Update: both players cleared waivers
Nobody claimed Connor Zary or Brayden Pachal. The deadline passed at 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday 6 October and neither player appears on an NHL roster now, which means both cleared and went the other way. Calgary recalled Cole Castagna and Aydar Suniev from the AHL on Wednesday.
Zary’s season ended at two games and one point, all of it before the waiver notice. Calgary has not played since the 6-1 defeat to Seattle on 4 October, so he was not available to be left out of anything since.
The Flames are still 0-3-0 with three goals scored and sixteen conceded, both the worst figures in the league. They host Anaheim on Saturday 10 October, and our Flames vs Ducks preview has the team news. Updated 8 October 2026.
The Calgary Flames put Connor Zary on waivers on Monday, three games into a season that has started 0-3-0. They have been outscored 16-3, and the 25-year-old centre was scratched for one of those games. The rest of the league had until 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday to claim him, and nobody did.
Defenceman Brayden Pachal went on waivers with him. Both moves come in the Saddledome’s final season, which opened with a 6-1 home loss to Seattle. Our Saddledome farewell piece has the story of the building’s last year.
How Connor Zary got here
His numbers have slipped every season since his rookie year. Zary scored 14 goals and 34 points in 2023-24. He followed that with 27 points in 2024-25 and 25 in 74 games last season. This season he has one assist, 13:19 and 13:56 of ice time in the two games he played, and he sat out the 4-1 loss in Vancouver.
He came with a big reputation. Calgary drafted the Saskatoon native 24th overall in 2020, and he has 193 NHL games behind him. The Hockey News noted that injuries slowed his development and that his name came up in trade talk over the summer.
Pachal, 27, is a different case. The undrafted defenceman from Estevan, Saskatchewan, joined Calgary from Vegas during 2023-24 and has played 148 games for the Flames.
Who can claim Connor Zary?
Until 1 November, waiver priority follows last season’s standings, worst team first. That puts Vancouver, last in 2025-26, at the front of the queue for both players. Calgary sits third on the list but cannot claim its own player, so the Rangers are next, then Toronto.
| Priority | Club | 2025-26 points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vancouver | 58 |
| 2 | Chicago | 72 |
| 3 | NY Rangers | 77 |
| 4 | Toronto | 78 |
| 5 | Seattle | 79 |
| 6 | Winnipeg | 82 |
| 7 | Florida | 84 |
| 8 | St. Louis | 86 |
A claiming club takes the player and his contract as they stand. If nobody claims Zary, Calgary can send him to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers. Every claim this season is logged on our NHL trade tracker, which also explains how NHL waivers work.
Calgary’s 0-3-0 start in numbers
| Date | Game | Result | Calgary goal | Starter | Zary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thu 1 Oct | vs Seattle | L 1-6 | Ryan Strome | Dustin Wolf | Yes |
| Sat 3 Oct | at Vancouver | L 1-4 | Matt Coronato (PP) | Devin Cooley | Scratched |
| Sun 4 Oct | at Seattle | L 1-6 | Morgan Frost (PP) | Dustin Wolf | Yes |
Three goals in three games, from three different players: Ryan Strome in the home opener, then power-play goals from Matt Coronato in Vancouver and Morgan Frost in Seattle. Seattle scored six twice. Calgary and Chicago are the only teams to have lost three games out of three.
By the Flames’ own standards it is a historic start. It is their fifth 0-3-0 start since the move from Atlanta in 1980, and the first since 2000-01. The 16 goals against are the most they have conceded in the first three games of any Calgary season; the previous high was 15, in 1982-83 and 2008-09. Their three goals tie the fewest, with 1997-98 and 2010-11.
They are also without Jonathan Huberdeau, who is on injured reserve with a hip injury after missing the last 26 games of last season.
What’s next for the Flames
| Date | Game | Start |
|---|---|---|
| Thu 8 Oct | vs Colorado | 9 p.m. ET (7 p.m. MT) |
| Sat 10 Oct | vs Anaheim | 10 p.m. ET (8 p.m. MT) |
| Tue 13 Oct | at Anaheim | 9:45 p.m. ET (7:45 p.m. MT) |
| Thu 15 Oct | at Vegas | 10 p.m. ET (8 p.m. MT) |
| Sun 18 Oct | vs Carolina | 8 p.m. ET (6 p.m. MT) |
Colorado, who won all three meetings last season, are first up on Thursday. Our Calgary Flames page has the full schedule.
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Connor Zary FAQs
Yes. The Flames placed him on waivers on Monday, 5 October 2026, with defenceman Brayden Pachal. Claims close at 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday, 6 October.
Vancouver. Until 1 November, waiver priority follows last season’s standings, worst team first, and the Canucks finished last in 2025-26.
Calgary can assign him to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers.
25 in 74 games: 12 goals and 13 assists.
In 2000-01. This is their fifth 0-3-0 start since the move to Calgary in 1980.
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