A brief history of really long road trips

The Calgary Flames begin a seven game road trip on Thursday night when they face the Montreal Canadiens. The trip is the longest of the season and continues a trend of the Flames heading on one really lengthy trip per season (in most seasons).

The longest trip in the past 20 years was a nine game road trip in 2001-02, spanning Mar. 3-18, 2002 and coinciding with the Saddledome hosting the Tim Hortons Brier curling tournament. The Flames were on the verge of completely falling out of the playoff picture after a stellar start, and their 2-5-2 performance completely sunk their playoff chances.

The team has gone on four previous seven game trips over the past two decades as well:

This year’s mega-trip appears to be the first time that the Flames have gone on a lengthy trip without the Saddledome’s building availability being a contributing factor.

This year’s seven game trek includes a bit of unique history, as the Flames will be the first team to play the New York Islanders in the new UBS Arena in Belmont, New York. By coincidence, the Atlanta Flames were the first time team play the Islanders when they opened the Nassau Coliseum in 1972, so it seems like the NHL’s schedules have a nice appreciation for history. UBS Arena is the final NHL arena to open before the Flames open the doors of their new home to begin the 2024-25 season.