NHL Team Guide: Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames franchise was founded in 1972 as the Atlanta Flames. The team relocated to Calgary in 1980 and is one of two teams in Alberta (Edmonton is the other). The Flames came about as the result of the NHL’s fight with the World Hockey Association (WHA). With the addition of the New York Islanders, the NHL needed to balance out the schedule and added Atlanta.
Calgary experienced some success immediately following the move making the postseason in each of its first 11 seasons in the new city. The 1988-89 season ended with the franchise’s first and only Stanley Cup victory.
Flames fans can watch Calgary on TV on Sportsnet West, the home of the team’s regional broadcasts. Nationally broadcasted Calgary games can be found on NBC, NBCSN, and the CBC. The Flames complete schedule is available for live streaming via the Sportsnet NOW app.
NHL Standings
The original Atlanta Flames were placed in the West Division in 1972. With the move to Calgary, the team remained grouped with primarily western teams. Today, the Flames are in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference.
Championship History
The franchise won its first division championship in 1987-88. The Flames have won a total of seven division titles: 1988-89, 1989-90, 1993-94, 1994-95, 2005-06, 2018-19 are the others. Twice, Calgary won the Presidents’ Trophy (1987-88, 1988-89).
Calgary has won three conference championships (1985-86, 1988-89, and 2003-04) advancing to the Stanley Cup three times. The Flames lost to Montreal in five games in 1985-86 and were defeated by Tampa Bay in seven games in 2003-04. Calgary beat Montreal in six games to claim its only Stanley Cup in 1988-89.
Home of the Flames
The Flames first played in the Stampede Corral in Calgary before moving to their current home, the Scotiabank Saddledome. Originally known as the Olympic Saddledome, the arena was opened in 1983 and renovated in 1994. Scotiabank Saddledome seats 19,289 fans for hockey games.
Best Flames
Calgary boasts nine Hockey Hall of Famers who played the bulk of their careers with the Flames. Lanny McDonald was the first Flames player inducted in 1992. McDonald played the final eight seasons of his career in Calgary and still holds the record for most goals in a season with 66 in 1982-83. He was a member of the Flames’ Stanley Cup team in 1988-89 and is sixth on the Calgary all-time goals scoring list with 215.
Jarome Iginla is the franchise’s all-time leading goal scorer and points scorer. Iginla played 17 seasons in Calgary and scored 525 goals and tallied 1,095 points. He won the Art Ross Trophy in 2002 after having led the NHL in scoring with 52 goals and 96 points. Iginla also won the Ted Lindsay Award in 2002 as the league’s Most Outstanding Player. He is one of just seven NHL players to have scored 30 or more goals in 11 consecutive seasons.
Al MacInnis was the 15th overall pick by Calgary in 1991 and played 13 seasons with the Flames. He was best known for having one of the fastest and hardest slapshots in the game. MacInnis leads the Flames in career assists with 609 and is third on the scoring list with 822 career points. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the 1988-89 Stanley Cup playoffs and is one of just four NHL defensemen to ever have scored 100 points in a season. He had 103 in 1990-91. MacInnis was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007.
Author: Dan Anderson