We continue our offseason series taking a look back at past Calgary Flames rosters with the 2007–08 squad. After just one season behind the bench, Jim Playfair was relived of his duties during the summer of 2007 and the Flames hired veteran coach Mike Keenan for the 2007–08 season.
Hiring Keenan didn’t change much though as the Flames once again narrowly made the playoffs, this time ranking seventh in the Western conference. As is tradition they’d get knocked out in the first round of the playoffs, this time in seven games.
From that team, Jarome Iginla and Craig Conroy are the only members still involved with the organization in a management or coaching role as general manager and special advisor to the general manager. Cory Sarich meanwhile works for the team on a recurring basis with FlamesTV during the season.
Forwards
Jarome Iginla
The 2007–08 season was arguably the best of Jarome Iginla’s career as he’d register a career-high 98 points and add on 50 goals, the second highest goal total of his career. A testament to just how much the Flames failed to surround him with talent during his prime, the next highest Flame that season had just 66 points. Unsurprisingly he’d finish as a finalist for the Hart trophy that season.
Iginla was dealt in 2013 and retired from hockey in 2017. In 2020, he was voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Since retiring he was not directly involved with any NHL team until of course this summer when he was hired as the special assistant to the general manager in Calgary.
Craig Conroy
By this point in his career, Craig Conroy was in his late 30s and more of a veteran piece for the Flames. The fact he was playing over 17 minutes a night is an indication of just how thin the team’s centre depth was. He’d finish the 2007–08 season with 34 points in 79 games.
Conroy would finish his career in Calgary and retired a Flame a couple years later in 2010. He quickly moved into a management role with the Flames that same year and has worked his way up the organization, eventually being named general manager this summer.
Alex Tanguay
Following a great debut season for the Flames in 2006–07 wit 81 points, Alex Tanguay would take a step back in 2007–08 with only 18 goals and 58 points. Unsurprisingly it would be the final year of his first stint in Calgary as he’d be dealt in the offseason. He’d return to the team a couple years later for a second stint in 2010.
After retiring in 2016, Tanguay worked as an assistant coach in the AHL and most recently as an assistant for the Detroit Red Wings. This past summer he was linked with both the Flames head coach and assistant coaching roles but remained in Detroit.
Daymond Langkow
Following up on his stellar 2006–07 season, Daymond Langkow also regressed a bit in 2007-08 going from 77 points to 65 points. Still, the total ranked third on the Flames and tops among Flames centres that season.
Langkow was eventually dealt to the Coyotes a couple years later in 2011 and played one more season before retiring. He’s not currently working in hockey, however his son Colton is teammates with Flames first-round pick Samuel Honzek in the WHL.
Kristian Huselius
Kristen Huselius would continue his strong stretch in Calgary, registering the second most points on the Flames in 2007–08 with 66. It’d end up being his last season in Calgary as he’d leave in free agency in the offseason. He’d leave the NHL in 2012 and spend one year in Sweden before retiring due to injury at the age of 34 in 2013.
Huselius was involved in a scary, freak accident in 2019 that led to him staying in the ICU for multiple days. Luckily he escaped mostly unscathed and was most recently a strength and conditioning coach for his daughters’ handball team in Sweden.
Matthew Lombardi
Like many other Flames in 2007–08, Matthew Lombardi took a step back going from 20 goals and 46 points in 2006–07 to 14 goals and 36 points. He’d be traded the following year in the first trade that brought Olli Jokinen to Calgary. He’d spend another five years in the NHL after the trade before going over to Switzerland in 2013. Lombardi played for Geneve Servette for three seasons, winning the Spengler Cup in 2015, and retired in 2016.
Stephen Yelle
Stephen Yelle continued to be an elite defensive forward in 2007–08, posting remarkable underlying numbers in a depth role for the Flames. He’d add on 12 points in what would be his last year as a Flame. He’d play two more seasons in the NHL before retiring in 2010.
After retiring, Yelle spent one year as a development coordinator with the Avalanche and two as an assistant coach for Valor Christian High School. He’s currently a managing partner at MCE Brand Solutions, helping companies better market their products on Amazon.
David Moss
Following up on his rookie 2006–07 season, David Moss would register 11 points across 41 games in 2007–08. He’d spend another four years as a Flame and then head to Arizona as a free agent in 2012. He’d leave the NHL in 2015 and spend one year in Switzerland before retiring in 2016.
A fun fact about Moss is that he married Survivor season 18 contestant Erinn Lobdell in 2014, who he now has four children with.
Owen Nolan
In a somewhat desperate attempt to get over the hump, the Flames signed 35-year-old NHL veteran Owen Nolan prior to the 2007–08 season. Nolan would finish the year with 16 goals and 32 points, the lowest total of his career since his rookie season in 1990. Needless to say the move didn’t pay off and Nolan wouldn’t return the next season.
He’d leave the NHL two years later in 2010 before playing one year in Switzerland and then retiring in 2011. He worked as an assistant coach for the San Jose Jr. Sharks in 2020 and currently owns two restaurants in San Jose.
