![]() They played home games in the Omni Coliseum in downtown Atlanta. Cousins named the team the "Flames" after the fire resulting from the March to the Sea in the American Civil War by General William Tecumseh Sherman, in which Atlanta was nearly destroyed. Needing another team to balance the schedule, the NHL awarded a team to an Atlanta-based group that owned the National Basketball Association's Atlanta Hawks, headed by prominent local real estate developer Tom Cousins. In December 1971, the NHL hastily granted a team to Long Island-the New York Islanders-to keep the WHA's New York Raiders out of the brand new Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Flames were the result of the NHL's first pre-emptive strike against the upstart World Hockey Association (WHA). Through the Flames Foundation, the team has donated over $32 million to charity throughout southern Alberta since the franchise arrived.įranchise history Atlanta Main article: Atlanta Flames Off the ice, the Flames own a Western Hockey League franchise, the Calgary Hitmen, and in 2007 opened a sports bar and entertainment centre called Flames Central on Stephen Avenue in Downtown Calgary. ![]() The Flames' unexpected run to the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals captured the imaginations of Canadians, leading Prime Minister Paul Martin to dub them "Canada's team", while the Red Mile celebrations by fans became nationally famous. In 1989, the Flames won their first and only Stanley Cup. In 1986, the Flames became the first Calgary team since the 1924 Tigers to compete for the Stanley Cup. The Flames played their first three seasons in Calgary at the Stampede Corral before moving into their current home arena, the Scotiabank Saddledome (originally known as the Olympic Saddledome), in 1983. The team was founded in 1972 in Atlanta, Georgia as the Atlanta Flames until moving to Calgary in 1980. Games between the teams are often heated events. The cities' proximity has led to a famous rivalry, known as the Battle of Alberta. The Flames are one of two NHL franchises in Alberta, the other being the Edmonton Oilers. The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the Calgary Tigers (1921–27) and Calgary Cowboys (1975–77). They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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