Comparing 14 games of Darryl Sutter and Geoff Ward

The Calgary Flames made a coaching change in early March, moving out incumbent coach Geoff Ward in favour of Darryl Sutter. The Flames have now played 14 games under Sutter, which seems like enough games to be able to draw conclusions from about deployments and performance.

Let’s dive in and compare Sutter’s first 14 games to Ward’s final 14 games.

The Flames went 5-9-0 in their first 14 games under Sutter, from March 11 to April 5. The 14 games were split Toronto [4], Edmonton [3], Winnipeg [3], Montreal [2] and Ottawa [2], with zero games against Vancouver.

The Flames went 7-6-1 in their final 14 games under Ward, from February 6 to March 4. The 14 games were split Ottawa [4], Vancouver [4],…