Speedy winger Kevin Rooney might be the best fit to complete the Flames’ third line

Kevin Rooney is the best fit to play on the Calgary Flames' third line. The team needs another forward to step into a top-nine role. Jonathan Huberdeau, Elias Lindholm, Andrew Mangiapane, Nazem Kadri, and Tyler Toffoli are already in the team's top six. Dillon Dube is a good bet to round out that group. Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman are premier two-way forwards making more than $10 million between them. Backstrom has been a mentor for some of the Flames prospects. Jakob Pelletier, Matthew Phillips, Connor Zary have been demoted to the American Hockey League. Sonny Milano and Cody Eakin attended training camp on professional tryouts.

Rooney played well for the Flames in Monday's pre-season game against Seattle. He played with Backlund and Coleman, who play together with Garnet Hathaway. The line played a lot of five-on-five hockey and generated a total of 2.11 expected goals at five minutes. Rooney accounted for more than a third of that amount. He had six goals and 12 points in 61 games last season with the New York Rangers. Before that, he played for New Jersey Devils and New England Whales. In 2018–19, Hathaways played on the best line for Calgary.