The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Darryl Sutter’s GM Tenure

The Flames have been stuck on mediocre land for the last few seasons and fans deserve something to cheer about.  So its time to make a trade to get better and maybe make the playoffs or blow it all up and rebuild. 

Either way, is GM Darryl Sutter the right man for the job? 

Lets take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly of Sutter’s reign to see if he is the guy you want trading away Jarome Iginla or Miikka Kiprusoff.

Bad: Trading Away Chris Drury

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CALGARY - OCTOBER 17: Chris Drury #37 of the Calgary Flames maneuvers puck during the game against the Boston Bruins at the Pengrowth Saddledome on October 17, 2002 in Calgary, Canada. The Flames tied the Bruins 3-3. (Photo by Ian Tomlinson/Getty Images/

One of Darryl Sutter’s first trades was to trade away Chris Drury to Buffalo for Rhett Warrener and Steven Reinprecht. 

Reinprecht had decent offensive upside but could never stay healthy long enough to be a regular scoring threat, while Drury went on to have back-to-back 30 goal seasons and back-to-back career highs in points in Buffalo.

Good: Trading For Miikka Kiprusoff

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PITTSBURGH - NOVEMBER 27: Miikka Kiprusoff #34 of the Calgary Flames makes a glove save on Sidney Crosby #87 of the Pittsburgh Penguins on a penalty shot at Consol Energy Center on November 27, 2010 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller

Sutter traded a 2005 second round draft pick to San Jose for Miikka Kiprusoff.  Kiprusoff went on to become one of the league's elite goaltenders and took the Flames to the Stanley Cup Finals. 

This was one of Sutter's best transactions as a GM.

Ugly: Failed to Keep Craig Conroy

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BUFFALO - NOVEMBER 13: Craig Conroy #24 of the Calgary Flames handles the puck against the Buffalo Sabres at HSBC Arena on November 13, 2009 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by: Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

Failed to keep Craig Conroy with the team and Conroy signed with Los Angeles. 

Conroy scored 22 goals and a career high 66 points in his first season with the Kings.  Sutter realized his mistake and traded for Conroy in the 2006-2007 season.

Good: Got Daymond Langkow from the Desert

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LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 07: Daymond Langkow #22 of the Calgary Flames fights off a check from Jack Johnson #3 of the Los Angeles Kings in the third period at Staples Center on December 7, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. The Kings defeated the Flames

Sutter traded Oleg Saprykin and Denis Gauthier to Phoenix for Daymond Langkow. 

Saprykin and Gauthier never really developed into regulars in the NHL and both are no longer playing. Langkow scored back-to-back 30 goal seasons in his second and third seasons with the Flames and had a career high 77 points in the 2006-2007 season, before injuries slowed him down. 

Injuries aside, this was a steal for Sutter.

Bad: Kristian Huselius Gone after 3 Years

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SAN JOSE, CA - APRIL 10: Kristian Huselius #20 of the Calgary Flames passes the puck under pressure from Marc-Edouard Vlasic #44 of the San Jose Sharks during game Two of the 2008 NHL conference quarter-final series at HP Pavilion on April 10, 2008 in Sa

Sutter made a great trade to get Kristian Huselius from Florida for Steve Montador and Dustin Johner. 

Huselius played for the Flames for three seasons and scored career highs in goals (25) and points (77) in the 2006-2007 season. 

Sutter was unable to re-sign Huselius, who signed with Columbus.

Good Turned Bad Part One: Alex Tanguay Lights It up, Year 1

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CALGARY, AB - SEPTEMBER 28: Alex Tanguay #40 of the Calgary Flames looks to pass against the Phoenix Coyotes in NHL preseason action on September 28, 2010 at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Mike Ridewood/Getty Images)

Traded Jordan Leopold and two draft picks to Colorado for Alex Tanguay.  

Tanguay had a career year in his first year with the Flames, scoring 81 points, but struggled in his second season with the Flames.  Tanguay has never scored over 60 points since his career year in 2006-2007. 

Tanguay was traded to Montreal for a first round draft pick in 2008 and a second round draft pick in 2009.  Sutter signed Tanguay this off-season in the hope that Tanguay can resurrect his career.

Good Turned Bad Part Two: Mike Cammalleri Scored Goals and Skipped Town

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CHICAGO - APRIL 16: Michael Cammalleri #13 of the Calgary Flames skates with the puck against the Chicago Blackhawks during Game One of the Western Conference Quarterfinals of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs on April 16, 2009 at the United Center in Chicag

Traded a first round draft pick in 2008 and a second round pick in 2009 to Los Angeles for Mike Cammalleri and a second round draft pick in 2008. 

