*Photo from Sportsnet*
There's another extension to report on, but it's not in the player ranks. The Calgary Flames have extended the contract of head coach Darryl Sutter for two seasons, according to an announcement by the team.
Calgary GM Brad Treliving said of Sutter that "I think we're fortunate to have him. I think he's one of the best coaches in the game here today. I think he has and continues to have a Hall of Fame career. The structure he puts in place, his ability to drive teams, it was a natural. Darryl and I talked about it this summer, and worked on it, good to get it concluded. Very deserving. To me, it was a no brainer."
The extension for Sutter takes effect in the 2023-2024 season, he will play out the final year of his current 3 year deal with the Flames. Since taking over in the short 2021 season when Geoff Ward was fired, the Flames have a 65-36-11 record under Sutter in the regular season.
Sutter gave his thoughts, saying "When I came here, I promised we would get this straightened back out again. It's not just a straighten-out, one-year thing. It's the long haul. In order to become a legitimate contender, you have to do it over and over and over to get there. The way you do that is you have to build that and you have to establish an identity or a style of play or a core group of players that are committed to the long term. All those things are involved in that, and I think in some ways I feel like I have a responsibility to be a steward in that."
Last season, Sutter took home the Jack Adams award as the top coach in the NHL after guiding the Flames to the playoffs last year, losing in 5 games in the second round to the Edmonton Oilers. The Flames won the Pacific Division last season with a 50-21-11 record.
Before he was hired by the Flames in the 2021 season, the last time Sutter was a head coach was with the Los Angeles Kings. There, he guided the Kings to two Stanley Cup Titles, winning in 2012 and 2014, the first two titles in Kings history.
Treliving continued about Sutter, saying that "I said the day we brought him in, is structure and accountability are the two things that, to me, are calling cards of Darryl. He has the ability to maximize players' abilities. He's done it in every place he's been. He's done it throughout his career. To me, your team takes on the personality of your coach and I think our team has done that."
Sutter's current stint with the Flames is his second in Calgary. He previously was behind the bench for the Flames from 2002-2006, and was a Jack Adams finalist in the 2003-2004 season. That year, he snapped an 8 year playoff drought, and led the Flames to the Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In his head coaching career, Sutter has a 699-503-94 record with 101 ties in 19 seasons as a head coach. He has coached the Flames, Kings, San Jose Sharks, and Chicago Blackhawks.
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