Parekh & Gridin Named To CHL All-Star Teams

A pair of highly decorated Flames prospects have earned yet another top honour.

Only this time, it's on the national scale.

The Canadian Hockey League has announced that Zayne Parekh has been named to their First All-Star Team, while fellow 2024 first-rounder Matvei Gridin was named to the All-Rookie Team.

The All-Star and All-Rookie Teams were chosen by members the media, as outlined in a CHL press release:

Media members who regularly cover the CHL and its Member Leagues — the Western Hockey League (WHL), Ontario Hockey League (OHL), and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) — participated in the voting process to determine this year’s CHL All-Star and All-Rookie teams presented by CCM. Ballots were cast based on regular-season performances, with voters selecting the top players from across the CHL’s three leagues to recognize outstanding individual achievements.

Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit / OHL): 33G-74A, 107 PTS, +42 in 61 GP during the 2024-25 season; Named a CHL First-Team All-Star for a second straight year, the 19-year-old from Nobleton, Ont., became the first CHL defenceman this century to post back-to-back 90-point seasons, finishing 2024–25 with 107 points — the highest by a blueliner in 23 years. The Calgary Flames prospect also joined Bobby Orr as just the second defenceman in OHL/OHA history with consecutive 30-goal seasons, and he’s one of only two in the CHL to achieve this feat since 2000.

Parekh made his NHL debut on April 17 and scored his first-career goal that night in a 5-1 win over the LA Kings.

Parekh is joined on the All-Star Team by fellow blueliner Sam Dickinson (SJS), forwards Andrew Cristall (WSH), Gavin McKenna (draft-eligible 2026) and Michael Misa (draft-eligible this year), and undrafted goaltender Jackson Parsons.

Matvei Gridin (Shawinigan Cataractes / QMJHL): 36G-43A, 79 PTS, +31 in 56 GP during the 2024-25 season; led all CHL rookies in scoring during his first QMJHL season, pacing first-year skaters in the CHL in points (79), goals (36), shots (236), game-winning goals (5), and shorthanded goals (4). The 18-year-old from Kurgan, Russia, averaged 1.41 points per game – best among CHL rookies – and recorded 21 multi-point efforts to finish 12th in overall QMJHL scoring.

Gridin - who captured the first-ever Sidney Crosby Trophy as the QMJHL's Rookie of the Year only a few weeks ago - is joined on the All-Rookie Team by forwards Pierce Mbuyi (draft-eligible in 2026) and Lars Steiner (draft-eligible in 2026), defencemen Ryan Lin (draft-eligible in 2026) and Calgary native Landon DuPont (draft-eligible in 2027), and goaltender Lucas Beckman (draft-eligible this year).