32 NHL Cities in 32 Days: Calgary Flames

Alexis Bazydola
May 5, 2020
4 min read

Updated: May 15, 2020

The City: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

While the Flames have not always called Calgary home, they currently play in the ScotiaBank Saddledome. The arena officially opened in October 1983. It hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics. In 1994, the venue underwent new management and a $37 million renovation. It officially reopened with a sold out Reba McIntire concert.

Team History

The Calgary Flames were created as the NHL tried to halt the expansion of the upstart of the World Hockey Association (WHA) in 1971. They granted an expansion team to the group that owned the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. The team began play in the Omni Coliseum in downtown Atlanta. They made the playoffs in six of eight seasons in Atlanta, but could not convert it to playoff success as they only won two post season games during that time. In 1980, the owners were in such bad financial shape that they were forced to sell. Although efforts were made to keep the team in Atlanta, they were eventually moved to Calgary.

The city immediately embraced the Calgary Flames. They began play in the Stampede Corral in 1980. In their first season they made it to the playoffs and won their first two series against the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers, respectively. They were eventually knocked out by the Minnesota North Stars in the semi-finals. Despite this success, the Flames faced competitive hardship. They began to sign young college and European hockey players to boost their roster.

In 1983, the team moved in to their new and current home the Olympic Saddledome. In their first three seasons in the Saddledome, the Flames only lost 32 home games. They hosted the NHL All-Star game in 1985.

As the young talent that was acquired began to mature, the Flames became a force to be reckoned with in the mid-80s in to the 90s. While they were able to have regular season success, it did not translate to playoff wins. This all changed in 1986. They swept the Winnipeg Jets in the first round and defeated the Edmonton Oilers who were favored to win their third Stanley Cup in a row. From there, they would go on to face the St. Louis Blues in the Campbell Conference Finals and defeated them in seven games. For the first time in their history, they were headed to the Stanley Cup Finals. They faced the Montreal Canadians and lost the series in five games.

While the next season was not as successful, the Flames were able to record their first 100-point season in 1987-88 and earned the Presidents’ Trophy. They were not able to convert this to playoff success, however, and were swept in the second round by the Edmonton Oilers. The next season saw the return of the Flames to the Finals again against the Montreal Canadians. They won the Cup in six games. This win marked the first time a Canadian woman’s name was engraved on the Cup when Flames co-owner Sonia Scurfield’s name was added. The next year started years of hardship as they would not win another playoff series until 2004.

While the next few seasons were met with ineptitude, the 95-96 season brought Jarome Iginla to the Flames roster. While he debuted in the 1996 playoffs, the team could not come out on top and lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in four games. After this season, the team would not see the playoffs again for another seven years. As the Canadian dollar lost value against the American dollar, the Flames found it hard to retain players. Attendance also dropped forcing ownership to issue an ultimatum to fans: buy tickets or the team would move to the United States. This campaign proved successful and the team would remain in Calgary.

In 2001-02, Iginla was awarded the Maurice “Rocket” Richard and Art Ross trophies after scoring 52 goals and 96 points. Finally, after years of competitive hardship, the Flames returned to the playoffs in 2004 and faced the Vancouver Canucks. After defeating them in seven games, they went on to eliminate the Detroit Red Wings in six games. Next, they knocked out the San Jose Sharks and were on their way to another Stanley Cup Final appearance. They faced the Tampa Bay Lightning. Though they took the series to seven games, they would not go on to win another cup.

With the 2004-05 season being cancelled due to a lockout, Calgary went on to amass 103 points in the 05-06 season, their best since they won the Stanley Cup in 1989. Despite being eliminated by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the first round, goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff would be awarded the Vezina and William M. Jennings Trophies. In the years following, the Flames were unable to keep a steady coach or make another trip to compete for the cup.

After more years of hardships on the ice, Iginla was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2013 in exchange for prospects Kenny Agostino and Ben Hanowski and a first-round pick in 2013. After not making the playoffs again in 2013, the Flames would go on to select Sean Monahan sixth overall in the NHL Entry Draft. Marc Giordano was also named to captain during this offseason.

Johnny Gaudreau made his much-anticipated debut in 2014 and scored his first NHL goal in the same game. The 2014-15 season saw the Flames return to the playoffs for the first time since 2009. While they eliminated the Vancouver Canucks in the first round, they saw their demise at the hands of the Anaheim Ducks in five games. Head Coach Bob Hartley was awarded the Jack Adams Trophy, however. 2015-2016 brought Dougie Hamilton to the team from the Boston Bruins. Despite this acquisition, the Flames failed to make it to the playoffs yet again.

Calgary has acquired many players since this season, but have yet to make another Stanley Cup Final appearance. At the season’s pause the Calgary Flames are 17th in the league with 79 points.

Fanbase

The Flames also have permanent anthem performers in singer George Canyon and organist Willy Joosen. Harvey the Hound serves as the mascot of the Flames. Created in 1983, he was the first mascot in the NHL. Fans also have a tradition of wearing red fondly known as the “Sea of Red” or “C of Red.”