You could be forgiven if you had conceptualized the Calgary Flames’ goaltending competition for the 2024-25 season as a two-horse race.
Dan Vladar has been the incumbent backup for three seasons and between his recent hip surgery and the departure of Jacob Markstrom, he seems poised to make a run at a larger role. Similarly, 2019 seventh-round pick Dustin Wolf may be the best goaltending prospect in the game, having won four top goaltender awards over the past five seasons.
But don’t sleep on Devin Cooley.
Acquired by the Flames in free agency after spending chunks of last season with the Buffalo Sabres and San Jose Sharks organizations and signed to a two year deal – this season is a two-way, next season is a one-way – Cooley made his pre-season Flames debut in Edmonton against the Oilers and made 44 saves in a 6-4 win.
Moreover, Cooley provided a heck of a quote when speaking to Flames TV following the game about his approach to this year’s camp:
“That’s kinda why I came here, is to show that I don’t suck that much and hopefully I can help this team get some wins in the regular season. It’s a great competition. There’s two other really good goalies here… there’s five really good goalies, every goalie here is sick, you know? So it’s a lot of fun. It’s great being able to compete every single day and get close with the other goalies. And yeah, it’s been a blast.”
When he was playing with the San Jose Sharks last season, Cooley also became known for some spectacular answers to media questions. Following a 49-save win over the Seattle Kraken in April, he famously declared “Nothing’s really gonna matter. we’re all gonna die.”
It’s hard to say what’s more impressive: Cooley’s performance in net or his quotes from post-game media scrums. Either way, it seems likely that Flames fans will be hoping to see and hear more from Cooley going forward.