When he thinks back upon his formative years, Brad Larsen recalls the 1989 Stanley Cup Champion Calgary Flames.
“They just had that Stanley Cup celebration,” he recalled. “That brought back a lot of memories from my childhood, watching those teams play.”
Life came full circle for Larsen Tuesday, as he was named the new Flames assistant coach.
Exciting times for a B.C. Interior boy, who’s spent his entire professional career - as a player and coach - south of the 49th parallel.
“It's a little bit of a coming home, this is as close as I’ve been to home, ever,” Larsen said when reached by phone Tuesday afternoon. "Being from British Columbia, I’ve been all over the U.S. for a lot of years, playing and coaching.
“I’ve always been a huge fan of the Calgary Flames organization and now, to be part of it, I’m super-excited.”
Indeed, Calgary’s about as close to home as Larsen can get in the NHL, a half-day car ride from his hometown in the North Okanagan.
But over the course of his travels, he’s garnered some considerable hockey experience: 294 games as a player, a Stanley Cup championship with the Avalanche in 2001, and nine seasons behind the Blue Jackets’ bench - two of which he served as head coach.
His stint as bench boss, from 2021-23, was a learning lesson, but one the 46-year-old is taking as valuable experience as he heads into a new role with the Flames.
“As soon as you put on the head coaching hat, it’s much different than being an assistant,” said Larsen. “I’ve always said that there’s no substitute for experience, you just go through things. The two years I was head coach, obviously we were in a bit of a transition stage in Columbus, we had a lot of young players; first year was fairly good, we did a pretty good job of staying a little bit healthier, but my next year was really tough, just with all the injuries and a very young team.
“I just think that all those things that you go through, and most coaches, you talk to ‘em after they’ve gone through all these extremes, it gives you something to remember, and reflect and go back on. We all try and draw from our experiences, the good, and maybe some of the rougher seasons.”
In Calgary, Larsen will put that experience with younger players to work, but the opportunities at hand come the fall is something he figures will inspire everyone to put their best skate blades forward.
“I think you see a group that’s going to be hungry,” he said. “There’s great opportunity, so what it does is create a lot of internal competition.
“You’ve got some older guys with Huberdeau, Kadri and that group, and some guys on the back end. It should be a good blend of some older guys and some younger guys, and some really hungry players.”
It’s been more than a quarter-century since Larsen called Western Canada home - his last stop in these parts was in his final year of junior hockey with the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos.
He captained Canada’s World Junior team to a gold medal - one of two such awards on his mantle, before turning pro with the Avalanche in the fall of 1997.
It was in the WHL, too, that Larsen got his first look at Flames head coach Ryan Huska, albeit on the opposite side of the ice.
“Ryan and I played against each other in the Western League, I was in Swift Current so we only played each other once or twice a year,” Larsen reminisced. “They obviously had really good teams back then, they were winning Memorial Cups, a pretty loaded group.
“I don’t know Ryan all that well, as far as I would say personally, but I got to know him over the years, the coaching fraternity’s small. I kind of watched him from afar, he’d done such a great job in Kelowna, moved up and was a head coach in the American League, an assistant coach under Darryl and then he got the head job. I’ve just always kind of watched him grow.
“I really like what I hear from him. He’s very well thought-out, very passionate, he’s got a great understanding of the league and the new-age player. Just getting to know him better, every conversation I get excited that I get the opportunity to work with him.”
In addition to Huska, Larsen also has connections with a pair of his new colleagues on the Flames bench.
He was teammates with Cail MacLean in 2002-03 with the AHL’s Hershey Bears, while both he and Dan Lambert are Swift Current alumni.
But as Larsen looks ahead to his new challenge this winter, the prospect of calling Canada home again is unshakable - ever-present, even.
Especially the thought of working in front of the C of Red.
“It’s great energy in that building,” he said. “The whole community has just got a great feel to it.
“When you’re there as a visiting team you can feel it, but I’m really looking forward to being on the home side.”
