What are the 5 biggest storylines heading into Calgary Flames training camp?

Calgary won’t be skating any established stars during exhibition season this year, nor does the club have Stanley Cup aspirations. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be competition for spots or a lack of storylines to follow over the next few weeks.

Here are some of the major question marks facing Flames players and coaches before the puck drops in April.

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Calgary’s roster features eight defenders fighting for ice time, not including 21-year-old Hunter Brzustewicz, who was a regular on the parent squad by the end of last season.

That’s a lot of bodies to deal with, even if the club is comfortable waiving guys like Joel Hanley or Brayden Pachal in order to keep all of their kids on the roster.

Brzustewicz, who is exempt from waivers, may end up on the Wranglers to start the season thanks to the squeeze, but at some point the herd will need to be thinned somehow.

With the addition of the former second-overall pick from the Devils, head coach Ryan Huska has two very similar youngsters in Nemec and Parekh to manage.

Nemec is about 100 games ahead of Parekh in his NHL journey, but he’s a player looking to take a substantial step forward after a few relatively disappointing seasons in New Jersey.

Parekh is one of Calgary’s few blue-chip prospects. He had a rocky start to the season last year as a 19-year-old, but found his footing down the stretch.

Both guys are offensively adept blueliners who like to roam north of the red line, but who also have some warts defensively.