The Calgary Flames are only a few days away from completing their 50th season as an organization, which started in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1972. Historically, the club has won the Stanley Cup only once (1989), while losing in the Final in 1986 and 2004. Despite their lack of championship banners, they did qualify for the playoffs in 16 consecutive seasons, from 1976 to 1991, which ranks amongst the top ten longest streaks of all time.
Related: Top 10 Longest Stanley Cup Playoff Streaks
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Surprisingly, only a handful of teams, Boston Bruins, St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, and Chicago Blackhawks, have had longer streaks. Therefore, the Flames are among the greatest teams ever assembled. Although they only had one championship during this historic stretch, some of their best moments resulted from successful regular seasons.
The Atlanta Flames Begin the Streak (1975)
Through the first three seasons of their existence, the Flames only qualified for the playoffs once, in 1973-74, getting swept by the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Philadelphia Flyers in the NHL Quarter-Finals. As one of the league’s newest expansion teams, the Flames improved from 65 points in year one to 82 in their fourth campaign (1975-76) to kick-start their 16-year playoff streak.
Unfortunately, at the beginning of the run, the team never advanced past the NHL Preliminary Round, winning two games while dropping several series to the Los Angeles Kings (twice), Detroit Red Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs, and New York Rangers. Despite not winning in the playoffs during those last few years in Atlanta, the Flames succeeded in the regular season, averaging 35 wins and 84 points over those campaigns. Furthermore, the club set records for wins (41) and points (90) in 1978-79, breaking both records later in the streak.
Flames Move to Calgary, Alberta (1980)
Although the Flames were decent, with a 268-260-108 record over 636 games in the Georgia capital, the fans did not embrace the team, forcing majority owner Tom Cousins to sell the club to an investment group in southern Alberta. Interestingly, the newly relocated franchise had no issues keeping the playoff streak alive when Kent Nilsson set the franchise record for points (131) to guide the team to a third-place finish in the Patrick Division.
Surprisingly, the Flames won their first-ever playoff matchup that spring, sweeping the Blackhawks in the Preliminary Round and getting revenge over the Flyers in a seven-game win in the Quarter-Finals. Then, in the Semi-Finals, they came up short (4-2) against the Minnesota North Stars, who eventually lost to the New York Islanders in the Stanley Cup Final.
Despite their deep run in 1980-81, the Flames stumbled in the Division Semi-Finals against the Vancouver Canucks in 1981-82, getting swept out of the playoffs for the fourth time in franchise history. Nevertheless, the sting of losing to them lasted only a year, as the two teams met again in the 1982-83 opening round.
Ultimately, the Flames got their revenge in a four-game series (3-1), setting up the first-ever Battle of Alberta against the Edmonton Oilers in the Division Finals. However, the Oilers won the opening bout, taking the series 4-1, improving on their 4-3-2 regular season record against their southern rivals.
Related: One for the Ages: Kent Nilsson’s 1980-81 NHL Season
Surprisingly, the Flames followed the same script from 1982-83 into 1983-84, winning just two extra games during the regular season to set up another matchup against the Canucks in the playoffs. Like the previous campaign, the team eliminated their B.C. rivals in four games to advance for a consecutive second-round matchup against the Oilers. Despite three one-goal wins, two in overtime, the Flames lost Game 7 by a score of 7-4, thus ending their season.
Eventually, though they set a club record with 94 points and tied the wins mark with 41 in 1984-85, the Flames bowed out of the playoffs in four games against the Winnipeg Jets.
Flames Become Legitimate Stanley Cup Contenders (1986)
Unlike any time in franchise history, the Flames were finding success in the regular season and playoffs. Surprisingly, the best was yet to come when the puck dropped on the 1985-86 season, the year the team advanced to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time.
After losing to the Jets in the previous campaigns, they rebounded with a sweep (3-0) of the Manitoba-based team in the Division Semi-Finals, which set up another second-round matchup against the Oilers, who were defending champions at the time. Once again, the series went seven games; however, the Flames secured a 3-2 win to advance to the final four for the second time in their history.
