The Calgary Flames made the seemingly positive move this off-season when they promoted assistant Ryan Huska to the Head Coach role, and while there’s been plenty of negativity around the franchise since that point, it appears the team have been busy putting together a fantastic coaching staff.
On Saturday, that staff was officially announced, with the following names to be joining Huska on the bench:
Our coaching staff = complete!
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) June 23, 2023
The #Flames have hired Marc Savard and Dan Lambert as assistant coaches!
First up is former Flames center Marc Savard, who spent the past two seasons with the Windsor Spitfire of the OHL, where he racked up an impressive 88-35-13 record as the Head Coach, and now will return to the city in which he first made a name for himself in the NHL, looking to help the likes of Jonathan Hubedeau and Andrew Mangiapane bounce back in a big way.
Next up is Dan Lambert, who began his coaching career with the Kelowna Rockets as an assistant, under none other than Huska himself, and since that point, he led the Rockets to a WHL Championship and has been an assistant at the NHL and AHL level since 2015, bringing plenty of familiarity and experience to the role.
Next is a familiar face remaining on the staff in Cail MacLean, who began his Flames coaching debut back with the Stockton Heat under Huska, and after replacing Huska as Head Coach when he was promoted, MacLean quickly followed him to the NHL, and given that the team didn’t retain Kirk Muller, it’s a good sign that they wanted MacLean to stay on with the team.
Then there is Jason LaBarbera, a former goaltender with 187 NHL games to his name, who cut his teeth with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL before joining the Flames coaching staff in 2020, and with Dustin Wolf expected to come through this season, he’s got plenty of potential on his hands as the goaltending coach.
Last but not least is video coach Jason Pringle, who has been a staple of this coaching staff for well over a decade now, and while the product on the ice has seen it’s fair share of ups and downs during his tenure, he’s obviously doing something well to have remained with the organization for all that time, and he’ll be a welcome face for many Flames again in 2023-24.