General Manager Brad Treliving of the Flames has been searching for a goaltender since the summer of 2016. After acquiring Brian Elliott from the St. Louis Blues, the Flames thought the problem was solved. Elliott had helped the Blues reach the playoffs five seasons in a row and he won the William M. Jennings Trophy along with Jaroslav Halak in 2012 for fewest goals given up for a team in one season. Unfortunately, Elliott was not the answer to the problem. He began the last year off with a 3-9-1 record, with a 3.31 goals against average and save percentage of .885. Backup Chad Johnson took over as the starter until the end of the season; towards the end of the season, Elliott improved and was given the starting nod for Calgary in the playoffs. The Flames were swept by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round. Treliving informed Elliott in June he would not be returning to the Flames for the 2017-2018 season.

On June 17th, the Calgary Flames traded backup goaltender Chad Johnson, prospect Brandon Hickey, and a conditional draft pick to the Arizona Coyotes for starting goaltender Mike Smith. The Flames would also trade prospect Keegan Kanzig and a sixth-round pick in 2019 to the Carolina Hurricanes for goaltender Eddie Lack, defenseman Ryan Murphy, and a seventh-round pick in 2019. Lack will serve as the backup to Smith. The Flames have had goaltending woes since the departure of Miikka Kiprusoff in 2013. It has been a goaltending carousel in Calgary with different names coming in and out of the line up; these players included Kari Ramo, Reto Berra, Joey MacDonald, Joni Ortio, Jonas Hiller, Niklas Backstrom, Jon Gillies, David Rittich, and of course Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson. That totals to 10 goalies in 4 seasons. Could Mike Smith be the answer for the Calgary Flames? Let’s take a look at his performance for the past few seasons.

Smith came into his prime when he first joined the Coyotes in the summer of 2011. In his first season with the Coyotes, Smith played in 67 games and posted a record of 38-18-10, 8 shutouts, goals against average of 2.21 and an unreal save percentage of .930. The Coyotes would make it to the western conference final that year but fall to the Los Angeles Kings in 5 games. That was the best season of his career but ever since then, the Coyotes have been in a free fall. In 2014, the team entered into total rebuild mode. From the 2013 lockout season to 2017, Smith has recorded a save percentage of .910 or higher in at least 4 out of the 5 seasons. His worst season was during the 2014-2015 year when he had a record of 14-42-5, 0 shutouts, a goals against average of 3.16, and a save percentage of .904. Smith was named to the NHL All-Star game this season and finished the season participating in 55 games, recording a stat line of 19-26-9 with 3 shutouts, a goals against average of 2.92, and save percentage of .914. In his time with Arizona, he has faced 9,570 shots and allowed 808 goals making his final save percentage with the Coyotes .916. Smith was named to the Canadian Men’s Olympic team in 2014 when he won a gold medal with the team. He did not participate in any games because he was the team’s third-string goalie. He also won a World Championship Medal in 2015 with Canada. In that tournament, Smith went 8-0 with 2 shutouts, a goals against average of 1.50, and save percentage of .932.

How will Smith do in Calgary? Calgary is on the complete opposite spectrum from Arizona; being on the up and up, the team will be a serious contender for the Stanley Cup in the near future. Smith should have at least 30 wins this season in Calgary, the first time in his career since 2012 and possibly more depending on how many games Eddie Lack will play. Most likely the Flames will make the playoffs either as a top wild card team or even an outside shot as the third seed in the Pacific Division. It will be tough to surpass higher seeded teams such as the San Jose Sharks, Anaheim Ducks, and the Edmonton Oilers in the division. In addition to making the playoffs, the Flames could definitely reach the second round as long as Smith stays healthy.