Unfortunately, the Flames couldn’t eliminate the Blues in Game 6, losing in overtime, but secured a 2-1 win to move on to their first Stanley Cup Final appearance to face off against the Canadiens. Although Calgary won the first game, they only posed a little threat to rookie Patrick Roy, the eventual Conn Smythe winner, who led Montreal to four consecutive victories and their 23rd title.
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Despite the letdown in the Final, the Flames erupted for their best regular season (at the time) with 46 wins and 95 points in 1986-87. Nevertheless, they lost to the Jets (again) in six games during the Division Semi-Finals. After another first-round exit, the club took the league by storm in 1987-88 with a franchise-best 48 wins and 105 points to win the Presidents’ Trophy. Unfortunately, their quest for the Stanley Cup ended in the second round at the hands of the Oilers in a four-game sweep.
Flames Hoist Stanley Cup for First Time (1989)
During the next campaign, 1988-89, the Flames became just the second team to win the Presidents’ Trophy in back-to-back years en route to setting franchise records for wins (54) and points (117), which remain the top marks over 34 years later. Thanks to an abundance of homegrown talent and future Hall of Famers in the lineup, the team returned to the Stanley Cup Final three seasons after losing in 1986.
In the Division Semi-Finals, they advanced past a pesky Canucks team in a seven-game series before sweeping the Kings in the second round. After eight wins in 11 games to open the playoffs, they rolled past the Blackhawks in five games to face off against an old rival, the Canadiens, in the 1989 Stanley Cup Final.
Interestingly, the Flames won Game 1, and the Canadiens took the next two games, following the same pattern from their previous encounter in 1986. However, Calgary flipped the script, winning the series’ final three games to capture their first and only Stanley Cup championship on May 25, 1989, at the Montreal Forum.
Sadly, the Flames’ reign at the top was short as the team stumbled a bit in the 1989-90 regular season (42 wins and 99 points) and was eliminated in the first round at the hands of the Kings in a six-game series. After losing several times to Wayne Gretzky and the Oilers over a decade, The Great One continued to haunt the Flames in 1989-90 as a member of the Kings.
Although the Flames secured another 100-point season in 1990-91, the third in four years, their second-place finish in the Smythe Division set up a matchup with the Oilers. Although Calgary was on the verge of elimination in Game 5, they responded with back-to-back wins before losing 5-4 in overtime in Game 7, ending their 16-year playoff streak. Historically, this was the last playoff appearance for the club until April 18, 1993, when they faced off against Gretzky and the Kings again.
Statistical Look into the Flames’ Historical Playoff Streak
As mentioned, the Flames are the only NHL team in history to relocate during a double-digit playoff streak. During that time, the franchise played in 1,280 regular season contests posting a 630-462-188 record for 1,448 points. Additionally, they finished first or second in their division in eight seasons, along with six third-place finishes.
Shockingly, Calgary finished their playoff streak with a losing record, going 61-67 over those 16 seasons, which included being on the wrong end of a series sweep on five occasions. Moreover, the team faced off against the Oilers and Kings in five of those years, going a combined 3-7 against their now Pacific Division rivals.
Regarding player personnel and Flames management, the team cycled through five coaches during the streak, which included Fred Creighton, Al MacNeil, Bob Johnson, Terry Crisp, and Doug Risebrough, but only one general manager, Cliff Fletcher. Interestingly, eight Hall of Famers played for the club during the streak, including Pat Quinn, Joe Mullen, Doug Gilmour, Joe Nieuwendyk, Al MacInnis, Lanny McDonald, Sergei Makarov, and Brett Hull.
Related: Best NHL Team of All-Time Brackets: 1988-89 Calgary Flames
Although the Flames currently have the ninth-longest streak in league history, their place on the list is in jeopardy if the Pittsburgh Penguins managed to sneak into the postseason this year. Even if they make it to their 17th consecutive appearance, Calgary doesn’t have to worry much about other teams since the Bruins and Maple Leafs are only on the verge of their eighth straight appearance. Overall, considering the league aims for parity amongst their 32 teams, the Flames’ 16-year playoff streak should remain in the top ten for at least another decade.