The Calgary Flames announced Monday they have fired coach Darryl Sutter after three seasons.
It’s the second time the Flames have parted ways with Sutter, who previously coached the team for three seasons from 2002-03 through 2005-06. He led the Flames to the playoffs twice the first time, including to the Stanley Cup Final where they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2003-04 season.
His most recent stint with the Flames was not as successful as his first with the Flames missing the playoffs in his first and final seasons.
Sutter’s second time with the Flames came after the team hired him to take over the remaining 32 games for Geoff Ward after he went 11-11-2 in the 2020-21 truncated 56-game season.
Sutter guided the Flames to the Stanley Cup playoffs in his second season where they lost to their provincial rivals, the Edmonton Oilers, in the second round.
The Flames had a bit of a different look in what ultimately became Sutter’s final campaign. They lost two 100-point forwards in Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk. Gaudreau left in free agency and signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets while Tkachuk was traded to the Florida Panthers in a deal that saw another 100-point forward in Jonathan Huberdeau along with defenseman MacKenzie Weegar come the other way.
After trading for Huberdeau and Weegar, the Flames also signed Nazem Kadri in free agency after he finished with a career-high 87 points en route to helping the Colorado Avalanche win the Stanley Cup.
Even with Huberdeau, Kadri and Weegar, the Flames still faced questions about if they could consistently score. The Flames were 19th in goals per game but also encountered other struggles such has having the second poorest save percentage in the NHL in 5-on-5 play, according to Natural Stat Trick.
It led to the Flames being a team that struggled to find consistency yet entered the final weeks of the regular season vying for a playoff spot. Even though they finished 6-2-2 in their last 10 games, they fell short of the postseason by two points.
The decision to fire Sutter comes less than a month after the club announced that general manager Brad Treliving, who was in the final year of his contract, agreed to mutually part ways with the organization.
Flames senior vice president of hockey operations Don Maloney, who was promoted to president of hockey operations, is currently serving as the team’s interim GM.
“It became clear to me we needed a new voice,” Maloney said Monday during an afternoon news conference. “Unless you have winning … changes are made.”
Maloney said he interviewed 25 players, assistant coaches and agents of prominent pending free agents to arrive at the decision.
“I do feel like this is the best way for us to proceed as a club,” Maloney said. “It’s an exciting time. We have a good team, we have good players. What we’ve seen the last two weeks watching playoff hockey, anybody can beat anybody at any time. Excited about getting back on the ice next year with a new coach, new general manager and getting back to the playoffs.”
CHICAGO — Kyle Tucker had the fans on their feet, roaring and pumping their fists as he rounded the bases after hitting the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning. His screaming line drive cleared the right-field wall with plenty of room to spare.
The Chicago Cubs went from giving up 10 runs in the eighth to scoring six in the bottom half and beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-11 on Friday in one of the wildest games on record.
The two teams combined for 21 runs in the seventh and eighth innings, with the Cubs scoring 11 runs and the D-backs plating 10. It was the first nine-inning game in MLB history in which both teams scored 10 or more runs from the seventh inning on, and the third game overall, according to ESPN Research.
“That’s kind of baseball,” Tucker said. “There’s a lot of ups and downs in this game, especially with how many games we play.”
There haven’t been many games like this, though.
The Cubs are just the seventh team in at least the past 125 seasons to allow 10 or more runs in an inning and win. They are also the fifth team to give up 10 or more runs and score six or more in the same inning.
The 16 combined runs in the eighth were the most in an inning at Wrigley Field, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
“If you’ve seen that one, you’ve been around for a while,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said with a laugh. “It was crazy. You know, we gave up 10 runs in an inning and we won. So it was a wild game, but we kept going, and, you know, there’s 27 outs in a game and this kind of proves it, and you’re just happy to get out with a win.”
On a warm day with the ball carrying, Carson Kelly homered twice. Ian Happ belted a grand slam and Seiya Suzuki went deep, helping the Cubs open a weekend series on a winning note.
“You’ve seen it early — having some tough losses, coming back winning the next day,” Happ said. “Losing the first game of the series, winning the series. Little things like that. Today’s a great example of professional hitters going out there and continuing to have really good at-bats.”
The way things transpired in the final two innings was something to see.
Kelly hit a two-run homer in the second against Corbin Burnes, and Happ came through with his grand slam against Ryne Nelson as part of a five-run seventh. But just when it looked as if the Cubs were in control with a 7-1 lead, things took a wild turn in the eighth.
The crowd of more than 39,000 let the Cubs hear it, but their team regrouped in the bottom half. Bryce Jarvis hit Nico Hoerner leading off and walked Pete Crow-Armstrong before Kelly drove a three-run homer to center. Tucker, the Cubs’ prized offseason addition, came through after Happ singled with one out. Suzuki followed with his drive against Joe Mantiply to give the Cubs a 13-11 lead.
Arizona, which had won five straight, became just the third team over the past 50 seasons to lose a game in which it had a 10-run inning at any point, according to ESPN Research.
“You just got to stay locked in,” Kelly said. “Obviously, you don’t want to … give up 10 in an inning. Obviously, you don’t want to do that. I think the biggest thing is coming back, regrouping and continuing to fight.”
Major League Baseball suspended New York Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. for one game and fined him an undisclosed amount, the result of his actions during Thursday night’s win against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Chisholm was ejected in the seventh inning by plate umpire John Bacon for arguing after a called third strike on a full-count pitch from Mason Montgomery that appeared low.
Minutes later, he posted on his X account, “Not even f—ing close!!!!!” then deleted the post.
“I didn’t think before I had anything that I said was ejectable but after probably,” Chisholm said after the game. “I’m a competitor, so when I go out there and I feel like I’m right and you’re saying something to me that I think doesn’t make sense, I’m going to get fired up and be upset.
“I lost my emotions. I lost my cool. I got to be better than that. … I’m definitely mad at myself for losing my cool.”
Michael Hill, the league’s senior vice president for on-field operations, said Friday’s discipline was for Chisholm’s “conduct, including his violation of Major League Baseball’s Social Media Policy for Major League Players.”
MLB regulations ban the use of electronic devices during games. The social media policy prohibits “displaying or transmitting content that questions the impartiality of or otherwise denigrates a major league umpire.”
Chisholm did appeal the decision, allowing him to play in Friday night’s 1-0 win against the Rays. He started at second base and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
Manager Dave Roberts said before the Dodgers’ series opener Friday night against the Rangers that Ohtani was with his wife and going on MLB’s paternity list.
“He and Mamiko are expecting at some point. That’s all I know,” Roberts said. “I don’t know when he’s going to come back and I don’t know when they’re going to have the baby, but obviously they’re together in anticipation.”
The 30-year-old Ohtani posted on his Instagram account in late December that he and his 28-year-old wife, a former professional basketball player from his native Japan, were expecting a baby in 2025.
“Can’t wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!” said the Dec. 28 post that included a photo showing the couple’s beloved dog, Decoy, as well as a pink ruffled onesie along with baby shoes and a sonogram that was covered by a baby emoji.
Ohtani can miss up to three games while on paternity leave. The Dodgers have a three-game series in Texas before an off day Monday, then play the Cubs in Chicago on Tuesday.