Cammalleri scored a career-high 39 goals and 82 points in his single season with the Flames. 

Sutter failed to re-sign Cammalleri, who signed with Montreal.

Great: Rene Bourque Scores Back-To-Back 20 Goals and Contract Extension

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UNIONDALE, NY - MARCH 25: Rene Bourque #17 of the Calgary Flames shoots the puck ahead against the New York Islanders during an NHL game at the Nassau Coliseum on March 25, 2010 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images)

Traded a conditional second round draft pick in 2009 to Chicago for Rene Bourque; one of the greatest trades Sutter has made. 

Bourque has been a consistent scorer for the Flames, with back-to-back 20 goal seasons, but injuries have slowed his career.  Bourque is on pace for a career year and has been the Flames' best player this season. 

Sutter was able to re-sign Bourque to a six-year contract extension, which is a fantastic signing.

Bad: Why Oh Why Would He Bring Back Olli Jokinen

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LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 21: Olli Jokinen #21 of the Calgary Flames waits to face off against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center on November 21, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Traded Matthew Lombardi, Brandon Prust and 1st round draft pick to Phoenix for Olli Jokinen and a 3rd round draft pick. 

Lombardi was a consistent 30-40 point second line player for the Flames who went on to have a career season last year with Phoenix scoring 53 points.  Jokinen finished strong with Calgary scoring 15 points in 19 games but didn’t last the new season with Calgary only scoring 35 points in 56 games. 

How bad is Jokinen?  Sutter basically gave him away to the Rangers whe he traded Jokinen and Brandon Prust to New York for Chris Higgins and Ales Kotalik.  The Jokinen experiment failed the first time, but the additions of Kotalik or Higgins were never really an upgrade.  Kotalik lasted just 26 games with Calgary, scoring five points, while Higgins only last 12 games, scoring just three points.

So what does Sutter do this off-season: He signs Jokinen to a TWO year contract.

Sutter has a pattern of trading away or letting a player go only to bring that player back.

Bad: Not Giving Theo Fleury a Second Chance

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EDMONTON, CANADA - SEPTEMBER 23: Theo Fleury #14 of the Calgary Flames skates against the Edmonton Oilers on September 23, 2009 at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Dale MacMillan/Getty Images)

Sutter decided not to sign fan favorite Theo Fleury to a comeback contract.  Fleury scored one goal and three assists in the 2009-2010 preseason games and would have put fans in the seat. 

Instead, he decided to go with the players he signed that off-season; all of which were gone after one season.

Ugly: Gave Away Anton Stralman for Nothing

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ATLANTA - NOVEMBER 04: Anton Stralman #6 of the Columbus Blue Jackets against the Atlanta Thrashers at Philips Arena on November 4, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Traded Anton Stralman to Columbus for a 3rd round draft pick in 2010. 

Stralman never played a game for Calgary, but he went on to score 34 points last season for Columbus. 

Stralman had a ton of potential to be a gritty offensive defenceman that Sutter basically gave away for a draft pick.

Bad: Sutter's Quick to Move Dion Phaneuf and Ian White after Slow Starts

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CALGARY, ALBERTA - MARCH 29: Dion Phaneuf #3 of the Calgary Flames hits Sean Avery #19 of the Los Angeles Kings to the ice on March 29, 2006 at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The Flames defeated the Kings 2-1. (Photo By Bruce Benn

Traded Dion Phaneuf, Fredrik Sjostrom and Keith Aulie to Calgary for Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman, Jamal Mayers and Ian White. 

Phaneuf's first four seasons with Calgary, he scored 47 or more points in each of those seasons and had a career high of 60 points in his third year.  Phaneuf struggled to start the 2009-2010 season and was quickly shipped off for a bunch of second and third line players. 

The best player Sutter acquired from Toronto was Ian White who, after a slow start this season, was quickly shipped off to Carolina.

Ugly: Darryl Sutter's Free Agency Record Is Downright Terrible

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CHICAGO - MARCH 25: Tony Amonte #10 of the Calgary Flames looks on against the Chicago Blackhawks on March 25, 2007 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. The Flames won 3-2. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Sutter’s free agent record is not good as he has failed to sign a superstar or elite free agent and of the 30-plus free agents he signed, only three played more than three seasons with the Flames. 

Only three free agents Sutter signed are still with the team (Rene Bourque, Mark Giordano and Cory Sarich). The highest scoring free agent signed by Sutter was Todd Bertuzzi who scored 44 points and Tony Amonte who scored 42 points. 

21 of Sutter's signings lasted a single season or less—that is not a very good record.