No, not re-signs, Darry Sutter has answered all Christmas wishes a couple days late by resigning from his position as GM of the Calgary Flames.
Sutter triumphantly came to the city in late 2002 and took the Flames to the Cup final the following. From there it was all down hill. Sutter stepped down as coach to take on GM responsibilities, but struggled to build a team in the post-lock out era. The Calgary Flames have steadily declined in capability since their cup run, although they would dress teams that maxed out all cap space.
This season’s inevitable post-season miss was enough for Darryl to take the high-road and let some younger blood transform this team.
Assistant general manager Jay Feaster has been appointed as acting general manager on an interim basis and will assume full and complete responsibilities for day to day hockey operations, according to a statement issued by the hockey club.
In the least, Feaster brings some fresh eyes to this organization that sorrily needs to get out of the ‘Sutter’ identity.
Key press conference comments below.
Sutter did change the complexion of this team 8 years ago from a frumpy ‘young guns’ misfit of an organization to the respectable team we are today. However, with that came expectations that are now higher than ever and Darryl couldn’t live up to the bill.
Ken King had this to say before press release:
“He was the leader that ignited a renaissance of Flames hockey, moving us from a non-playoff team to an organization that was viewed as a respected and popular contender each year. We thank Darryl for his leadership and his important contributions to re-establishing the Calgary Flames as a model franchise. As we enter the next phase of our growth in the NHL, we are restructuring our leadership and processes. We are pleased that Darryl has agreed to assist in an orderly transition and will provide his valuable guidance in the process. He remains dedicated to the success of the team he worked so hard to build.”
The organization and the team are eternally grateful to Darryl’s contribution to the team and the city…….Darryl’s stepping down because I asked him to..
I asked Darryl if we had the right coaching group and he said absolutely. I asked independently to Jay if we had the right coaching group and he said the same thing.
All coaches are safe. Jay was asked just after Christmas to be GM.
Your thoughts?
Hope is in the air now they’d better not wreck it by firing the coach. This team needs stability and time to get it right.
A change was needed because not everyone was pleased by the way things were going….The Flames’ lack of performance was not due to lack of credibility, but something deeper down. With Darryl stepping down, it is my conviction that the players should now be given the opportunity to settle down first…more changes will only create chaos and this will only ruin things.. What we need is to rebuild the player’s momentum and get them back on track ….Jay Feaster is the right person for getting the job done.
On a closing note, Darryl’s contribution have not gone unnoticed…. Die hard fans wish the best for him in his upcoming endeavors.