Calgary Flames

Atlanta Flames (1972–1980)

In December 1971, the NHL granted expansion teams to Long Island (the New York Islanders) and Atlanta, as part of an effort to keep the upstart World Hockey Association (WHA) from adding cities. Atlanta owner Tom Cousins named the team the "Flames" after the fire started by General William Tecumseh Sherman's troops in the American Civil War, in which Atlanta was nearly destroyed. Under head coaches Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion, Fred Creighton and Al MacNeil, the Flames made the playoffs in six of their eight seasons in Atlanta although they won just two postseason games.

In 1980, Cousins was forced to sell the Flames to prevent bankruptcy. With few serious offers from local groups, he accepted an offer from Canadian entrepreneur Nelson Skalbania. Skalbania retained the Flames name, feeling it would be a good fit for an oil town like Calgary, while the flaming "A" logo was replaced by a flaming "C". Skalbania sold his interest in 1981, and the Flames have been locally owned since, first under Calgary Flames Limited Partnership, then Calgary Sports and Entertainment in 2012.

Early years in Calgary (1980–1985)

The Flames were immediately embraced by the city of Calgary, with the Flames selling 10,000 full- and half-season ticket packages in the 7,000-seat Stampede Corral. The Flames qualified for the playoffs in their first season in Calgary with a 39–27–14 record, good for third in the Patrick Division. The team won their first two playoff series over the Chicago Black Hawks and Philadelphia Flyers before losing to the Minnesota North Stars in the semifinals. This early success was not soon repeated. After a losing record in 1981–82, Fletcher traded or did not renew several contracts of holdovers from the Atlanta team and rebuilt the roster.

Among Fletcher's management decisions, including acquiring Hakan Loob, Fletcher was among the first to draft players from the Soviet Union, including CSKA Moscow star Sergei Makarov in 1983. The team improved to challenge the Oilers, who required the maximum seven games to defeat the Flames en route to their 1984 Stanley Cup championship. In 1983, the Flames moved into the Olympic Saddledome, a venue originally built for the 1988 Winter Olympics.

Presidents' Trophies and Stanley Cup Final (1985–1990)

Although the Flames made the playoffs, they were usually unable to transform that success into a deep playoff run, largely because of their provincial rivals, the Edmonton Oilers. The NHL's playoff structure at the time made it likelier that the Flames would meet the Oilers in either the first or second round. From 1983 until 1990, either the Oilers or the Flames represented the Campbell Conference in the Stanley Cup Final.

By 1986, the Flames acquired forwards Doug Risebrough, Lanny McDonald and Dan Quinn, defenceman Al MacInnis and goaltender Mike Vernon. They finished second in the Smythe with a 40–31–9 record (the only season from 1984 to 1991 in which they did not finish with 90 or more points). In the playoffs, they swept the Winnipeg Jets in three games. In the second round, the Flames upset the Oilers in seven games when the series-winning goal came when an errant clearing attempt by Steve Smith ricocheted off goaltender Grant Fuhr's leg and into his own net. From there, the Flames defeated the St. Louis Blues in the Campbell Conference finals in another seven-game series, advancing into the Stanley Cup Final for the first time. The Flames lost to the Montreal Canadiens in five games.

The Flames followed up their run to the Stanley Cup Final with their best regular season with a 46–31–3 record, good for third overall in the NHL. The Flames were unable to duplicate their playoff success of a year prior, losing their first-round match-up with the Jets in six games. The season was also difficult off the ice, as 1986 first-round draft pick George Pelawa was killed in a car accident prior to the season's start.

Under new head coach Terry Crisp, the Flames recorded their first 100-point season in 1987–88, earning the Presidents' Trophy for having the NHL's best record. Joe Nieuwendyk became the second rookie in NHL history to score at least 50 goals in a season, earning the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year. Looking to bolster the line-up for a playoff run, the Flames traded Brett Hull and Steve Bozek to the Blues in exchange for Rob Ramage and Rick Wamsley. Their playoff frustrations continued against the Oilers as they were swept in four games in the second round.

In 1988–89, the Flames captured their second consecutive Presidents' Trophy with a franchise-record 117 points. Fletcher continued to tinker with the roster, acquiring Doug Gilmour as part of a six-player deal at the trade deadline. En route to their second Final appearance, they defeated the Vancouver Canucks in seven games, the Los Angeles Kings in four games, and in the conference finals, they eliminated the Blackhawks in five games. The Flames defeated the Montreal Canadiens in the 1989 Stanley Cup Final, winning their first Stanley Cup. Al MacInnis captured the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs' most valuable player, while long-time captain Lanny McDonald announced his retirement. Sonia Scurfield, the Flames's co-owner, became the first Canadian woman to have her name engraved on the Cup.

