Game Day Notebook - 08.02.25

Dustin Wolf will make his third straight start in goal tonight, as the Flames welcome the Kraken to the Scotiabank Saddledome on Hockey Night in Canada. GET TICKETS

It's the final game before the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Time to get caught up on the news of the day with our Game Day Notebook!

Coro-Nation

Matt Coronato has earned himself a top-line assignment.

He skated alongside Nazem Kadri and Jonathan Huberdeau at Saturday's morning skate and is slated to appear on the No.-1 line this evening.

"It’s exciting," he said after a brisk twirl on the Scotiabank Saddledome ice. "I think a good opportunity for me to just go out and try to keep playing the same way, and help the team win."

It's been a breakout year for the 22-year-old, too.

He's up to 14 goals and 30 points, and comes into tonight's contest with six points in his last five games.

And perhaps more importantly, he's launching the biscuit with aplomb, too.

Coronato is up to 116 shots on goal on the season, and his 45 shots in 2025 rank third among Flames skaters.

Head coach Ryan Huska is pleased to see the former first-rounder ascend up the lineup, gaining more and more confidence along the way.

"I think with the more games that he’s played, and the roles that he’s earned along the way - because he’s deserved to be playing the minutes that he’s playing right now - I think he’s gained a lot of belief in his ability at this level," Huska explained. "Maybe, at the beginning of the year, if we’d thrown him with guys like that to start with, it maybe wouldn’t have gone all that well. So he needed the time to kinda build his resume - I think for himself - at this level, and now he’s there.

"So I think he fully understands that ‘yup, you’re playing with two pretty good players, but if I have a chance to shoot the puck, I’m gonna shoot the puck.’ So I’m not gonna worry too much about him on that line right now, I think he’s going to do a really good job."

The trio of Coronato, Huberdeau and Kadri have developed chemistry on the man-advantage, too, and Huska alluded Saturday that part of his lineup decisions at even strength are based on powerplay work.

But Coronato doesn't plan on doing anything differently than he has done all season long, even if he's skating alongside long-time NHL producers in Huberdeau and Kadri.

"I think just play the game the same way," he said of his aspirations against the Kraken. "I think trusting instincts.

"I don’t think I ever wanna be selfish, but I do want to shoot the puck."

Solo Mio

Joel Hanley and family are expecting a new arrival Saturday, and that means Ilya Solovyov will draw in on the top defensive pair alongside Rasmus Andersson.

Solovyov was recalled from the Wranglers earlier this week and appears set to make his first NHL appearance of the season, after drawing into 10 contests in 2023-24.

When speaking with the media earlier this week, the Belarusian explained his job is to defend - providing a perfect foil for the offensively-gifted Andersson.

And Saturday in his morning media session, Flames bench boss Ryan Huska echoed those words.

"Be fast with the puck, make sure he uses his size to his advantage, to close on people quickly, and get ‘em to the wall right away, and really taking a lot of pride in being a really good defender for us," Huska said of his instructions to Solovyov. "Penalty-kill, I’d throw in there as well."

That's not to say Solovyov doesn't have offensive instincts.

At the AHL level, he's enjoying a career year with six goals and 21 points from the back end.

Tonight, against a Kraken team hungry to avenge a 3-2 loss versus Calgary last Sunday no less, the focus is more on keeping pucks out, versus putting pucks in.

On The Hunt

Also set to make his first appearance as a Flame this season - forward Dryden Hunt.

The Wranglers' co-leading scorer with 40 points, Hunt was recalled earlier this week and skated Saturday on a line with Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman.

The 29-year-old is eager to take on a shutdown role against Seattle.

"I’m excited for that challenge," he said. "I think a little bit last year, I played with those guys, so there’s a familiarity a little bit. I’m excited to play - and get that challenge of playing more minutes - see where you stack up against other guys.

"It should be a good test for me."

He's getting to experience that test for himself for the first time in 2024-25, after watching several Wranglers teammates make the jump - successfully - over the course of the campaign.

"Those are guys that are playing on my line, it’s nice to see them develop in the AHL and come up here," he said. "It’s been a seamless transition for a lot of them, they can come in, and a lot of them don’t seem too nervous. I’m happy for them, it’s good to see.

"It’s a bit of confidence for me to see guys come up and do well."

But that role, as mentor, is one that Hunt has gotten better at with age and experience, according to his head coach.

"I think that’s a lot of his maturity, he’s been around; I think when he was younger player getting sent up and down, there’s probably frustration that came into play at times," Ryan Huska explained. "He drives the bus with the Wranglers, he really does.

"And he’s had a great year offensively, but I think he sets the tempo for that team."

A season debut, under the bright lights of national TV to boot!

That suits Hunt just fine.

"Feels good. Obviously Saturday night, Hockey Night in Canada, won’t be hard to get up for," he said. "It means a lot."

"I’m excited to be back."