CALGARY, AB -- The Calgary Flames Hockey Club is proud to announce that Matt Stajan and Marc Leost are this year’s recipients of the J.R. McCaig Award. Matt and Marc will be presented their awards in a pre-game ceremony this evening by Robb McCaig, the grandson of the late J.R. McCaig.

Sadly, the Flames lost owner J.R. Bud McCaig seven years ago following a lengthy battle with cancer. Mr. McCaig was a long time member of the Flames family and a great contributor to the Calgary community. The J.R. McCaig Award honours two Calgary Flames personnel, a player and staff member, who best exemplify Mr. McCaig’s enduring virtues of respect, courtesy and compassion for all individuals he encountered both in his professional and everyday life.

Marc Leost has been with the Calgary Flames since 2002, currently as the Flames Director of Service. Marc is the key point of contact for the organization’s most valuable assets - our season ticket holders. In Marc’s role he leads our customer service group in delivering a standard of excellence in service to thousands of season ticket holders and game pack holders. He arrives at work every day with an enthusiastic work ethic and a “we can handle anything” frame of mind. Marc assists with any role in the office, no matter how large or small, as a true team player, including volunteering his time on the Calgary Flames Celebrity Charity Golf Classic committee. Away from the Scotiabank Saddledome, Marc continues to demonstrate his compassion as a member of Big Brothers/Big Sisters where he has been a Big Brother to his Little, Austin, for the past five years. However, among his contributions to our community, Marc should be recognized for his efforts in developing the Leost Endowment Fund. Over the past 10 years, the Fund has raised $172,000 to provide short term financial relief for people dealing with cancer. As executive director, Marc has directed funding to the Patient Financial Assistance Program through the Alberta Cancer Foundation. Marc and his wife Victoria are proud new parents to five month old son, Eric.

Matt Stajan joined the Flames organization in January 2010. Since arriving in Calgary, Matt has become a trusted and respected leader by all his teammates both on and off the ice. On the ice this year, Stajan has been a valuable asset to the Flames as he has recorded 11 goals and 17 assists for 28 points in 57 games. As well, he was appointed as an assistant captain for select games, a testament to his leadership and respect from his teammates. In the community, Stajan has become a true ambassador. Upon joining the Flames, he quickly aligned himself with the Alberta Children’s Hospital (ACH) taking over responsibilities as the Flames Ambassador for the hospital. Since then, he has personally donated season tickets each year to the ACH to give patients, family members and even hospital volunteers the opportunity to watch Flames games. He has also visited the hospital on multiple occasions with his wife Katie where both actively volunteer with bingo nights and with their annual radio-a-thon. In addition to the Children’s Hospital, Matt has also been involved with the Ronald McDonald House including pumpkin carving at Halloween, cooking nights for the families and even filling the magic room at the house with toys for children who get to pick a toy after receiving either good or bad news. He is also active in assisting with various community relations events and the Flames Foundation for Life.

The recipients of the J.R. McCaig Award receive a limited edition bronze entitled RESPECT that depicts a cowboy showing his appreciation and respect to his horse by loosening the cinch, removing the bridle and allowing the horse to drink from his hat. The bronze was sculpted by Cochrane, AB artist Diane Anderson.