Ah, the 2018 NHL Draft, a distant and forgotten draft year for the Calgary Flames and their fans, and understandably so. After trading their first, second, and third-round picks for Travis Hamonic and Mike Smith, the Flames came into the draft with just five draft picks and none until the fourth round. As was expected out of the draft with so little capital, the Flames haven’t found much value from the 2018 class seven years later.

105th overall – Martin Pospisil

With their first pick of the draft, all the way down at 105th overall, the Flames selected centre Martin Pospisil out of the USHL. Fun fact: Pospisil put up 253 penalty minutes in his draft year. No other player on his team had more than 100 that season. Needless to say, there were certainly some concerns around Pospisil’s discipline when he was drafted.

Pospisil, however, really reigned in his game over the next couple of years, and after an impressive 63 points in 44 USHL games in his D+1 season, he made the jump to the AHL in 2019 as a 20-year-old. Over the next four years, Pospisil totaled 56 points in 107 AHL games across four injury-plagued seasons. In 2023–24, he made his NHL debut and never looked back, quickly becoming one of the more well-known pests in the league and adding 24 points in 63 games.

This past season, he took a step back with only 25 points in 81 games, but he continued to elevate his teammates wherever he played. Whether or not he’s anything more than a fourth-line winger is still up for debate, but overall, Pospisil looks like the lone bright spot in the 2018 draft.

108th overall – Demetrios Koumontzis

Three picks later, the Flames selected winger Demetrios Koumontzis. Selected out of high school, Koumontzis was committed to play in the NCAA for Arizona State University in his D+1 season. Over the next five seasons, Koumontzis struggled to take a step in the NCAA, even playing defence at times. Overall, across five seasons, he played 142 games in the NCAA, but managed just 67 points and never surpassed 20 in a season.

Koumontzis remained on the Flames’ reserve list after leaving the NCAA but has spent the last three years in the ECHL on an ECHL-only contract.

122nd overall – Milos Roman

With their third pick in the fourth round, the Flames selected centre Milos Roman out of the WHL. Roman actually had a solid D+1 season in the WHL, putting up 60 points in 59 games. Unfortunately, he took a big step back in his D+2 season, watching his production drop to just 47 points in 62 games, a pretty disappointing output for a 20-year-old in the WHL.

Following his tough D+2 season, the Flames didn’t see an NHL future for Roman, and he ended up re-entering the draft, where he went undrafted. He’d up heading home to the Czech league, where he won four straight championships.

167th overall – Emilio Pettersen

A 167th overall, the Flames selected centre Emilio Pettersen. Following his selection by the Flames, he went to the NCAA, where he had two solid years, including 35 points in 36 games in his D+2 season. Pettersen then made the jump to the AHL in 2020–21 as a 20-year-old. Over the next four years, Pettersen became a mainstay on the Flames’ AHL roster and one of their best players.

The issue with Pettersen was that he never took the step from a good AHLer to a great one, and continually got passed over for NHL opportunities over the years. By 2024, he had fallen way down the Flames’ internal depth chart and was dealt to the Dallas Stars in an AHL-only deal.

198th overall – Dmitry Zavgorodniy

With their final pick of the 2018 draft, the Flames took a shot on undersized winger Dmitry Zavgorodniy out of the QMJHL. Following his selection, Zavgorodniy started to make waves as a potential steal in the seventh round. The streets will never forget his 67 points in 40 QMJHL games in 2019–20. Unfortunately, his breakout year was more of a case of playing with future first overall pick Alexis Lafreniere and less of Zavgorodniy taking a step.

Following his big season in the QMJHL, Zavgorodniy joined the Flames AHL roster in what would be a short-lived tenure. He’d suit up for just 41 games over the next two years, totaling only five points. Following the 2021–22 season and the end of his entry-level deal, Zavgorodniy left for Russia, which is where he has played since.

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