh scored his first goal of the pre-season when his point shot found its way through traffic and bounced in with Klapka causing confusion in the crease.

“He played a lot of minutes (23:43) and I feel like every game he’s played, he continues to get better,” said Huska.

“He seems like he’s becoming more and more confident again, which is something we were hoping to see. He brings something to the table we don’t really have on the back end, the way he walks the blueline and the way he runs the power play. So, I thought he did a good job tonight.”

Parekh will start the season with the big club, no question.

Gridin finds net

Matvei Gridin will be a productive NHLer at some point. And while that day is likely another year away, he impressed Saturday when he deftly banged in a rebound for his first goal of the pre-season.

“I thought he had another strong game as well,” said Huska of the first rounder, who was the QMJHL’s rookie of the year.

“He’s a really interesting guy. He’s going to learn the game as he grows older and matures a little bit in regards to the details and structure side of it, but he’s a really talented player and you can see that in some of the decisions and the reads he makes. The longer he plays, the better this guy is gonna get.”

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