Dustin Boyd
A 2004 third-round pick of the Flames, Dustin Boyd would make his full rookie season debut in Calgary in 2007–08. Playing in a depth role, Boyd would put up 12 points in 48 games. Boyd would last four seasons in Calgary and be dealt during the 2009–10 season. Soon after in 2011 he’d leave the NHL for the KHL where he had a successful career until his retirement in 2020.
Wayne Primeau
Veteran forward Wayne Primeau made his full season debut with the Flames in 2007–08 after being acquired at the 2007 trade deadline. Unfortunately he didn’t contribute much that season as he registered just three goals and 10 points across 43 games. He’d spend one more year in Calgary before being dealt to Toronto during the 2009 offseason.
Primeau played one year for the Maple Leafs and retired in 2010. Starting in 2014 he began coaching his kids in minor hockey and is currently an assistant coach for the AAA Markham Majors of the GTHL.
Eric Nystrom
The Flames 10th overall pick in the 2002 NHL Draft, Eric Nystrom made his rookie season with the Flames in 2007–08. He’d put up a modest 10 points in 44 games that year. Nystrom would never live up to his draft hype and would play just two more years in Calgary before leaving as a free agent in 2010.
Nystrom stuck around in the NHL for six more seasons before going over to Norway in 2016–17. He’d retire after one season in Norway in 2017 after winning a Norwegian Championship with the Stavanger Oilers. He currently works as a Cybersecurity Concierge in Florida.
Defencemen
Dion Phaneuf
Dion Phaneuf continued his upward trajectory in 2007–08 with the best season of his entire career. The 22-year-old posted 17 goals and 60 points to finish first on the Flames for points from the blueline and fifth league wide in 2007–08. His season earned him the runner up spot for the Norris behind only Nicklas Lidstrom.
Unfortunately it was downhill from here as Phaneuf would never reach the same heights and was dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2010. Phaneuf would spend another 11 years in the NHL and retired in 2021. In 2022 he joined CBD and vitamin supplement company CaniBrands as the company’s strategic advisor.
Robyn Regehr
Still a steady presence on the Flames blueline, Robyn Regehr averaged the third most minutes on the Flames in 2007–08, and played in all 82 games that year. A couple years later in 2011 Regehr was dealt to Buffalo for Chris Butler and Paul Byron. He’d spend five more seasons in the NHL, winning a Stanley Cup with Sutter and the L.A. Kings in 2014.
After retiring in 2015, Regehr—who is an avid outdoorsman—has spent his time snowmobiling, and wakeboarding in Calgary and teaches kids outdoor safety.
Adrian Aucoin
A new addition to the Flames blueline for the 2007–08 season after being acquired during the offseason, Adrian Aucoin registered 35 points in 76 games for the Flames. The 34-year-old would play out his contract with the team and leave as a free agent in 2009. Aucoin spent four more years in the NHL before retiring in 2013.
Immediately after retiring Aucoin became a development coach with the Blackhawks in 2013 and would remain in the role until 2015. He’d then move into an assistant coach role with the AAA Chicago Mission which is where he has worked for the past eight years.
Anders Eriksson
Yet another veteran addition to the Flames blueline in the offseason, 32-year-old Anders Eriksson made his Flames debut in 2007–08. He’d register 18 points in 61 games while playing around 20 minutes a night.
Eriksson would spend one more year in the Flames organization, albeit in the AHL with the Quad City Flames. He’d leave Calgary as a free agent in 2009 and left the NHL soon after in 2010. He’d retire after one year in Europe in 2011. He was head coach of the University of Miami hockey team in 2020–21 but is not currently working in hockey.
Cory Sarich
Hey look another veteran defenceman acquired by Sutter in the 2007 offseason. 29-year-old Cory Sarich joined the Flames in 2007–08 after signing a four-year contract in free agency the summer prior. A pure shutdown defender, Sarich posted seven points in 80 games that season while playing on the team’s third pairing.
Sarich would spend another five seasons in Calgary and one more in Colorado after being traded by the Flames in 2013. He’d retire in 2014. Sarich suffered a scary biking accident soon after retiring in 2014 but made a full recovery and currently works with FlamesTV during the season.
Rhett Warrener
Depth defenceman Rhett Warrener suited up for just 31 games in Calgary during the 2007–08 season, posting four points. He would lose his lineup spot in the playoffs and following the season he retired from hockey. After retiring Warrener served as a scout for the Flames for a brief time moving to radio as a host on Sportsnet960 and is now podcasting.
Goaltenders
Miikka Kiprusoff
The 2007–08 season certainly wasn’t Miikka Kiprusoff’s best as a Flame as he’d finish the year with a .906 save percentage, a career worst as a starter at the time. Despite this he’d still finish the year fifth in Vezina showing, showing just how poor the team in front of him was.
Kiprusoff would of course finish his career in Calgary following the 2013–14 season. He’s since returned to Finland and has lived a notoriously quiet life away from the spotlight, until of course this past week when it was announced his number would be retired in March.
