Make it two California kids in the Calgary Flames’ crease.
The Flames doubled their Golden State roster with the signing of netminder Devin Cooley Monday, a two-year pact that becomes a one-way NHL deal in 12 months time.
The product of Los Gatos joins Gilroy’s Dustin Wolf in the Stampede City, and even in the early hours of his Calgary tenure, the pair of Bay Area boys are off and running as teammates.
“I actually don’t know him personally, but he reached out as soon as I signed so that was really cool, we talked for a little bit there,” Cooley said of Wolf when reached by phone Monday afternoon. “I know a lot about him, obviously, kind of being from the same area.
“He’s had a lot of success in the minors, the NHL level, too, so I’m really really excited to get to play with him, skate with him, and work with him.”
Calgary is Cooley’s fourth NHL organization - and first team north of the 49th parallel - but the 27-year-old sees a chance to make his presence felt come training camp alongside both Wolf and fellow returnee Dan Vladar.
“There’s going to be good competition everywhere you go, and I was really excited with the opportunity that Calgary had for me,” Cooley said. “I just want to go in, work as hard as I can and compete as hard as I can, and really push the other goalies to be the best version of themselves, and be the best version of myself.”
And that pushing, that internal competition, is exactly what Flames General Manager Craig Conroy is after.
“We want all three of these guys to come into camp and fight for those spots, I mean that’s what it’s all about,” Conroy said Monday afternoon. “It’s not about giving somebody the reins, no. Come and earn it, who’s going to take that spot and who’s going to be the guy that kind of rises.
“If I’m a young goalie now, one of these three guys, nobody’s going to work harder in the summer than these three guys, because they all want to say ‘That’s my job!’ And that’s what we want, we want to bring in that competition. We’re not giving it to anybody, we expect them to come in and someone to take it.”
Now that he’s got his new work locale secured, Cooley’s got an eye on taking an NHL spot to begin his fifth season of pro hockey.
He got a taste of NHL life at the tail end of 2023-24, including a season-ending contest against Wolf at the Scotiabank Saddledome that marked the first NHL game featuring two Bay Area-raised goalies.
Cooley figures that time with the Sharks - a six-game stint that included his first two career NHL victories - helped set the table for what lies ahead.
“It was an unbelievable experience, obviously San Jose’s my hometown team, too, so that was pretty special,” he said. “To get my first win in there, and then another win, get a few games under my belt, it helps a lot with the confidence.
“Just knowing ‘Hey, I can play at the NHL level now and I can succeed at the NHL level now,’ and hopefully carry that confidence with me to training camp.”
