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Flames backup Devin Cooley caps off ‘brutal’ flu-ridden week with win in Pittsburgh
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Photo credit: Philip G. Pavely-Imagn Images
Ryan Pike
Jan 11, 2026, 08:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 11, 2026, 03:04 EST
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Man, so Calgary Flames backup goaltender Devin Cooley has had himself a week.
Here’s how he described it to Flames TV following the Calgary Flames’ clash on Saturday afternoon with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Oh, dude, brutal. I’ve been… so I had the flu. I’ve had a fever for the last like five days. And we’ve just been like mitigating the fever with like Tylenol and stuff. And then when the flu went away, it turned into bronchitis. So then like my lungs. And so now they started me on antibiotics and an inhaler and stuff because I can’t breathe. And I got a really bad cough. And so, yeah, it’s just been like five, six days of just like no sleep, a ton of meds and just sweating constantly in my sleep, like barely eating. And so I’ve just been in this like dream state, just like really out of it, like very loopy. And yeah, it hasn’t been fun.
On Monday, Cooley was in rough enough shape that the Flames called up Owen Say on an emergency basis to back up Dustin Wolf – Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg noted this week on Flames Talk that Monday against Seattle was a scheduled start for Cooley, but obviously the illness changed plans.
Cooley had recovered enough to travel with the team to kick off the road trip, but he wasn’t in the usual spot where the backup goalie sits in either Wednesday’s game in Montreal or Thursday’s game in Boston. On Saturday afternoon, Cooley suited up for the first time since Dec. 20, definitely not fully recovered from his illness but feeling good enough to play.
He made 27 saves on 28 shots to backstop the Flames to a 2-1 road win over the Penguins, snapping a four game losing skid. The lone goal Cooley allowed was on an odd-man rush. Connor Zary and Matt Coronato scored for the Flames in the win.
“They were awesome,” said Cooley of his team’s effort. “You know, especially in the first period where I was probably feeling it the most, like before you get the adrenaline going, they did an amazing job of just limiting their chances and keeping things from the outside and limiting their zone time. They they were just awesome.”
The victory moves Cooley’s record to 5-4-2. Through 14 appearances this season, he has a 2.29 goals against average and a .918 save percentage. The Flames net definitely belongs to Wolf, but Cooley has done a superb job of spelling Wolf off at times throughout the first half of the season.
“Yeah, just very out of it, very tired,” said Cooley, describing how he felt post-game. “But that was a really good win. And there is a lot of excuses, you know, you could have tonight. But for me, every time you have like an excuse, like it just makes it a really fun challenge, you know, and that’s how I try to look at it.”
The Flames return to action on Tuesday night in Columbus against the Blue Jackets.

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