'Really Cool And Special'

In Calgary, we might still be waiting on the visual evidence, but slowly and surely, spring is on the way.

And as our city’s greenery hits the snooze button on its winter hibernation clock, the NHL club that calls Calgary home - and its new-look leadership group - is starting to blossom.

New alternate captains, new voices, and a new energy around a group disappointed with how the 2025-26 season has gone so far, no doubt, but that same group is determined to finish the campaign by leaving everything on the ice.

Joel Farabee is one of those new leaders. The 26-year-old first donned an ‘A’ on his sweater in the Flames’ post-deadline triumph over the Hurricanes March 7, collecting three points in the process.

And for Farabee, who wears that letter at home while defenceman Zach Whitecloud sports it on his left chest on the road, the extra responsibility is leading to results on the scoreboard. In four games as a Calgary alternate, Farabee has three goals (and would have had a fourth, if not for a coach’s challenge this past Wednesday against the Blues).

With each passing day, it’s clear that the promotion means a lot to Farabee, who at 26 is perhaps too experienced to be considered one of the ‘young guys,’ but also not quite old enough yet to be cast in the same vein as veterans Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman.

For Farabee, it all circles back to his formative years in Upstate New York.

“I obviously give a lot of credit to my older brothers and my father, just kind of raising me to be the player that I am,” Farabee shared during a conversation on the Flames’ recent five-game road trip. “I think just being a vocal leader and things like that, I learned from them. 

“Just getting to represent any NHL team in itself is an awesome honour. To wear a letter at whatever juncture it may be is really cool and special.”

Tuesday night against the Kings, Farabee will face his next test with that letter sewn to his sweater. And coincidentally, Los Angeles’ arrival at the Scotiabank Saddledome (GET TICKETS) also means Farabee will get to link up across from one of the veterans who helped show him the ropes as a youngster in Philadelphia.

“I try to act or represent a lot of what Scott Laughton did in Philly and what he taught me,” said Farabee. “I was a super young guy and Scotty was taking that next step in his career. Just one of those guys that would invite young guys to dinner, go out of his way to make other guys feel welcome and things like that. 

“And his play always backed it up, too, with just how hard he played and how much he cared.”

Farabee’s teammates - including the one that followed him from the City of Brotherly Love to Wild Rose Country - have noticed just how quickly he’s become a key cog on the ice, and a figurehead in the room.

And for Morgan Frost, who knows Farabee better than anyone in the Flames room, it’s pretty neat to have a front-row seat to his good buddy’s career progression.

“Joel definitely deserves a letter. He's been a leader all year. especially on the ice, I think, just the way he's been playing,” Frost explained recently. “It was different to see him with it and it was kind of funny at first, but he deserves it and it's a great honour.”

“All year, he’s been growing into a leader on the team,” Calgary captain Mikael Backlund added Sunday. “Since the day he got here, we saw what he can do on the ice. 

“Plays the game the right way, does the little things right.”

Farabee is under contract in Calgary for two more seasons once the 2025-26 campaign is complete. And over the final dozen games of the season, he’s got a shot at hitting the 20-goal mark for the third time in his NHL career.

But more important than the points, the time on ice or the short-handed prowess (his four shorties are tied for second in the NHL, a group that includes teammate Coleman), the relationships he’ll build, the mentorship he’ll do on and off the ice, will be felt in the Flames dressing room for years to come.

If you asked me at the beginning of the year, if we were going to lose those guys (Rasmus Andersson, MacKenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri), I would have probably said ‘Absolutely not,” said Farabee. I think it was just one of those things where some guys have to step up.

“I think not just myself, but the other guys see that too, and take pride in being guys that help these young guys that are coming up.”