Guide to the NHL’s Final Four for Calgary Flames fans

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The field has been whittled to four. The stage is now set for the NHL’s semifinal showdowns, with the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers battling for bragging rights in the Eastern Conference and the Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers still in the running for best in the West.

The winners will, of course, compete to leave their fingerprints on the Stanley Cup.

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So, Flames fans, who ya got?

Are you on Team Tanev? Would you … gasp … cheer for the arch-rival Oilers?

Are you rooting for a Calgary-raised wrecking ball or ready to forgive a former Saddledome star who forced a trade out of town?

Here is everything you need to know — or darn close to it — to determine who you’ll support in the third round and beyond …

New York Rangers

Every time the Rangers visit the Saddledome, Adam Fox receives an earful. The standout defenceman is booed mercilessly whenever the puck is on his stick, proof that fans in Calgary still hold this grudge, and for good reason. Fox was, after all, selected by the Flames in the 2016 NHL Draft but was ultimately traded away after his reps relayed that he wasn’t willing to sign with the club. Those scars are so deep that there always seems to be panic that any American prospect might refuse to ink a contract in Cowtown — or “pull an Adam Fox,” as it is often referred. Thankfully, in the case of Matt Coronato and then Hunter Brzustewicz, those fears were unfounded.

So C of Redders should definitely be rooting against the Rangers, right? Not so fast. A lot of folks in Calgary will be pulling for local lad Matt Rempe, the rookie basher/brawler who has become an immediate fan fave in the Big Apple. The 21-year-old Rempe, a graduate of the Northwest Warriors minor-hockey program, has appeared in seven playoff games so far and could wind up in the spotlight against the Panthers, a crew that doesn’t mind some roughhousing.

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The connections don’t end there. Rangers assistant coach Phil Housley spent parts of five seasons with the Saddledome-dwellers, leading the team in assists in three of those. Chris Drury, who constructed this Presidents’ Trophy-winning roster as general manager in New York, donned the Flaming C for one winter during his own playing days.

Florida Panthers

Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett were supposed to be franchise cornerstones in Calgary. Instead, they’re looking to lead the Panthers to a second consecutive berth in the Stanley Cup final — and to author an alternate ending after a heartbreaker in 2023.

Tkachuk’s success in the Sunshine State is hard to stomach for a lot of folks in this city. The skilled and snarky winger had already ascended to superstar status when he informed the Flames in the summer of 2022 that he wasn’t planning to stick around long-term, providing a short list of approved trade destinations. Since Johnny Gaudreau had just bolted for Columbus, it turned out to be a double whammy. Still only 26, Tkachuk has been everything they hoped for in Florida — the tone-setter for a tenacious troupe and the team scoring leader through two rounds this spring — and fans in his first NHL city will always wonder what might have been if he’d been willing to stay put.

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The highest draft pick in Flames’ history, Bennett wasn’t able to live up to the sky-high expectations in Calgary, although he always seemed to be at his best in the biggest moments. He is now a valuable supporting-caster in Florida and was a major factor in a second-round ouster of the Boston Bruins, scoring a controversial tying goal and injuring Brad Marchand with what some insist was a sneaky jab.

Ryan Lomberg, who started his pro career in the Flames’ system and is now a depth piece for the Panthers, rarely misses an opportunity to stir things up when he is in the lineup.

Dallas Stars

They adore Chris Tanev in Dallas, for all the same reasons that he was beloved in Calgary and in Vancouver before that. Tanev, a soon-to-be unrestricted free agent who was traded to Texas in late February after telling Flames GM Craig Conroy that he wanted to chase a championship, is one of the NHL’s most stingy shutdown defenders. He is a selfless teammate and a fearless shot-blocker. He is the kind of guy who would offer his house to a dude he’s never met — like he did when the Flames claimed Joel Hanley off waivers — and would miss only a few shifts as doctors peeled back and stitched up his lip after it had been smushed over his remaining teeth. Ouch.

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Tanev, 34, has been a big help in the Big D, winning his even-strength matchup against Jack Eichel in the first round and against Hart Trophy frontrunner Nathan MacKinnon in the Central Division final. Four more wins would also be a big help to his former team. Based on the conditions of the trade, the Flames will receive a bonus draft pick — a third-rounder in 2026 — if the Stars advance to the Stanley Cup slugfest. Wouldn’t that be nice?

Jeff Reese, the goaltending coach in Dallas, was the Flames’ backup when he set the NHL’s single-game record with three assists — most ever by a masked man — in a blowout victory over the San Jose Sharks in 1993. The Stars also have a couple of connections to Calgary’s championship squad from 1989. Gary Suter’s nephew, Ryan, is a regular on the blue-line, while Jiri Hrdina is a member of the amateur scouting staff.

Edmonton Oilers

Listen, we’re not going to try to convince you to cheer for the Oilers. For many who live south of the imaginary border in Red Deer, A.B.E. (Anybody But Edmonton) will always be a guiding principle. Chances are, you have a friend or co-worker or neighbour who would never let you forget it, even if you rooted for the provincial rivals for just a few short weeks and even if it’s only because you’re sick of hearing about Canada’s Stanley Cup drought, which has now spanned three-plus decades.

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While you might have preferred to see Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov and the Vancouver Canucks emerge from the Pacific Division, there are some storylines that could at least lessen the sting if Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the Oilers continue to cruise along. Glen Gulutzan was head coach at the Saddledome from 2016 to 2018 and still has a lot of friends in the Stampede City. Gulutzan is now in his sixth season as an assistant in Edmonton, where he oversees a star-studded power-play. Derek Ryan’s stint with the Flames included a nod as winner of the Peter Maher Good Guy Award, while defenceman Brett Kulak has also skated on both sides of the Battle of Alberta. And youngster Dylan Holloway, who was stellar in Game 7 against the Canucks, was raised in Bragg Creek, played minor hockey in Springbank and starred for the Junior-A Oilers in Okotoks.

In a strange twist, Edmonton’s starting puck-stopper, Stuart Skinner, was drafted at No. 78 overall in 2017, a third-round slot that was originally owned by the Flames. That pick was initially traded to Arizona in the swap for Michael Stone.

wgilbertson@postmedia.com

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