Calgary Flames Nazem Kadri prides himself on his penalty shootout skills

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This is a very elite company.

Nazem Kadri currently ranks sixth in the NHL in penalties.

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The only guys with more than 27 points managed by a Calgary Flames center this season include some of the league's biggest names.

We're talking Connor McDavid, Matthew Tkachuk, Brad Marchand, and Brady Tkachuk, the league leader with 34 points. The only name in the top five that doesn't quite fit as a superstar is Garnet Hathaway of the Philadelphia Flyers, but his. the rugged style made it valuable in its own right.

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Other than Hathaway, the others are all guys with good reputations for putting up big offensive numbers.

Yes, some of them are known for going under their opponents, but Kadri believes the penalties they're taking are due to taking dangerous positions on the ice.

“I think that's part of it, just trying to find good ice and ice where opposing players panic a little bit, and that's when you can take advantage,” Kadri said. “It's definitely something I'm proud of. You want to help your team as much as possible, and that's what I want to do.”

It's not hard to see how good it would be for a team to have a penalty taker. The more time you have for the power-play, the better, right?

That's how the Flames felt earlier this week when Boston Bruins quarterback Brandon Carlo took a minutes-long penalty on Kadri in Tuesday night's game. On the ensuing power play, Kadri assisted on Andriy Kuzmenko's first goal on the team.

No one is accusing Kadri or any of the NHL's top guys of dressing up or diving to fool the referees. It's about putting defenders in bad positions to make mistakes.

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It's something Kadri is proud of. It's something he's always been good at.

“If you look at most of my career, I would have been there for a lot of years when I was healthy,” Kadri said. “It's definitely a skill and I think I'll get those penalties. They're real penalties, and I like to play on the power play.”

Kadri has finished in the top 10 in penalties committed over the past four seasons, while McDavid, Tkachuks and Marchand have been consistently among the league leaders during that span.

It's worth noting that while Kadri has sent opponents into the penalty box, he's done well this season. The 33-year-old has just 18 penalty minutes so far this season, tied for ninth on the team.

So what is the key to punishing others without being sent to the sin box?

“I think it's definitely a skill, I have that gritty aspect and trying to keep my feet moving,” Kadri said. “I draw a lot of stick violations because I'm always moving there. That's what I like to do on the power play, that's what I've always been good at.”

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THE WOLF IS BACK

The Flames recalled Dustin Wolff from their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers, on Friday morning.

Given the rampant speculation surrounding the team right now, the news may have caused Flames fans to jump to conclusions as to whether or not a trade was in the offing, but neither Jacob Markstrom nor Dan Vladar were moved.

Vladar reportedly suffered a lower-body injury in preseason practice before Thursday night's win over the New Jersey Devils and was placed on injured reserve.

That leaves room for the Wolves, who represented the Pacific Division in the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic last week and boast a .921 save percentage — second best in the AHL — and an 18-7-1 record through 28 games. games.

The 22-year-old has played in five games for the Flames this season, earning one win, posting an .893 save percentage and a 3.46 goals-against average.

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