After weeks of speculation on the future of head coach Darryl Sutter, the Calgary Flames are moving on from the long-time bench boss. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet has reported that the Flames are expected to make an announcement on the matter shortly.
It first started with Elliotte Friedman breaking that the Flames could make a coaching change, and in a mere matter of minutes, it happened. Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation President and CEO John Bean stated his thanks to Sutter as the organization relieved him of his duties.
Darryl Sutter’s out as head coach
Sutter will go down as the all-time leader in games coached and games won by a Flames coach. He also holds the record for the most points earned while in charge of the team, and sits second in playoff wins among all Flames coaches.
This was a particularly rocky season for the team, with Sutter unable to get the most out of his players this season. This tweet from Micah Blake McCurdy shows just how much he struggled to pick up wins this past season:
Next for the Flames
The rumours surrounding his relationship with his players was cause for concern, with many reportedly not wanting to return to the team if he remained in charge. Retaining Sutter this long was part of the reason that the team and long-time GM Brad Treliving parted ways earlier this season, and may have longer-term ramifications for the organization.
The Flames will still owe Sutter over $4 million per season for the next two seasons, but despite this, the Flames ownership and management made the right call for the franchise by letting him go.
The team will have a press conference at 11:30 am with President of Hockey Operations Don Maloney for further comments and discussion. This will be streamed live on the Calgary Flames website.
