Flames prospects camp opening, Young Stars Classic tournament begins Friday

With hockey right around the corner, the Flames' prospects are set to open camp. They'll be doing fitness testing before heading out to Penticton to participate in the 2014 Young Stars Classic, facing off against fellow western Canadian team prospects. While several familiar names like Johnny Gaudreau, Markus Granlund, and Joni Ortio will be taking part, but the Flames have invited a number of tryouts to participate as well.

The following drafted or signed players will be taking part in the Flames' prospects camp:

Forwards

Kenny Agostino - 5th rounder, 140th overall, 2010 draft
Bill Arnold - 4th rounder, 108th overall, 2010 draft
Sam Bennett - 1st rounder, 4th overall, 2014 draft
Austin Carroll - 7th rounder, 184th overall, 2014 draft
Turner Elson - undrafted, signed in 2011, one year remaining
Michael Ferland - 5th rounder, 133rd overall, 2010 draft
Johnny Gaudreau - 4th rounder, 104th overall, 2010 draft
Markus Granlund - 2nd rounder, 45th overall, 2010 draft
Josh Jooris - undrafted, signed in 2013, one year remaining
Morgan Klimchuk - 1st rounder, 28th overall, 2013 draft
Emile Poirier - 1st rounder, 22nd overall, 2013 draft
Hunter Smith - 2nd rounder, 54th overall, 2014 draft
Bryce Van Brabant - undrafted, signed in 2014, one year remaining
David Wolf - undrafted, signed in 2014, one year remaining

Defence

Ryan Culkin - 5th rounder, 124th overall, 2012 draft
Keegan Kanzig - 3rd rounder, 67th overall, 2013 draft
Brett Kulak - 4th rounder, 105th overall, 2012 draft
John Ramage - 4th rounder, 103rd overall, 2010 draft
Eric Roy - 5th rounder, 135th overall, 2013 draft
Patrick Sieloff - 2nd rounder, 42nd overall, 2012 draft
Tyler Wotherspoon - 2nd rounder, 57th overall, 2011 draft

Goaltenders

Mason McDonald - 2nd rounder, 34th overall, 2014 draft
Joni Ortio - 6th rounder, 171st overall, 2009 draft

Poirier and Wotherspoon will be present, but not participating due to off-season shoulder surgeries. Wolf will take part in the initial training camp, but is not eligible to take part in the Young Stars Classic (he's the only prospect listed born before the 1990s).

That leaves eight undrafted and unsigned players invited to Flames rookie camp: four forwards, three defencemen, and one goalie.

Brendan Bell, LW

Physical Stats: 20 years old (03/17/94), 6'2", 210 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Ottawa 67's: 68 GP, 25 G, 49 P, 103 PIM

Bell, an undrafted forward approaching his overage season in the OHL, captained the 67's last season. He broke into the league playing for the Barrie Colts before he was traded to the 67's in the 2012-13 season, Sean Monahan's final junior season. The 67's were the worst team in the OHL's Eastern Conference this past season, posting just a .382 winning percentage for third worst team in the league. Bell was fifth in scoring on his team.

Garnet Hathaway, RW

Physical Stats: 22 years old (11/23/91), 6'2", 215 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Brown University: 31 GP, 8 G, 15 P, 41 PIM; Abbotsford Heat: 8 GP, 0 G, 0 P, 10 PIM

Hathaway, an undrafted forward, played four seasons for Brown University. He was an alternate captain during his junior and senior seasons. Hathaway was fifth in scoring on his team during this past season. Once Brown's season ended, he signed with the Heat, where the only impact he had on the scoreboard was in the form of penalty minutes. He is expected to join the Adirondack Flames this upcoming season.

Brandon Magee, C

Physical Stats: 20 years old (01/23/94), 5'9", 190 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Victoria Royals: 65 GP, 25 G, 67 P, 52 PIM

Magee, another undrafted forward, is the only player under 6' the Flames have brought in to training camp. He was an alternate captain for the Victoria Royals the past two seasons, and a teammate of fellow prospects Keegan Kanzig and Austin Carroll the past three. The Royals were third in the WHL's Western Conference this past season, with a winning percentage of .694, fifth best in the WHL. Magee led the Royals in points during this time (1.03 points per game), with Carroll being second in team scoring (.81 points per game). He likely caught the Flames' eye due to his fellow camp members, and if anything earns him a spot within the Flames organization, it will be his scoring prowess.

Pavel Padakin, RW

Physical Stats: 20 years old (06/08/94), 6'1", 185 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Calgary Hitmen: 66 GP, 27 G, 54 P, 59 PIM

Padakin's name should be familiar for Hitmen fans. The Ukrainian spent the past two seasons playing in Calgary as one of the Hitmen's two import players. A hard worker, he was fourth in scoring for the WHL's Eastern Conference's second best team, their .715 winning percentage tied for third in the entire league. Padakin, the only Hitmen to ever score two teddy bear toss goals, attended Flames rookie camp last season as well. He was going to play for the KHL's lone Ukrainian team, HC Donbass Donetsk, but due to political instability in the region (and the fact that rebels burned down their home arena), the Flames invited him back to Calgary.

Jason Fram, D

Physical Stats: 19 years old (04/23/95), 6'0", 195 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Spokane Chiefs: 72 GP, 6 G, 57 P, 34 PIM

Fram, an undrafted defencemen, played his third season with the Spokane Chiefs last season. His 57 points in 72 games made him 10th in WHL defencemen scoring, just behind the Flames' Kulak, so he may be one to look out for. Fram was fourth in scoring for the Chiefs last season, and the second highest-scoring defenceman behind then-team captain Reid Gow, who has a year on him. The Chiefs were a playoff team last season, with a .597 winning percentage, but were quickly swept out by the Royals. Fram was his team's leading scorer in the playoffs, with three assists over four games.

Curtis Gedig, D

Physical Stats: 22 years old (09/14/91), 6'3", 190 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Ohio State University: 33 GP, 2 G, 10 P, 10 PIM

Gedig was a 7th round pick of the New Jersey Devils in 2009. He just wrapped up his senior year, and, after going unsigned and becoming a free agent, the Flames are now giving him a shot. Gedig was OSU's captain in his junior season, which was his most productive NCAA season with 15 points. He appeared to take a step back, as this past season was his least productive throughout his four seasons of NCAA hockey.

Carl Neill, D

Physical Stats: 18 years old (06/06/96), 6'3", 213 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Sherbrooke Phoenix: 65 GP, 4 G, 22 P, 58 PIM

Neill, with a June birthday, was among the younger players available for the draft last June (he's only a couple weeks older than Sam Bennett). He wasn't picked, but the Flames have invited him to camp to show his stuff regardless. He's big and was eighth in scoring on his Sherbrooke Phoenix team, third out of defencemen. Sherbrooke was the worst team in the entire QMJHL last season, with just a .301 winning percentage, so that may have played a role in his being overlooked (only one player from Sherbrooke was selected in the 2014 draft, and he was the fourth last pick).

Matt Mancina, G

Physical Stats: 18 (04/29/96), 6'3", 185 lbs.

2013-14 Team and Stats: Guelph Storm: 28 GP, .919 SV%

Like Neill, this was Mancina's first year of draft eligibility, and he, too, was passed over. He played for the best team in the OHL's regular season, the Guelph Storm, who had a .794 winning percentage, behind starter Justin Nichols. The Storm won 17 of the games in which Mancina played. He posted a good save percentage under the limited minutes he played (just 1381, 29th in the league, and second out of all rookies), and will likely be vying for a bigger role this upcoming season.