Atlanta Flames

Lore & Background

The team enjoyed modest success on the ice, qualifying for the playoffs in six of its eight seasons, but failed to win a playoff series and won only two post-season games total. The franchise was eventually sold after the 1979–80 season and relocated to Calgary, Alberta after owner and real estate developer Tom Cousins suffered massive financial losses due to the struggling 1970s economy.

Reader's Guide

Eric Vail was the Flames' top goal scorer with 174 while Tom Lysiak led with 431 points. Guy Chouinard was the lone player to score 50 goals in one season. Goaltender Dan Bouchard led the team in wins (166) and shutouts (20). Two Flames players won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's top rookie: Vail in 1974–75 and Willi Plett in 1975–76. Bob MacMillan won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy as the most gentlemanly player in 1978–79. General manager Cliff Fletcher is the lone member of the Atlanta team to be named to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Did You Know?

• The Flames were named in homage to the burning of Atlanta by General William Sherman during the American Civil War.
• The Flames' first NHL game was a 3–2 victory over the New York Islanders on October 7, 1972.
• Tom Lysiak finished second in Calder Trophy voting in 1973–74 to Denis Potvin.
• The Flames posted a franchise-record ten-game winning streak in October 1978.