The Calgary Flames have developed a ton of talent through the draft, whether early on or in the later rounds. Seven players, in particular, have carved out impressive careers after being passed over many times by many teams before the Flames took advantage. Here are the Flames’ biggest draft steals in franchise history.
Hakan Loob – 1980, Ninth Round, Pick 181
Hakan Loob was drafted by the Flames in 1980, the franchise’s ninth draft in the NHL. The team had 11 picks in this draft and selected him with their second-last in the ninth round, 181st overall. He wasn’t a star right away, as it took him a few years to develop and finally break into the NHL at 23 years old. But the wait was worth it as he was selected to the All-Rookie Team in 1983, and his career went uphill from there.
Loob only played six seasons in the NHL and ended his career in North America at age 28 to raise his family in his home country of Sweden. He played all six seasons for the Flames and said this about his early exit from the league, “yes, I knew that…I had made my decision to go home. Maybe that’s why some people didn’t think I cared that much, but it was because I made the decision in the early going. Due to family reasons and all of that, it’s going to be my last year.”
He was a member of the first and only (currently) Flames team to win the Stanley Cup. Drafted as late as he did, Loob put up two point-per-game seasons, a 50-goal, 106-point season, and was an All-Star. He was just in the early stages of his prime, and the Flames struck gold in the draft, given the short time they had him.
Sergei Makarov – 1983, 12th Round, Pick 231
The Flames had to wait for a long time before Sergei Makarov finally made his NHL debut in 1989 at age 31. Although he wasn’t a member of the 1989 Stanley Cup win, he gained a ton of professional and international experience in Russia as a part of the KLM line. Once he arrived in Calgary, he put up a rookie season to remember. He won the Calder Trophy and was voted to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team. Winning the Calder at 31 years old forced the league to change the rule to restrict who could win it.
The Flames only benefitted from Makarov’s play for four seasons, but he scored 94 goals and 292 points in 297 games and had an incredible shooting percentage of 23.6 percent. He moved on from Calgary at age 35 when his offensive production started to dwindle and only played 127 more NHL games. Regardless of the wait, the Flames got a great player very late in the 1983 Draft.
Brett Hull – 1984, Sixth Round, Pick 117
The 1984 Draft was the best in team history, as the Flames selected four players who played over 1000 games in the NHL and one who is a Hall of Famer, Brett Hull. The Flames selected this legend in the sixth round, their sixth pick of the draft. Hull ranks fifth all-time in goals with 741 and 25th all-time in points with 1391 in 1269 games.
Unfortunately, the Flames gave up on Hull early. He had only played 57 games for the team before being traded to the St. Louis Blues, where he carved out a long and successful career. He is a two-time Cup champion, Hart Trophy winner, Ted Lindsay Award winner, and Lady Byng Award winner. He is also known for scoring 86 goals in 78 games in 1990-91 when he won a couple of those awards. If only he had been a Flame for longer.
Gary Suter – 1984, Ninth Round, Pick 180
Gary Suter was also drafted late in 1984. He was selected in the ninth round and, unlike Hull, he was kept around for many years. He was a member of the team’s first and only Stanley Cup-winning team and was a vital member of the roster throughout his nine seasons in Calgary.
Suter won the Calder Trophy at 21 in his second season after being drafted. He is a three-time 20-goal scorer and finished in the top-eight in Norris Trophy voting four times in his career, three times with the Flames. Although there are a few Flames legends who aren’t in the Hall of Fame, there is an argument for Suter. Calgary was fortunate to have him throughout his prime in his 20s and have a Cup win because of him.
Theo Fleury – 1987, Eighth Round, Pick 166
Speaking of players who should be in the Hall of Fame, Theo Fleury is at the top of the list, along with Suter. Fleury was the real gem of this draft and the only player from the 1987 class to stick with the Flames for a long time. He was also a member of the Stanley Cup-winning team in his rookie season.
Fleury played 1084 games, scoring 455 goals and 1088 points – 791 of those games, and 830 points came with the Flames in the first 11 seasons of his career. However, despite his contributions and playing with the team as long as he did, his number isn’t hung from the rafters either. Fleury was overlooked in the draft for a number of rounds because of his size, but he helped change the tide for skilled players who were undersized.
T.J. Brodie – 2008, Fourth Round, Pick 114
There is a long gap between when the Flames were striking gold in the late rounds regularly and when they did it again. It wasn’t until 2011 that they found top-four defenceman T.J. Brodie in the fourth round. The 33-year-old’s career is far from over, and he has time to increase his career numbers, but it won’t be Hall of Fame worthy. That’s all right because many teams are hard-pressed to find a player like Brodie, who was a key piece of the roster for the better part of nine seasons.
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He wasn’t drafted as late as others on this list, but the draft has also changed over the years to limit the rounds in the draft to just seven after the lockout. Top-four right-shot defencemen continue to be a rare commodity, so the Flames really capitalized on this mid-round pick. He was effective at both ends of the ice throughout his time in Calgary and continues to be on the Toronto Maple Leafs for the past three seasons.
Johnny Gaudreau – 2011, Fourth Round, Pick 104
Most recently, the Flames selected Johnny Gaudreau in the fourth round; he was the face of the franchise for nearly a decade. Drafted just a little earlier than Brodie, the very small forward burst onto the scene and has been one of the most effective offensive producers since. In 682 games, he has 231 goals and 683 points.
He also proved that the Flames were wise to continue taking chances on players who have a lot of skill but have been passed over due to their height. He put together one of the best seasons by a Flame in franchise history in his final year with the team, scoring 115 points and finishing with a plus-64 rating. Those points rank second all-time in a season with the Flames, and his plus/minus is the highest in a season. At age 29, he has many years to make this choice later in the draft look even better while leading the charge on the Columbus Blue Jackets.
An honourable mention goes to Kent Nilsson, who was drafted in the fourth round at pick 64 in 1976. He wasn’t included here because his draft position would have him selected in the second round today. He was over a point-per-game player and put up a couple of 100-point seasons with the Flames, but he also left to play in a number of leagues overseas when he was in his 30s. It is always exciting to see who teams draft at the top of the draft, but very rewarding when someone who wasn’t expected to turn into anything special becomes a star.
Are there others who should be included in this group? Let us know in the comments below.
