Flames re-sign RFAs Yan Kuznetsov, Rory Kerins, and Jeremie Poirier
The Calgary Flames have agreed to terms on new contracts with restricted free agents Yan Kuznetsov, Rory Kerins, and Jeremie Poirier, the club announced Thursday morning.
The three 23-year-olds all spent the majority of the 2024-25 season with the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, with only Kerins earning NHL games with the Flames during the year. The Flames drafted all three players in the 2020 NHL Draft.
Kuznetsov, a second-round pick in 2020, signed a two-year contract at an $812,500 cap hit that converts to a one-way deal in the 2026-27 season. The 6’4″ blueliner made his NHL debut with the Flames in the 2023-24 season and collected 21 points in 72 games with the Wranglers in 2024-25.
Kerins, who recorded four points (all assists) in his five games with the Flames in 2024-25, led the Wranglers with 33 goals and 61 points this past season; Poirier led all Wranglers defensemen with 42 points but has yet to make his NHL debut. Both players signed one-year, two-way deals worth $775,000 in the NHL.
Locked up 🔒
We've re-signed Rory Kerins, Yan Kuznetsov and Jeremie Poirier!
📄: https://t.co/H6KNV33X0q pic.twitter.com/4c007Xj4bU
As a shutdown defensive defender who plays the left side, Kuznetsov addresses multiple areas of need for a Flames team with a surplus of offensive right-handers. The Murmansk, Russia product spent a large portion of the 2024-25 season on a pairing with top prospect Hunter Brzustewicz with the Wranglers.
Kerins, a sixth-round pick in 2020, has followed an unusual pathway to become one of the Flames’ most intriguing forward prospects. After having his first post-draft season largely wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, Kerins scored 118 points in his D+2 year with the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds before establishing himself as a top scorer at both the ECHL and AHL levels.
Poirier, a 2020 third-round pick, has consistently been a top producer from the blue line for the Wranglers since turning pro in the 2022-23 season, but his slight frame and defensive inconsistency has prevented him from making the jump. While he has NHL tools, he may not get the opportunity to prove himself in Calgary.
With these three prospects now under contract, the Flames only have one RFA left to sign this summer: Connor Zary, their 2020 first-round pick who has established himself as a full-fledged NHLer over the past two seasons.