2003–04 Calgary Flames season

2003–04 Calgary Flames
Western Conference Champions
Division	3rd Northwest
Conference	6th Western
2003–04 record	42–30–7–3
Home record	21–14–5–1
Road record	21–16–2–2
Goals for	200 (19th)
Goals against	176 (3rd)
Team information
General Manager	Darryl Sutter
Coach	Darryl Sutter
Captain	Jarome Iginla
Alternate captains	Craig Conroy Robyn Regehr
Arena	Pengrowth Saddledome
Average attendance	16,580
Team leaders
Goals	Jarome Iginla (41)
Assists	Craig Conroy (39)
Points	Jarome Iginla (73)
Penalties in minutes	Krzysztof Oliwa (247)
Wins	Miikka Kiprusoff (24)
Goals against average	Miikka Kiprusoff (1.69)

<2002–03	2004–05>

The 2003–04 Calgary Flames season was the 24th National Hockey League season in Calgary, and the 32nd for the franchise in the NHL. The Flames ended a seven-year playoff drought, qualifying for the post-season for the first time since 1996. The Flames defeated three division winners en-route to an appearance in the 2004 Stanley Cup Finals. The Flames were defeated in the finals by the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games. The run to the finals captured the imagination of the city, while the Red Mile celebrations gained international attention for the "Mardi Gras-like" atmosphere as up to 80,000 people celebrated in the streets after each playoff game.

Head coach Darryl Sutter succeeded Craig Button as the Flames' general manager. Sutter made numerous changes to the roster as he worked to remake the Flames into a fast, physical club. Chris Drury was dealt to Buffalo for Rhett Warrener and Steve Reinprecht before the season began. A knee injury to starting goaltender Roman Turek led Sutter to trade for Miikka Kiprusoff, a player he knew from his days with the San Jose Sharks. Kiprusoff responded to the deal by posting an NHL record low Goals Against Average of 1.69.

The Flames were led offensively by Jarome Iginla, who tied Ilya Kovalchuk and Rick Nash for the league lead with 41 goals as the trio shared the Rocket Richard Trophy. Iginla represented the Flames at the 54th National Hockey League All-Star Game in Minnesota, and was named a second team all-star for his performance during the season. Iginla's charity work and leadership both on and off the ice led to his also being awarded the King Clancy Memorial Trophy and NHL Foundation Player Award.

1 Regular season
- 1.1 Season standings
- 1.2 Game log
2 Playoffs
3 Player stats
- 3.1 Skaters
- 3.2 Goaltenders
4 Transactions
- 4.1 Trades
- 4.2 Free Agents
5 Draft picks
6 Farm teams
- 6.1 Lowell Lockmonsters
- 6.2 Las Vegas Wranglers
7 See also
8 References

Regular season

After struggling with an injury to starting goaltender Roman Turek in the first game of the season, an early November trade for San Jose Sharks third stringer Miikka Kiprusoff sparked the Flames, as Kiprusoff led Calgary into the playoffs for the first time in eight years.^[1]

Defenceman Mike Commodore became a cult hero for his unruly red mop of hair during the playoffs, leading many fans to wear red afro wigs to playoff games.^[2] Craig Conroy brought a team building idea from his days with the St. Louis Blues, having the team award a green hard hat to the hardest working player each time the Flames won. As the exercise gained popularity, fans also began wearing green hard hats to the arena themselves.^[3]

Season standings

Northwest Division
No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	PTS
1	3	Vancouver Canucks	82	43	24	10	5	235	194	101
2	4	Colorado Avalanche	82	40	22	13	7	235	198	100
3	6	Calgary Flames	82	42	30	7	3	200	176	94
4	9	Edmonton Oilers	82	36	29	12	5	221	208	89
5	10	Minnesota Wild	82	30	29	20	3	188	183	83

^[4] Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Game log

2003–04 Game Log

October: 4–4–0–1 (Home: 2–2–0–0; Road: 2–2–0–1)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
1	October 9	Calgary	1 – 4	Vancouver		Turek	18,630	0–1–0–0	0
2	October 11	San Jose	2 – 3	Calgary		McLennan	17,039	1–1–0–0	2
3	October 14	Edmonton	0 – 1	Calgary		McLennan	16,009	2–1–0–0	4
4	October 18	Buffalo	2 – 0	Calgary		Turek	14,139	2–2–0–0	4
5	October 21	Calgary	3 – 2	Minnesota		McLennan	18,064	3–2–0–0	6
6	October 24	St. Louis	2 – 1	Calgary		McLennan	15,454	3–3–0–0	6
7	October 25	Calgary	4 – 2	Edmonton		McLennan	16,839	4–3–0–0	8
8	October 28	Calgary	2 – 4	Colorado		McLennan	18,007	4–4–0–0	8
9	October 29	Calgary	3 – 4	Dallas	OT	Sabourin	18,209	4–4–0–1	9

