Calgary Flame: Forgotten Player of the 2000s – Hockey Writer – Flame History
Calgary Flames have a long and prosperous history in the NHL. They had the greatest success in the 1980s: They moved from Atlanta to Calgary, reached the 1986 Stanley Cup final, and won the 1989 Stanley Cup title. The 1990s were a new thing because in a decade the team was eligible for six playoffs but never made it to the third round. Many legendary flame players won hockey in two decades and did the same in the 2000s. The new millennium features Flames’ best player of all time, the team’s greatest goalkeeper Miikka Kiprusoff and current general manager Craig Conroy. Unfortunately, its seasons are also lost. 2004-05 campaign was lost due to lockdown.
Related: Calgary Flames: Forgotten Players of the 1990s
However, we are not pursuing legends. As we have done over the past two decades, we have taken the time to analyze more players who have gained equally recognised for their efforts on the ice. People who may not have completed the statistics form, play for 20 minutes or have three stars per night. We are looking for five forgotten flames that are suitable for use in the 2000s.
Marcus Nilson, winger
The first on our list is the 20th pick in the 1996 NHL entry draft, forward Marcus Nilson. The Florida Panthers chose him after showing solid defensive performances in the former Swedish Elite League (now SHL). He interrupted full-time for the Panthers in the 2000-01 season, setting a career high with 36 points in 78 games. After two more campaigns at Sunshine State, the Flames received Nelson’s service in exchange for a second round pick in 2004. The Swedes finished the 2003-04 regular season in the 2003-04 regular season, scoring five goals in 14 games with his new team. Next, he had to compete in the 2004 Cup final, and his inspection skills came in handy. Nilson appeared in all 26 games and also scored an impressive four goals and 11 points.
Nelson's offense ran out a little while in 70 games in 2005-06. Someone can point his finger to the lock, but when the NHL pauses, he hits home in Sweden in SEL. He played two more seasons in the flames before being abandoned in the summer of 2008. No team claimed that he, rather than going to the minor, was loaned to Lokomotiv Yaroslavl of the Kontinental Hockey League in the 2008-09 season. He then returned to Sweden and retired in 2015, playing for another six seasons after retirement. Nelson scored 19 goals and 42 points in 194 games as the flames.
David Hale, defenseman
Next comes a defender and another round draft pick, American David Hale. The New Jersey Devils chose him in 2000 on the 22nd, making his NHL debut in 2003 after three years of college hockey at the University of North Dakota. In 65 games from 2003 to 2004, the 65-foot-1-inch, 215-pound guard put in 4 assists and 72 penalty minutes (PIM) in 65 games. He is more of a full-time fashion defender whose mission is to clear the net, get his insistence off into the driveway, and stop shooting, etc. After the Devils' lockdown and two years of lockdown, he and the 2007 fifth-round draft were sent to the Flames in exchange for a third round in the same draft.
Hale ended the 2006-07 season with flames. He played in 11 regular season games and played in two playoff games with no points. Unfortunately, the flames were eliminated in Round 1, provided by Detroit Red Wings. Hale spent the 2007-08 season at the club, but only participated in 58 games due to injury. At that time, he registered his first point as the Flame, with a total of two assists. Blueliner started winning fans with a solid game style and crushed physical examination. He and the Flames made it to the playoffs again, this time capitulating to the San Jose Sharks again in the first round. That summer, in the free agent, Hale left the team to sign with the then Phoenix Coyotes. Interestingly, he set the longest career NHL record without goals, finishing first in the 231st Professional Games. He retired in 2014, earning two assists and 56 PIM finishes in 69 Flames games.
Ronald Petrovicky, winger
The next player we don't seem to recognize is Slovak winger Ronald Petrovicky. He was the original flame draft pick in the ninth round of the 1996 NHL draft. This is after the junior hockey career in the local Western Hockey League. In his draft and one season, he scored 64 goals and 113 points in 71 games with Regina Pats. He played with the then American Hockey League branch, The Saint John Flames, for the next two seasons. In his second season as a minor, he scored 23 goals, 56 points and a PIM of up to 156. This and a strong camp won the oil match with a large club in the 2000-01 season. He scored four of his 30 appearances, adding five assists and 54 PIMs.
The oil company's grit and score feels great. He is willing to fight in corners and boards, while also being able to create offensively. In the 2001-02 campaign, he was suitable for 77 games and scored 5 goals and 12 points. His 85 PIM ranks seventh in the team. Unfortunately, the team missed the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year. Petrovicky was placed on immunity by the franchise in 2002, which was later claimed by the New York Rangers. After a season on Broadway, two hitters with Atlanta, one locker, and one with the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went home to compete in the Slovakian Professional Hockey League. He hung up skates in 2010. As the Flame, he amassed nine goals, 21 points and 139 PIM in 107 games.
Eric Godard, winger
If a person is especially a Pugilist fan, our next player may be a familiar name. Executor Eric Godard is an undrafted success story, also from the WHL. After his junior year career, he signed to play with the Florida Black Panthers' AHL branch. He played with them for two seasons before being traded by New York Islanders, where he joined their AHL squad for two more campaigns. At the end of the 2002-03 season, the Islanders called him, which made him the eighth NHLE from Vernon, British Columbia. Goddard's only job is to create momentum for his team, whether through hard inspections or fighting. The flames signed free agents in the summer of 2006, when then general manager Darryl Sutter believed the team needed to be more resilient.
Goddard immediately felt his influence when he separated from the 144 pim of the flames in 2006-07. He also registered his first point with flames, assisting. The 2007-08 season will be one of his best. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound tough guy scored a career-high 71 games, scoring goals and assists, and a career-best 171 PIM. This mark is second in the team, behind Dion Phaneuf. Godard won the fiery faithfulness by dropping his gloves to protect and stand up for his teammates. He also entered five playoff games in the Flames’ first round loss to the Sharks. The franchise chose to let him walk as a free agent in 2008 and sign with the Penguins. After three seasons and another season in the AHL, Godard retired in 2012. He ended up playing 93 games with the Flames in 93 games, scoring once, adding 3 assists and 221 PIM.
Clarke Wilm, Center
Last but not least is another flame drafter, Centreman Clarke Wilm. A local from central Saskatchewan was selected as the 150th place in the 1995 NHL admission draft. He spent his first two seasons as a professional player in the AHL, totaling 22 goals and 67 points in 130 games. Flames Brass was impressed and could insert him into the 1998-99 squad, where he scored ten goals and 18 points in 78 games. In 1999-00, he will score the same ten goals, which was his best goal in his career and also a career-best 22 points in 78 games. He quickly developed into a hard-working defensive center, and he had the responsibility to shut down the opposition's better striker every night. He is also a powerful killer of flames.
In his third season with the Flames, Wilm's offensive output dropped to seven goals and 15 points in 81 games. 2001-02 did not get better proven, as he only scored four times and scored 18 points in 66 games. He left the Nashville Predator Flame in 2002. After one and three seasons at Tennessee, he traveled overseas with the Toronto Maple Leaf Organization. He played in SM-Liiga in Finland and Deutsche Eishockey Liga in Germany before quitting in 2012.
These five players are just a few players in the 2000s, and many fans have made concealment. There are more names that have not been mentioned when discussing the flames of the past, and this practice should change. All sacrifices made in the name of Burning “C” and entertain the best fans of the NHL in their own personal ways.