In 1989, the Soviets permitted a group of Soviet hockey players to sign with NHL teams beginning in 1989–90. Sergei Makarov joined the Flames that season and, though already in his 30s, became the fifth Flame to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's rookie of the year. The selection proved controversial, prompting the NHL to amend the rules to exclude any player over age 26 from future consideration. That season, the team fell two points shy of their third-straight Presidents' Trophy with 99 points. In the playoffs, they were defeated in six games by the Los Angeles Kings.

Playoff contention to playoff drought (1991–2003)

In 1991, Fletcher left the Flames to become the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He had been the team's general manager since its inception in 1972. He was succeeded in Calgary by Doug Risebrough, who completed a ten-player mega-trade that saw forward Doug Gilmour dealt to Toronto with four other players in exchange for former 50-goal scorer Gary Leeman and four others. The trade backfired on the Flames as Leeman scored only 11 goals for the Flames while Gilmour became a franchise player for the Maple Leafs. Despite Theoren Fleury becoming an NHL star, the Flames missed the playoffs in 1992, a year after finishing with their third 100-point season in franchise history. It was the first time since their relocation that they had missed the playoffs.

Calgary rebounded to make the playoffs for the next four seasons, including two consecutive division titles, but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs each time. In the 1995–96 season, Joe Nieuwendyk was traded to the Dallas Stars for Jarome Iginla; Iginla made his Flames debut in the 1996 playoffs, during which the Flames again lost in the first round in a four-game sweep by the Blackhawks. In 1997, the Flames missed the playoffs and did not return for seven years. The low point came in the 1997–98 season, in which the Flames finished with only 67 points, the second-lowest point total in franchise history. In 1999, the Flames traded Fleury to the Colorado Avalanche midway through the season. The trade came shortly after Fleury became the franchise's all-time leading scorer. Although the Flames were only two points (equivalent to one win) out of a playoff spot at the time, Fleury was due to become an unrestricted free agent after the season, and the Flames were not willing to risk losing him without getting anything in return.

As the Flames sank in the standings, their attendance also sagged. For most of their first 16 years in Calgary, Flames tickets were among the toughest to get in the NHL. By 1999, attendance had fallen so severely that the owners issued an ultimatum: buy more season tickets or the team would relocated to the United States. The fans responded by buying enough season tickets to keep the Flames in Calgary for the 1999–2000 season. The Flames issued another appeal for more season tickets in the summer of 2000. The campaign, aimed at increasing season ticket sales from a franchise low of 8,700 to 14,000, proved successful. During this time, Iginla captured the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy and Art Ross Trophy in 2001–02 as the leading goal and point scorer with 52 goals and 96 points, and Robyn Regehr became the youngest nominee ever for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.

In the 2002–03 season, the Flames hired Darryl Sutter as the team's head coach, replacing Greg Gilbert. Sutter also became the team's general manager after the season, and is credited with revitalizing the franchise. Among Sutter's first moves was to acquire goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff early in the 2003–04 season, whom he had previously coached with the San Jose Sharks.

Jarome Iginla era and Western Conference champions (2004–2010)

After seven consecutive seasons of not making the playoffs, the Flames returned to the postseason in 2004. They became the first team in the league's history to defeat three division champions en route to the Stanley Cup Final: the Northwest Division champion Vancouver Canucks, the Presidents' Trophy-winning Detroit Red Wings, and the Pacific Division champion San Jose Sharks.

The 2004 Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning went to seven games with the Flames suffering a controversial non-goal in game six at home. Replays showed Martin Gelinas may have scored what would have been the go-ahead goal late in the third period; the referees never signalled a goal, and later replays were ruled inconclusive. The goal would have made Gelinas the only player in NHL history to score the winning goal in every playoff series. The Lightning won the game in overtime, and won game seven at home to capture the Stanley Cup.

The next season was cancelled due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. The Flames played their 25th season in Calgary in 2005–06, finishing with 103 points. It was their best total since the 1989 Cup-winning season, and good enough to capture their first division title in 12 years. However, the Flames lost to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in seven games during the first round of the playoffs. Miikka Kiprusoff captured both the William M. Jennings and Vezina Trophies as the NHL's top goaltender, while Dion Phaneuf's 20 goals were the third-highest total for a rookie defenceman in NHL history.