Flames' Darryl Sutter nominated for NHL coach of the year

Calgary Flames coach Darryl Sutter was nominated for the Jack Adams Trophy on Thursday, awarded to the NHL’s coach of the year.

The Flames coach was one of three nominees for the Jack Adams, along with Andrew Brunette of the Florida Panthers and Gerard Gallant of the New York Rangers.

Sutter returned to the Flames last March, replacing Geoff Ward. Sutter had previously coached the team from 2003 to 2006 and was hanging out in his hometown of Viking, Alberta when he decided to return to the Flames.

“I was a Flames fan, and I was in Alberta,” Sutter said last month about his initial hiring. “I was watching lots of hockey in COVID. I didn’t like the way they were playing. The rest of the league was pulling ahead of them… the team was not playing a way that the league was playing.”

One year after missing the playoffs and finishing fifth in the NHL’s North Division, Sutter led the team to a 111-point season and the Pacific Division Crown.

Sutter has never won the Jack Adams award, though his brother Brian won in 1991 while coaching the St. Louis Blues.

Bob Hartley was the last Flames coach to win the award in the 2014-15 season. The winner will be announced at an unconfirmed date later in the playoffs.

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