Flames Name Brent Sutter Head Coach

There have been a lot of shocking developments over the years in sports. Tuesday's announcement in Calgary was not one of them.

Ever since Brent Sutter stepped down as head coach of the New Jersey Devils, speculation has had him taking over as head coach of the Flames, being that his older brother Darryl is the general manager there. Tuesday, it was all made official, as Brent Sutter was named to take over for the fired Mike Keenan.

While both Sutters downplayed the sibling connection, saying their relationship would be Darryl as the general manager and Brent as the head coach, there was little reason to think this wasn't going to happen from the second Brent Sutter walked away from the last year of his New Jersey contract.

Brent had nothing but kind words for Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello, who has been very quiet about his coaching search.

"Mr. Lamoriello is a phenomenal man," Brent Sutter said. "My whole situation there was very unique right from the get-go. There was strong communication between himself and myself."

While he coached in New Jersey, Brent Sutter's family stayed behind in Alberta, and he said it wasn't long after the season that "there was a good feeling I was not coming back to New Jersey because of those circumstances."

"I thoroughly enjoyed the two years, but it affected other parts of my life," Brent Sutter added. He said Lamoriello was "very supportive".

Asked if the Flames will be compensating the Devils for hiring Brent Sutter while he had one year left on his contract, Darryl Sutter quickly said "No".

"I called Lou on June 12 and asked for permission to talk to him (Brent)," Darryl Sutter said. "He gave me permission."

Brent Sutter made a name for himself in junior hockey, as he was president, general manager, and head coach for Red Deer (Alb.) in the Western Hockey League for eight seasons before taking over in New Jersey. He continues to own the team.

In Calgary, he will be reunited with current Flames star and former Red Deer defenseman Dion Phaneuf. Fellow Flame Jim Vandermeer also played under Sutter at Red Deer.

Three former NHL players, Ryan McGill, Dave Lowry, and Jamie McLennan were named as Brent Sutter's assistants. Both Lowry and McLennan played for the Flames during their careers. Darryl Sutter said they were the "best people available" for those positions. He also noted that he coached all four new Flames coaches, and said they were all strong locker-room guys.

It's truly a new beginning for the Flames, who collapsed late in the season after making two significant trade deadline moves aimed at making the team into a Stanley Cup contender. They eventually finished fifth in the Western Conference, losing to Chicago in six games in the first round of the playoffs.