Popular former Calgary captain has spent a dozen years working through the management ranks
It appears the Calgary Flames will do the expected, and correct, thing.
Craig Conroy, who has spent the last dozen years working with the club’s management team, is expected to be named general manager this coming week.
Darren Dreger of TSN reported on Sunday that Conroy will be named the replacement for Brad Treliving, who stepped aside after the season with his contract due to expire.
There are also reports Jarome Iginla, the franchise’s all-time leading scorer, will be part of the management team going forward with his close friend at the helm.
Hiring Conroy — and, in turn, bringing Iginla back into the organization — will be a huge boon for the franchise’s relationship with the fans and the city, but the move is about much more than public relations.
Conroy, who has been interviewed for at least two general manager jobs elsewhere in the league, has worked his way through the ranks. He was named special assistant to interim GM Jay Feaster upon retiring midway through the 2010-11 season. He has been an assistant general manager since June 2014.
Among his duties in the past, Conroy was a huge part of attracting free agents, especially from the college ranks, and solidifying the team’s relationship with draft choices. Along the way, he has worked to become versed in all the duties.
Certainly, Conroy has a big task ahead of him. The Flames are in search for a new head coach to replace the fired Darryl Sutter, with the draft and free-agency period on the horizon.
The Flames missed the playoffs with a 37-28-17 record.
Currently, Conroy has been serving as an assistant GM for the U.S. squad at the world championships — a team headed by another former Flames skater in Chris Clark.
Although there are myriad candidates for the head coaching job, the Flames have candidates within their ranks, with associate coach Kirk Muller and assistant coach Ryan Huska, as well as Mitch Love, the two-time AHL coach of the year guiding the Calgary Wranglers, the Flames’ minor-league affiliate.