- Flames defenseman Kevin Bahl ruptured his Achilles tendon and will miss the rest of 2026-27
- He got hurt before warmups Friday against Anaheim and needs surgery
- Read below for how Calgary’s blue line shakes out without its top-minute defenseman
Kevin Bahl is done for the season.
The Flames announced Sunday that the defenseman ruptured his Achilles tendon and needs season-ending surgery. Calgary placed Bahl on injured reserve and recalled Brayden Pachal from the Calgary Wranglers to fill his roster spot.
Bahl got hurt before warmups Friday night against Anaheim, per Flames Now 770’s Pat Steinberg. The team listed him as out with a lower-body injury that night and held back the real diagnosis until after Sunday’s skate. Here’s Steinberg’s report:
Check out the team’s announcement:
Joel Hanley found out he was playing during the off-ice warmup and drew in for Bahl. It was only his second game of the season, and Calgary dropped that one to the Ducks and their red-hot Cutter Gauthier.
Bahl, 26, played 16 games this season with a goal and an assist while averaging 21:56 of ice time, the most of any Flames skater. He also piled up 16 blocked shots and 22 hits. We called him one of Calgary’s biggest minute-munchers when the news broke, and the usage bears that out:
The Flames got Bahl from the Devils in the 2024 Jacob Markstrom trade, and he’s signed through 2031 at a $5.35 million cap hit. That makes this a long-term hole in the lineup as well as a short-term one.
Simon Nemec and Zayne Parekh, the young right-shot defensemen who logged time next to him, now carry more of the load. On the left side, Hanley, Jake Middleton and Yan Kuznetsov are the options to move up.
Calgary hosts the Flyers at the Saddledome on Sunday at 6 p.m. Alberta time with Pachal in and Bahl out.
