Craig Conroy Calls Flames Goaltending a “Real Strength” Heading Into 2026-27

There’s one area of the Calgary Flames’ roster where there doesn’t appear to be much uncertainty heading into the 2026-27 season.

Goaltending.

After plenty of turnover throughout the roster last season, the Flames enter training camp with Dustin Wolf and Devin Cooley firmly established as their tandem. More importantly, the organization appears to have complete confidence in both.

Flames general manager Craig Conroy spoke about the duo during a recent appearance on the Raw Mike Richards show on QR Calgary, emphasizing the belief inside the organization that either goaltender can give the team a chance to win on any given night.

“Everyone’s got the belief, if either goalie goes in we can win every night, they’re going to give us a chance. It’s exciting, because I think the year before there was uncertainty. Wolfie was coming in to be the starter, but he’d never done it before,” Conroy explained.

That uncertainty is considerably different this time around.

Wolf enters his second full NHL season after taking over the starting job last year, while Cooley has established himself as a legitimate NHL option after showing he could handle the workload when called upon.

The two also have the benefit of already knowing what to expect from one another.

For a position where confidence and consistency can have a significant impact on a team over the course of an 82-game schedule, that familiarity could be important.

Conroy believes the competition between the two could ultimately make both goaltenders better.

“The NHL is a different beast. The shooters are that much better, the size, speed, the traffic, but to see them now together, they know each other, they get along great. Now to have them as a tandem, they’re going to push each other. That’s the one thing that Cooley did a great job (of), coming in and winning games, and now they can push together and we feel comfortable with either goalie on any given night, so I think it’s great. I think that is a real strength of our team going into the year, maybe the strongest part of the team going in.”

The numbers certainly give Conroy reason for optimism.

Wolf posted a 3.01 goals-against average and .899 save percentage in his first full season as an NHL starter. Cooley, meanwhile, appeared in 31 games and finished with a 2.69 GAA and .909 save percentage, along with a 10-10-6 record.

Those numbers aren’t perfect, but they provide the Flames with something they didn’t necessarily have entering last season: two goaltenders with NHL experience who the organization believes can win games.

There are still plenty of questions surrounding the Flames heading into the new season. How quickly will the younger players take another step? Can the revamped blue line hold up? Will the offence produce consistently enough?

The crease, however, doesn’t appear to be one of them.

And for a team entering another important season in its transition, having that kind of stability in net could be one of Calgary’s biggest advantages.

As Conroy put it:

“It does take a little time, goaltending is a tough position, but to know we have two guys that can play, it’s a real strength of the team this year.”