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Calgary Wranglers

Not to be confused with the former Western Hockey League team, the Calgary Wranglers.

Calgary Wranglers
CityCalgary, Alberta
LeagueAmerican Hockey League
ConferenceWestern
DivisionPacific
Founded1977
Home arenaScotiabank Saddledome
ColoursRed, yellow, white
     
Owner(s)Calgary Sports and Entertainment
General managerBrad Pascall
Head coachTrent Cull
CaptainClark Bishop
AffiliatesCalgary Flames (NHL)
Rapid City Rush (ECHL)
Franchise history
1977–1987Maine Mariners
1987–1993Utica Devils
1993–2003Saint John Flames
2005–2007Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights
2007–2009Quad City Flames
2009–2014Abbotsford Heat
2014–2015Adirondack Flames
2015–2022Stockton Heat
2022–presentCalgary Wranglers
Championships
Regular season titles1 (2022–23)
Division titles1 (2022–23)
Current season

The Calgary Wranglers are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. They are members of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team plays at the Scotiabank Saddledome, the home of their National Hockey League (NHL) affiliate team, the Calgary Flames.

History

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2022–2023: First season in Calgary

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On May 23, 2022, the Calgary Flames announced the relocation of the Stockton Heat to Calgary.[1] This followed a recent trend of Canadian NHL teams moving their AHL affiliates closer to home, principally to allow for players to be called up on a shorter notice. On August 2, 2022, the team announced its name, bringing back the "Wranglers" moniker used by the WHL team of the same name from 1977 to 1987.[2] Mitch Love, the head coach of the Heat, would remain with the team during their relocation to Calgary. Ahead of the 2022–23 AHL season's start, on October 14, 2022, former Flames draft pick Brett Sutter was named as the team's first captain, with Nick DeSimone and Matthew Phillips being named as alternate captains.[3]

The Wranglers played their first game on October 16, 2022, a 6–5 loss against the Coachella Valley Firebirds.[4][5] Despite a slow start to the season,[6] the Wranglers enjoyed significant success in their inaugural year, capturing the regular season championship with 51 wins, and being awarded the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy.[7] Their overall 51–17–4 record was the ninth-best record in AHL history.[7]

The Wranglers' dominant regular season performance would result in several members of the team winning substantial awards during the inaugural season: star goaltender Dustin Wolf would win every trophy available for his position, including being named as the league's MVP.[8] Wolf, along with forward Matthew Phillips, would be named to the First All-Star Team, with defenseman Jeremie Poirier being named to the All-Rookie team.[9] Head coach Mitch Love would be named as the AHL's coach of the year, winning the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award.[10]

As a result of capturing the Pacific Division title, the Wranglers would earn a bye past the first round of the 2023 Calder Cup playoffs. During their second-round match-up against the Abbotsford Canucks, the Wranglers would win the best-of-five series three games to one.[11] Ultimately, the Wranglers would fail to live up to their regular season success during the playoffs, losing during overtime in the fifth and final game of the third round to the Coachella Valley Firebirds.[12]

2023–2024: Sophomore season

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Following the 2022–23 season, head coach Mitch Love would earn a job as an assistant coach with the Washington Capitals.[13] Resultingly, former Vancouver Canucks assistant coach Trent Cull was hired as the Wranglers head coach for the 2023–24 season.[14] During the first half of the season the Wranglers would enjoy continued success, finishing 2023 at the top of the Pacific Division, resulting in head coach Cull being tapped as a coach for the season's All-Star Classic.[15] However, as the season wore on, many of the team's top talent was depleted, either by trades or call-ups to the Flames, and the team fell behind in a tight playoff race, not clinching their spot in the 2024 Calder Cup playoffs until March 31, 2024, nearly 3 weeks later than the previous season.[16]

