Flames rookie out week-to-week with upper-body injury

Flames rookie Samuel Honzek will miss significant time after being listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury, the team announced. He likely sustained it on his last shift of Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the Blackhawks, during which he took a heavy hit from Chicago defenseman Connor Murphy with less than three minutes left on the clock.

The Flames haven’t yet placed Honzek on injured reserve, but it wouldn’t be surprising if they do so in the coming days. They’re down to 12 healthy forwards without him and don’t have a roster spot open for a recall.

Honzek, 19, already has a lengthy recent injury history. An abdominal injury he sustained during the preseason with Calgary in 2023 delayed his season debut with WHL Vancouver until December, while another one suffered while playing at the 2023 World Juniors cut short his draft year. That didn’t stop Calgary from selecting the 6-foot-4 Slovak forward with the No. 16 pick, though.

Given that injury history, it’s fair to assume the Flames will be extremely cautious with his return. He’s in his first full season of pro hockey after spending the last two seasons in major junior play. After a strong exhibition performance, he was a somewhat surprising inclusion on the opening night roster. The left-winger has yet to make much of an impact for the undefeated Flames, though, going without a point and averaging 12:47 through his first four NHL contests.

Honzek was logging time at even strength on Calgary’s top line alongside Nazem Kadri and Andrei Kuzmenko, so they’ll have to find a replacement in the interim. Their whole stable of current right-wingers — Kuzmenko, Blake Coleman, Anthony Mantha, and Matthew Coronato — all have experience playing the left side and could flip over. 6-foot-8 right-winger Adam Klapka, who played in Calgary’s first two games but was scratched for the last two, will likely re-enter the lineup against the Kraken on Saturday if the Flames don’t make a corresponding transaction.