He ain’t heavy, he’s my head coach

So it seems Brent Sutter will soon be introduced as the new head coach of the Calgary Flames. TSN reports that the two sides are working out the details but when it’s brothers on opposite sides of the bargaining table, what could possibly be left to settle? Who gets to sleep in the top bunk when the lads visit the ranch?

If this turns out to be true, nobody should be shocked. There was just something in the word choice and tone of Brent’s presser upon resigning from the New Jersey Devils that left the door wide open for exactly this turn of events. And in hindsight, Darryl Sutter’s “I’m the best man for the job” remark at his presser when he talked about Mike Keenan’s firing should have had “red herring” printed on it with 128-point Helvetica.

All that said, this is a little surprising (again, assuming it’s true). I honestly believed that Brent would stay away because he was of the opinion that no NHL organization was big enough for both of these particular Sutter brothers. It wasn’t that the siblings didn’t like each other, but all the visible evidence suggests that these two fellows are used to getting their own way and, well, the time has long passed for these two to settle their differences with wrestling matches on the parlour rug.

Two possibilities come to mind:

If you’ll remember, one brother has already hired another to coach his team – a couple of years back, Brent handed the Red Deer reins over to Brian. Flames fans will hope this brother partnership turns out a tad better than that one.