'Take It And Run With It'

Zayne Parekh wants to be the go-to guy. 

And he’s put in the work over the summer to put himself in a great position to stake his claim. 

Five months and a day after he dazzled the Scotiabank Saddledome crowd with a ridiculous, solo-effort goal in the 2025-26 season finale against the Kings, Parekh was back with his teammates Thursday morning for the first - official - on-ice session of the new season.

But as he prepares for his sophomore pro campaign, Parekh figures he’s in a good space, and he’s ready to try and make his mark on a new-look Calgary defence lineup, preferably right at the top of the page.

“I want to be an elite powerplay-one guy on this team,” he said after a brisk skate Thursday. “I want our powerplay to be clicking and I want to be the guy that's driving that; I think it's a good challenge for me.

“Obviously, me and Nemo (newcomer Simon Nemec) are going to compete there and it's going to be good for both of us. I don't think there's a point total I want to put on it. I just want to continue to establish myself as a good NHL player.”

To achieve that goal, he’s had to put in work. And Parekh has enlisted the help of Flames alumnus Gary Roberts to do just that. After a hard summer of training, the Nobleton, Ont. product says he checked into camp at a shade under 191 lb., ready to better withstand the rigours of an 84-game NHL schedule.

“It was a big adjustment this summer,” he admitted. “You know, a lot of stuff I wasn't used to, but I think I had a really good summer.

“I haven't felt like this in the previous two years. I just feel comfortable and confident. I just feel normal again, and it's a nice feeling to get back to.”

Thursday, Parekh took reps alongside veteran Jake Middleton. The steady defender was acquired from the Wild in July, where he helped usher on young blueliners including U.S. Olympian Brock Faber, and Flames Head Coach Ryan Huska is eager to see how Middleton’s experience will rub off on the 20-year-old Parekh.

“Jake's gonna be massive in Zane's development, if that pair works,” the bench boss explained. “I’m quite excited because I think we've got good balance.

“(Zayne) being around last year and having success at the end of the year, like he did, he left here feeling really good about it. So he had a better understanding of what he had to do, physically and mentally, to be a successful NHL player. And he put the work in this summer and now he's come back feeling much more comfortable.”

And after one day of camp, it’s evident that Parekh will get his looks, much like fellow youngsters Matvei Gridin and Sam Honzek will in Calgary’s forward corps. 

Opportunities to progress, opportunities to grow. 

And help usher in a new era in front of the C of Red.

“I think me and Griddy (Gridin) took big steps after the trade deadline. If you look at our last 10 games or that stretch of hockey, we played some really good hockey.

“You move on from a couple older guys, some veterans, and creates more opportunity for all three of us, and hopefully we take it and run with it. That's obviously what Conny (GM Craig Conroy) and Husk expect us to do, we're gonna have to just put our best foot forward and do it.”