Ahead of the playoffs, key players Dustin Wolf, Ilya Solovyov, Adam Klapka, and Matt Coronato would be returned to the Wranglers roster after the conclusion of the Flames 2023–24 season.[17] During the playoffs, the 7-seed Wranglers would sweep the 2-seed Tucson Roadrunners in the best-of-three first-round, moving on to face the division champions in the Coachella Valley Firebirds for a second consecutive postseason.[18][19] During the second round, the Wranglers would win game one, before losing three in a row to end their season in the best-of-five series.[20][21] Game two of the series would end controversially when the Firebirds scored the game-winning overtime goal during a sequence that appeared to be offside, with too many men, and potential goaltender and player interference, though due to league rules, the goal could not be reviewed.[20][22][23][24]

2024–Present: Flames rebuild

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Towards the end of the 2023–24 season, the Flames entered into a rebuild, trading many of their core players for prospects and draft picks.[25] This shift in strategy meant several Wranglers players would now be expected to make the full time jump to the Flames for the 2024–25 NHL season.[26] In preparation for this, the Wranglers and Flames both signed several players likely to play in the minor-leagues ahead of the 2024–25 AHL season, including goaltender Devin Cooley.[26][27]

On July 15, 2024, Wranglers captain Brett Sutter announced he would be retiring from playing, and would instead be joining the team as an assistant coach.[28]

Season-by-season results

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Games Won Lost OTL SOL Points PCT GF GA Standing Year 1st Round Div Semi-finals Div finals Conf. finals Finals
2022–23 72 51 17 3 1 106 .736 256 174 1st, Pacific 2023 BYE W, 3–1, ABB L, 2–3, CV — —
2023–24 72 35 28 6 3 79 .549 203 212 7th, Pacific 2024 W, 2–0, TUC L, 1–3, CV — — —

Players

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Current roster

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Updated November 11, 2024.[29]

Team roster
No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace Contract
48 Canada Jonathan Aspirot D L 25 2023 Mascouche, Quebec Flames
18 Canada Parker Bell LW L 21 2023 Estevan, Saskatchewan Flames
19 Canada Clark Bishop (C) C L 28 2022 St. John's, Newfoundland Flames
5 United States Hunter Brzustewicz D R 19 2024 Washington, Michigan Flames
17 Canada Lucas Ciona LW L 21 2023 Edmonton, Alberta Flames
1 United States Devin Cooley G L 27 2024 Los Gatos, California Flames
34 United States Walker Duehr RW R 26 2022 Sioux Falls, South Dakota Flames
29 Czech Republic Martin Frk RW R 31 2024 Pelhrimov, Czech Republic Flames
20 Canada Alex Gallant (A) LW L 31 2022 Summerside, Prince Edward Island Wranglers
3 Russia Artem Grushnikov D L 21 2024 Voskresensk, Russia Flames
42 Slovakia Samuel Honzek LW L 20 2024 Trenčín, Slovakia Flames
15 Canada Dryden Hunt (A) LW L 28 2023 Cranbrook, British Columbia Flames
40 Finland Waltteri Ignatjew G L 24 2024 Helsinki, Finland Flames
6 Canada Rory Kerins C L 22 2022 Caledon, Ontario Flames
37 Russia Yan Kuznetsov D L 22 2022 Murmansk, Russia Flames
45 United States Sam Morton LW L 25 2024 Lafayette, Colorado Flames
14 Russia Ilya Nikolaev C L 23 2022 Yaroslavl, Russia Flames
22 Canada Jakob Pelletier (A) LW L 23 2022 Quebec, Quebec Flames
4 Canada Jeremie Poirier D L 22 2022 Valleyfield, Quebec Flames
25 Canada David Silye C R 25 2024 Arnprior, Ontario Wranglers
8 Belarus Ilya Solovyov D L 24 2022 Mogilev, Belarus Flames
11 Sweden William Stromgren LW L 21 2023 Örnsköldsvik, Sweden Flames
26 United States Jarred Tinordi (A) D L 32 2024 Burnsville, Minnesota Flames

