CALGARY - Calgary Flames president Ken King lavished praise on general manager Darryl Sutter Monday in a post-mortem news conference for the 2009/10 National Hockey League regular season.

The Flames missed the playoffs for the first time in seven years.

“I think one of the reasons we’ve enjoyed such a renaissance in popularity is due in no small part to the gentleman sitting next to me,” King said, motioning to Sutter. “What he has done is help create a credible and competitive hockey environment, and we’re grateful for that.

“I know a lot of people in our city are as well.”

Judging by letters to the newspaper, some fans are happy but many more are outraged and bewildered over how their hockey team could take such a dive into mediocrity — especially with big-name stars like Jarome Iginla, Jay Bouwmeester and Miikka Kiprusoff.

“Charged with a responsibility to be accountable. Darryl and I are going to — as we have every year — embark on a serious review and evaluation of our hockey operations,” King said.

The review is expected to take two to three weeks.

Sutter said he hasn’t been given any guarantee that he’ll be the man in charge moving forward.

“I think that’s really not what’s important,” Sutter said. “The reason I’ve been in the game as long as I have — and been as successful as I have — is because I don’t base it on my own feelings. There’s nothing selfish in it, so it’s really not an issue.”

As for his body of work over the last seven years?

“I think it goes into the evaluations of the next two or three weeks,” he said. “I have an analytical way of sorting that out and separating a lot of different issues.”

So does he think this team is in good shape?

“I’d rather we’d be traveling somewhere today to play.”

King and Sutter didn’t rule out the possibility of adding more management support for Sutter — perhaps even in the form of an assistant general manager.

“He has a lot of people,” King said. “But frankly if he felt or we felt we needed more, there’s no impediment.”

Sutter added: “We’ve discussed that at length in the past. That’s something I think we will look at.”