LAS VEGAS — Vlad Spektor remembers a night at a Saginaw restaurant with his client Zayne Parekh after a game this season. The second-year defenceman was on pace to obliterate his points totals from his OHL rookie season where he scored 21 goals and 37 points. Multi-point efforts were becoming regular occurrences. Spektor was expecting a relaxed night where he would catch up with Parekh until the Saginaw Spirit star pulled out his cell phone.
“Instead, he was sitting there watching his shifts, right away, asking me what he could do better,” Spektor said.
It’s a story that has become part of Parekh’s lore. A confident, determined player who capped off that sophomore season with the most points of any OHL defenceman. Parekh became a university student at 16, skipping two high school grades before taking classes at the University of Toronto as an OHLer.
Now 18 and fresh off a Memorial Cup with Saginaw, he’s one of two first-round selections by the Calgary Flames at the 2024 NHL Draft in Las Vegas, thanks in part to an unpredictable draft order.
Most notably, the Anaheim Ducks drafted Beckett Sennecke third — a pick that even surprised Sennecke himself. Cayden Lindstrom, Ivan Demidov and, yes, Tij Iginla, soon followed before defenceman Carter Yakemchuk and forward Berkly Catton were chosen.
“A lot of forwards starting going,” Flames GM Craig Conroy said. “Definitely when he was there we were excited to be able to make the pick.”
The Flames explored the possibility of moving around in the first round, but they ultimately made their picks at 9 and 28. They drafted the right-shot Parekh and forward Matvei Gridin, who led all USHL point-getters as a member of the Muskegon Lumberjacks.
Parekh is the blue-chip prospect the team has needed to take the next steps in its reconstruction. The Flames now have the two highest-scoring defencemen from the OHL this season in Parekh and Hunter Brzustewicz. Meanwhile, Gridin has potential and adds to the Flames’ glut of wingers in their system.
“We’ve got to score goals,” Conroy said. “To have two guys like that in the organization and, hopefully, one day playing on the same day is going to be pretty impressive. And fun for the fans.”
When Vancouver Canucks defenceman Quinn Hughes walked onstage to accept the Norris Trophy on Thursday afternoon, it affirmed something we already knew: Hughes is among the league’s elite at his position. Hughes is a well-rounded player, but his offensive abilities are defining qualities in the model defenceman of today’s game — a mobile rearguard with immense skill and dynamic talent who can be used in all situations including the power play.
Parekh sees himself as one of those defencemen. His favourite player growing up was Steven Stamkos. But he enjoyed watching players like Hughes, Erik Karlsson, Cale Makar and Shayne Gostibehere.
“I’m a creative kid with the puck,” Parekh said. “In terms of the way I play, I like to be creative and make plays on the blue line. The fact that that’s grown in the game, I love it. I think it’s the next wave of generational defencemen. You need your defencemen in the play to contribute.”
Those are the exact qualities the Flames need in a prospect to eventually take their re-whatever to the next level.
“If you’ve watched him, high hockey sense, skill,” Conroy said. “He competes hard too.
“And he’s got a real swagger when he’s on the ice. You like it. Winning a Memorial Cup. Never hurts to have guys who have won.”
When Conroy interviewed Parekh ahead of the draft, he liked his confidence and affability. The two even made jokes and spoke about Parekh going head-to-head against fellow prospect and London Knights defenceman Sam Dickinson.
“He’s got a good personality and it’s gonna bring some life to the Flames,” Conroy said.
Matvei Gridin (Photo by Candice Ward / Getty Images)
Parekh seems like close to a sure thing with the ninth pick. There are more questions about the Flames’ second pick in Gridin. The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler had Gridin going at No. 43 in a recent mock draft. Conroy, however, liked his skill set and his “great shot.”
“I watched him in a lot of games against the U.S. program this year,” Conroy said. “And it was impressive. He was making plays through people, around people. Whether he shoots or passes, he can do it all. There’s a reason he led the USHL in scoring and he’s (got) good size, skates well, and I love his shot too.”
Gridin is from Kurgan, Russia, but he moved to the United States to play with the Lumberjacks in time for the 2022-23 season. After a 19-point debut season over 40 games, Gridin scored 38 goals and 83 points in 60 games. He scored more points than players like Michael Hage and Trevor Connelly, who were both taken ahead of the 18-year-old right-shot, right winger.
The youngster’s goal was to be a first-rounder and expressed excitement at joining the Flames thanks to the opportunity that could be afforded to young players over the next few seasons — he even used the word “rebuild” — and had an inkling the Flames would take him at 28. He likens himself as a “high IQ player with a good shot and good passing” while also pointing out his competitiveness and playmaking ability.
“I can’t imagine a better team for me,” Gridin said.
The Flames will return to the draft floor on Saturday with seven more picks including two picks in each of the second, third and fourth rounds.
“We’ve always made the point of every pick is huge,” Conroy said. “So it’s important. We want to make the right pick. We want to get the guy that we want to put a Calgary Flames jersey on. So, we’re off to a good start. Now we get some more picks tomorrow. It’s exciting.”
(Photo of Zayne Parekh: Ethan Miller / Getty Images)
