Each week, I will present a historical and statistical review of how the Calgary Flames team of 2009-10 was built. In this week’s historical analysis of the team, we’ll examine and analyze the Flames' 2002 Entry Draft selections.
Dissecting the anatomy of the NHL Entry Draft in any given year is a frustratingly complex process. Picks are traded, re-acquired, re-traded and, sometimes, re-acquired again. At the same time, it’s a fascinating procedure and a remarkable puzzle that is rarely solved or examined in detail. This column contains information not available in any other source.
The Calgary Flames finished fourth in the Northwest Division (32-35-12-3) in 2001-02 and missed the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. The general manager was Craig Button, the coach was Greg Gilbert, the assistant coaches were Brad McCrimmon, Brian Skrudland and Rob Cookson. The goaltending coach was Wendel Young.
In the 2002 Entry Draft, Calgary was slated to pick 9th, 39th, 74th, 105th, 142nd, 176th, 206th, 238th, 268th. The club also received a compensatory fifth round pick – the 146th overall selection.
Round 1: Eric Nystrom (10th overall, acquired from Florida)
Flames debut: October 10, 2005 vs. Colorado Avalanche.
Nystrom (140-13-17-30-149) – who has played his entire career in the Flames system – has slowly blossomed into a dependable third-line forward. His gritty edge, creative offensive skills, deceptive speed and infamous pedigree suggests that the best is yet to come for this University of Michigan graduate.
Notes: Calgary traded their 1st round (9th overall) pick to Florida for the NY Rangers' 1st round pick (10th overall - acquired by Florida in the Pavel Bure trade) and Florida’s 4th round pick (99th overall)
Round 2: Brian McConnell (39th overall)
McConnell never signed with the Flames organization. After spending four years at Boston University, he was invited to the Boston Bruins training camp in 2005 and spent two seasons in the ECHL with Fresno and Trenton before retiring after the 2006-07 season. He is currently an assistant coach with the Babson College Beavers.
Round 3: Matthew Lombardi (90th overall, acquired from Toronto)
Flames debut: October 9, 2003 vs. Vancouver Canucks
Originally drafted by the Edmonton Oilers (215th overall in 2000), Lombardi spent six seasons in the Flames organization (347-65-102-167-225) with Calgary, Lowell and Omaha. Traded to Phoenix in the deal that brought Olli Jokinen to Calgary, he currently plays for the Coyotes.
Notes: Calgary traded their 3rd round (74th overall) pick to Toronto (Todd Ford) for Toronto’s 3rd round pick (90th overall) and 5th round pick (159th overall)
Round 4: Yuri Artemenkov (112th overall, acquired from Montreal)
Artemenkov never signed with the Flames organization. He spent his ebtire career in Russia, playing mostly with division II clubs Olympia Kirovo-Chepetsk, HK Dmitrov-2 and Krylia Sovetov-2. He retired from professional hockey following the 2005-06 season.
Notes: Calgary traded their fourth round (105th overall) pick to Philadelphia for Dean McAmmond, June 24, 2001.
Calgary traded the 99th overall pick (acquired from Florida, see above) to Montreal for Montreal’s 4th round (112th overall) and 5th round (141st overall, acquired from Minnesota for the rights to Chris Dyment) picks.
Round 5: Jiri Cetkovsky (141st overall, acquired from Montreal, see above), Emanuel Peter (142nd overall), Viktor Bobrov (146th overall) and Kristofer Persson (159th overall, acquired from Toronto, see above)
Cetkovsky never signed with the Flames organization. He played one season with the WHL’s Calgary Hitman before returning to the Czech republic. He currently plays with HC Pardubice of the Czech Elite League.
Emanuel Peter never signed with the Flames organization. He has played his entire professional career in Switzerland. He currently plays with EHC Biel/Bienne of the Swiss National “A” League.
Bobrov never signed with the Flames organization. He has played his entire professional career in Russia and currently plays for Chekhov Vityaz of the KHL.
Persson never signed with the Flames organization. He played his entire professional career in Sweden with division II clubs such as Skövde IK, Örnsköldsviks SK and IF Sundsvall Hockey. He retired following the 2005-06 season.
Notes: Calgary received the 146th overall pick as compensation for Nashville’s signing of restricted free agent Clarke Wilm.
Round 6: Curtis McElhinney (176th overall)
Flames debut: October 22, 2007 vs. San Jose Sharks
McElhinney (21-2-9-0-3.20) has spent his entire professional career in the Flames system with Calgary, Omaha and Quad City and is currently the back-up goaltender to Miikka Kiprusoff. Although he has not much of an opportunity to show his potential, his last outing, a 3-2 overtime victory over Dallas, was his finest NHL performance.
Round 7: David Van der Gulik (206th overall) and Pierre Johnsson (207th overall, acquired from NY Rangers)
Flames debut: February 26, 2009 vs. Minnesota Wild
Van der Gulik (6-0-2-2-0) has spent his entire professional career in the Flames system with Calgary, Omaha, Quad City and Abbotsford. Although he has not been able to crack the Flames lineup for any extended period, he is still highly regarded within the organization.
Johnsson never signed with the Flames organization. He has played his entire professional career in Sweden with IF Troja Ljungby, Färjestads BK and Mora IK. He is currently playing with Lulea HF of the Swedish Elite League.
Notes: Calgary traded Detroit’s 7th round pick in 2001 Entry Draft, acquired previously, to NY Rangers (Rangers selected Pontus Petterstrom) for NY Rangers’ 7th round pick (207th overall) in 2002 Entry Draft.
Round 8: Jyri Marttinen (238th overall)
Marttinen never signed with the Flames organization. He has played his entire professional career in Sweden and Finland with JYP Jyväskylä, Malmö IF Redhawks, Skellefteå AIK. He currently plays with Skellefteå in the Swedish Elite League.
Round 9: No selection
Notes: Calgary traded the 8th round (239th overall) pick in 2001 Entry Draft (Jake Riddle) and 9th round (269th overall) pick in 2002 Entry Draft to Minnesota for Minnesota’s 8th round (233rd overall) pick (Joe Campbell) in 2001 Entry Draft.
Total players drafted: 12
Players currently with Flames: 2
Players in Flames organization: 1
Players still active in professional hockey: 9
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