November: 5–4–1–2 (Home: 4–2–1–1; Road: 1–2–0–1)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
10	November 1	Columbus	0 – 3	Calgary		McLennan	14,539	5–4–0–1	11
11	November 4	Detroit	3 – 0	Calgary		McLennan	15,259	5–5–0–1	11
12	November 7	Minnesota	3 – 0	Calgary		McLennan	13,839	5–6–0–1	11
13	November 9	Calgary	3 – 4	Columbus		Sabourin	17,957	5–7–0–1	11
14	November 12	Calgary	6 – 2	Chicago		McLennan	11,988	6–7–0–1	13
15	November 13	Calgary	1 – 4	Nashville		Sabourin	9,630	6–8–0–1	13
16	November 15	Calgary	1 – 2	Edmonton	OT	McLennan	16,839	6–8–0–2	14
17	November 18	Toronto	2 – 3	Calgary	OT	McLennan	17,509	7–8–0–2	16
18	November 20	Montreal	1 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	16,139	8–8–0–2	18
19	November 22	Chicago	1 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	15,549	9–8–0–2	20
20	November 27	Colorado	6 – 5	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	??	9–8–0–3	21
21	November 29	Vancouver	4 – 4	Calgary	OT	McLennan	18,159	9–8–1–3	22

December: 10–3–2–0 (Home: 5–2–2–0; Road: 5–1–0–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
22	December 2	San Jose	1 – 3	Calgary		Kiprusoff	13,059	10–8–1–3	24
23	December 4	Calgary	4 – 1	Vancouver		Kiprusoff	18,630	11–8–1–3	26
24	December 5	Minnesota	1 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	14,669	12–8–1–3	28
25	December 7	Pittsburgh	1 – 6	Calgary		Kiprusoff	15,009	13–8–1–3	30
26	December 9	Calgary	1 – 2	Minnesota		Kiprusoff	18,568	13–9–1–3	30
27	December 11	Carolina	0 – 1	Calgary		Kiprusoff	14,119	14–9–1–3	32
28	December 13	Colorado	1 – 1	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	16,809	14–9–2–3	33
29	December 16	Calgary	3 – 2	Philadelphia	OT	Kiprusoff	18,931	15–9–2–3	35
30	December 18	Calgary	5 – 0	Boston		McLennan	10,659	16–9–2–3	37
31	December 19	Calgary	2 – 1	Columbus		Kiprusoff	16,561	17–9–2–3	39
32	December 23	Edmonton	1 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	18,389	18–9–2–3	41
33	December 26	Vancouver	2 – 0	Calgary		Kiprusoff	18,419	18–10–2–3	41
34	December 28	Calgary	2 – 1	Edmonton		Kiprusoff	16,839	19–10–2–3	43
35	December 29	Minnesota	2 – 2	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	16,279	19–10–3–3	44
36	December 31	Colorado	2 – 1	Calgary		McLennan	18,469	19–11–3–3	44

January: 6–8–1–0 (Home: 2–4–0–0; Road: 4–4–1–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
37	January 3	Vancouver	3 – 1	Calgary		McLennan	18,269	19–12–3–3	44
38	January 5	Calgary	5 – 0	NY Rangers		McLennan	18,200	20–12–3–3	46
39	January 6	Calgary	3 – 2	NY Islanders		McLennan	12,576	21–12–3–3	48
40	January 8	Calgary	1 – 3	Chicago		McLennan	10,865	21–13–3–3	48
41	January 10	Florida	2 – 4	Calgary		McLennan	16,809	22–13–3–3	50
42	January 13	Calgary	1 – 4	Toronto		McLennan	19,310	22–14–3–2	49
43	January 14	Calgary	1 – 1	Washington	OT	McLennan	14,537	22–14–4–3	51
44	January 17	Dallas	3 – 2	Calgary		Turek	17,909	22–15–4–3	51
45	January 19	Calgary	5 – 1	Anaheim		Turek	13,146	23–15–4–3	53
46	January 20	Calgary	1 – 4	Los Angeles		Turek	18,118	23–16–4–3	53
47	January 22	Nashville	0 – 4	Calgary		Turek	16,629	24–16–4–3	55
48	January 24	Tampa Bay	6 – 2	Calgary		Turek	17,109	24–17–4–3	55
49	January 27	Calgary	2 – 1	Phoenix		Turek	??	25–17–4–3	57
50	January 28	Calgary	1 – 4	San Jose		Turek	15,119	25–18–4–3	57
51	January 30	Chicago	5 – 3	Calgary		Turek	17,139	25–19–4–3	57

