Sutter aiming to help Flames 'find ways to score goals' as new coach
Discusses return to Calgary, Trade Deadline, Gaudreau's struggles in Q&A with NHL.com
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The 62-year-old won the Stanley Cup twice as coach of the Los Angeles Kings in 2012 and 2014 and helped lead the Flames to the 2004 Cup Final. This is his 19th season as an NHL coach and second tenure with Calgary, but his job of replacing the fired Geoff Ward is like no other.
The Flames are competing in the Scotia North Division, playing games against the six other Canada-based teams. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the NHL is playing a condensed 56-game schedule, and teams typically have a game every other day, and three games in four days is not uncommon.
"Really, the rest and recovery part of things are the most important of all because you really don't have any time for much else," Sutter said. "You're resetting and going every time. I think what I've tried to do, because it's a tough task to make the (Stanley Cup) playoffs here, I've just tried to focus on that more than anything.
"Those teams that win the Stanley Cup have to play basically every other day for two months if they went seven games (in a series). You have to kind of have that mindset to get into the playoffs and that's about what's left for us. It's a tough task and we're trying to keep them focused on the next game, being ready for the game."
Sutter was hired March 4 and is 4-4-0 since he stepped behind the bench for his first game March 11 following a week in quarantine.
He's 638-471-101 with 83 ties, the 17th-winningest coach in NHL history, in 1,293 games with the Chicago Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, Flames and Kings.
Calgary (15-16-3) is in sixth place in the North, four points behind the fourth-place Montreal Canadiens; the top four teams qualify for the playoffs. The Flames have lost three straight, having scored two goals, and host the Winnipeg Jets on Friday (10 p.m. ET; ESPN+, SNW, TSN3, NHL.TV), beginning a stretch of seven games in 11 days.
Here are some of the other topics Sutter addressed regarding Calgary and his return to coaching in an interview with NHL.com.
What have you seen from the Flames since your first game on March 11?
"I think we've dialed into the work part and the pace part to keep up with the League. I think we're there with that. I think the next part is finding out if we have the offense, especially in this division, to keep up with the scoring. Obviously we've had trouble with that."
What expectations have you laid out for your team?
"It's really hard when you're not practicing or you don't have three or four days in a row to do a whole bunch of system work, but we've made some little changes in it and they've been good with that. It still goes back to trying to be a better gap team and a spend-less-time-in-our-own-zone kind of team and I think we've done that. Now we just have to continue to try to find ways to score goals. We've been working on that and hopefully repetition will help some of our guys."
What has surprised you so far in your return to Calgary?
"Nothing personnel-wise. I was really familiar with the group, watched a lot of hockey and being in Anaheim (as a consultant with the Anaheim Ducks) off and on the last couple of years. I've seen a lot of live games. I guess if there would be any surprises, they would be just to see how much further ahead the great young stars of our game are, how much they've improved since the last time I was behind a bench. They were kids then and you see where they're at now in terms of maturity, especially in this division, to be quite honest. There are some amazing players here."
The 2021 NHL Trade Deadline is April 12, less than three weeks away. It can be a stressful time for players and coaches. Has it been in Calgary and have you been talking to general manager Brad Treliving about trade deadline matters?
"I've talked to Brad a little bit, but I think I have not heard the players talking about it as much as you would in prior years. I wonder if that's because there's not as much happening or whether we're just not hearing about it. I think there were always discussions in the room but now, we hear almost nothing about any rumors or anything going on. I think it's a real difficult year and with the games being jammed up so much, I just think the players are playing the games and then trying to forget about it, then playing the next game. It's almost like they're oblivious to anything else going on."
Forward Johnny Gaudreau was a 99-point player (36 goals, 63 assists) two seasons ago. How have you tried to spark him?
"I'd like him to shoot more, for sure. I just think shot volume, especially for our team, is really important because we don't have those really elite scorers. And a lot of Johnny's numbers are assists but I still think by shooting more, there are a lot of assists off (goalies') pads and that sort of thing now. And it sounds funny but I'm just trying to get him to play a faster game."
You've been in and around the game for a long time, but this "bubble" concept has to be new for you. How have you found it since joining Calgary's "bubble"?
"You're certainly together for a period of time. It's really quite good the way the guys are treated and the way the hotels are set up when we go on the road. I think the biggest thing for me is getting used to the mask and the testing and the no fans. For me, that's been the biggest thing, and it's got to be hard for the players, too. It's so different, the biggest thing I've noticed, going back into a building where you couldn't hear anything five minutes into a game and now you can talk quietly with no problem."
You've identified getting to know people as one of your biggest strengths. How has that process gone in the early days of your return to Calgary?
"That's been really easy, to be quite honest, to slide right back in with training staff, lot of people in the offices upstairs. It's just like I stepped right back in and that's made it very easy for me and that's helped me spend more time with the players."