Team captains

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References

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  1. ^ "Flames' AHL affiliate will move from Stockton to Calgary". The Athletic. May 23, 2022.
  2. ^ "Flames officially reveal Calgary Wranglers as new AHL affiliate". Sportsnet. August 2, 2022.
  3. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (October 14, 2022). "Brett Sutter named captain of Calgary Wranglers". Calgary Sun. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  4. ^ "2022–23 AHL schedule unveiled". theahl.com. July 21, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  5. ^ Saelhof, Todd (October 16, 2022). "Warm Calgary welcome for AHL Wranglers despite debut loss at Dome". Calgary Sun. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  6. ^ Saelhof, Todd (November 3, 2022). "Wranglers hope time cures 'rocky start' to AHL campaign". Calgary Herald.
  7. ^ a b Gilbertson, Wes (April 16, 2023). "Calgary Wranglers finish regular season with best record in the AHL". Calgary Herald.
  8. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (April 21, 2023). "'An incredible achievement': Flames prospect Dustin Wolf voted AHL MVP". Calgary Sun. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  9. ^ Pike, Ryan (April 13, 2023). "Dustin Wolf and Matthew Phillips named AHL First Team All-Stars". Flames Nation. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  10. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (April 17, 2023). "Wranglers bench boss Mitch Love wins AHL's top coach award". National Post. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  11. ^ Daniel, Austin (May 5, 2023). "Wranglers down Canucks, move on in Calder Cup Playoffs". Calgary Sun. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  12. ^ Gilbertson, Wes. "Calgary Wranglers eliminated from playoffs in overtime heartbreaker". Calgary Sun.
  13. ^ "Former Calgary Wranglers coach Mitch Love joins Washington Capitals as assistant". Sportsnet. June 22, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  14. ^ Sportak, Randy (July 17, 2023). "Flames hire Trent Cull to guide their AHL affiliate". The Hockey News. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  15. ^ Pike, Ryan (December 30, 2023). "Calgary Wranglers head coach Trent Cull is headed to the AHL All-Star Classic". Flames Nation. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  16. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (March 31, 2024). "Wranglers clinch AHL playoff berth, and that's 'a really big thing' for the Flames". Calgary Herald. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  17. ^ "Flames Assign Four Players To Wranglers". Calgary Flames. NHL. April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  18. ^ Kelley, James (April 27, 2024). "Tucson Roadrunners' 2023-24 AHL season comes to close after 4-3 Calder Cup playoff loss to Calgary". Arizona Daily Star. tucson.com. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  19. ^ Pike, Ryan (April 28, 2024). "The Calgary Flames' AHL affiliate has won (at least) one playoff round three seasons running". Flames Nation. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  20. ^ a b Austin, Daniel (May 11, 2024). "Wranglers deserve credit for defying odds in challenging season". Calgary Herald. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  21. ^ Hunt, Stephen (May 9, 2024). "Firebirds outgun the Wranglers 7-5 in AHL playoff barn burner". CTV News Calgary. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  22. ^ Austin, Daniel (May 6, 2024). "Wranglers fall to Firebirds in controversial fashion in Game 2". Calgary Herald. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  23. ^ Siewert, Paige (May 14, 2024). "Looking back at the losses: a Calgary Wranglers 2024 playoff post-mortem". Flames Nation. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  24. ^ Dreyfuss, Glenn (May 6, 2024). "Firebirds' Devin Shore Scores Game 2 OT Winner, Knotting Playoff Series With Wranglers". The Hockey News. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  25. ^ Proteau, Adam (August 6, 2024). "NHL Hot Seat Radar: Craig Conroy on Hot Seat to Rebuild or Hit the Road After Just 14 Months as Flames' GM". The Hockey News. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  26. ^ a b Parsons, Jim (August 3, 2024). "Calgary Wranglers Bolster Roster with Key Signings Ahead of New Season". The Hockey News. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  27. ^ Gilbertson, Wes (July 2, 2024). "What does Devin Cooley's addition tell us about Flames' puck-stopping plan?". Calgary Herald. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  28. ^ Austin, Daniel (July 15, 2024). "Brett Sutter retires from playing, joins Wranglers bench". Calgary Herald. Retrieved August 8, 2024.
  29. ^ "Calgary Wranglers 2024–25 roster". eliteprospects.com. November 11, 2024. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
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