February: 7–5–1–0 (Home: 4–2–1–0; Road: 3–3–0–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
52	February 1	Anaheim	4 – 6	Calgary		McLennan	15,189	26–19–4–3	59
53	February 3	Los Angeles	4 – 4	Calgary	OT	McLennan	14,169	26–19–5–3	60
54	February 5	St. Louis	2 – 1	Calgary		Turek	15,389	26–20–5–3	60
55	February 10	Atlanta	2 – 5	Calgary		Kiprusoff	16,549	27–20–5–3	62
56	February 11	Calgary	3 – 2	Vancouver		Turek	18,630	28–20–5–3	64
57	February 13	Anaheim	1 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	17,749	29–20–5–3	66
58	February 15	Calgary	2 – 1	Minnesota		Kiprusoff	18,568	30–20–5–3	68
59	February 19	Calgary	1 – 4	Montreal		Kiprusoff	21,273	30–21–5–3	68
60	February 21	Calgary	1 – 2	Ottawa		Turek	18,500	30–22–5–3	68
61	February 22	Calgary	1 – 3	New Jersey		Kiprusoff	17,733	30–23–5–3	68
62	February 24	Calgary	2 – 0	Colorado		Kiprusoff	18,007	31–23–5–3	70
63	February 26	Detroit	2 – 1	Calgary		Kiprusoff	18,862	31–24–5–3	70
64	February 29	Phoenix	2 – 4	Calgary		Kiprusoff	17,579	32–24–5–3	72

March: 9–5–2–0 (Home: 4–2–1–0; Road: 5–3–1–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
65	March 2	Calgary	4 – 2	St. Louis		Kiprusoff	15,571	33–24–5–3	74
66	March 3	Calgary	1 – 2	Detroit		Turek	20,066	33–25–5–3	74
67	March 5	Calgary	1 – 5	Dallas		Kiprusoff	18,532	33–26–5–3	74
68	March 7	Calgary	7 – 1	Colorado		Kiprusoff	18,007	34–26–5–3	76
69	March 9	Edmonton	1 – 1	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	18,479	34–26–6–3	77
70	March 11	Ottawa	2 – 4	Calgary		Kiprusoff	17,869	35–26–6–3	79
71	March 13	Calgary	4 – 4	Nashville	OT	Kiprusoff	17,113	35–26–7–3	80
72	March 14	Calgary	3 – 0	St. Louis		Turek	19,523	36–26–7–3	82
73	March 16	Calgary	4 – 1	Detroit		Kiprusoff	20,066	37–26–7–3	84
74	March 18	Columbus	0 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	17,479	38–26–7–3	86
75	March 20	Nashville	3 – 1	Calgary		Kiprusoff	18,439	38–27–7–3	86
76	March 22	Dallas	4 – 0	Calgary		Kiprusoff	17,729	38–28–7–3	86
77	March 24	Calgary	4 – 0	Phoenix		Turek	18,496	39–28–7–3	88
78	March 25	Calgary	2 – 3	San Jose		Kiprusoff	15,588	39–29–7–3	88
79	March 27	Los Angeles	2 – 3	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	18,419	40–29–7–3	90
80	March 31	Phoenix	0 – 1	Calgary		Kiprusoff	18,419	41–29–7–3	92

April: 1–1–0–0 (Home: 0–0–0–0; Road: 1–1–0–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts
81	April 2	Calgary	3 – 2	Los Angeles		Kiprusoff	18,247	42–29–7–3	94
82	April 4	Calgary	1 – 2	Anaheim		Turek	17,174	43–30–7–3	94

Playoffs

Calgary's defeat of the Vancouver Canucks in the first round was the first playoff series victory for the Flames since they won the Cup in 1989. Jarome Iginla scored two goals and assisted on Martin Gelinas' overtime winner in game seven, sending fans in Calgary into the streets to celebrate the victory. The Flames pulled off an even bigger upset in round two, knocking off the President's Trophy winning Red Wings in six, including back-to-back 1–0 shutouts in the final two games. Once again, Gelinas scored the overtime winner on a rebound on a play set up by Iginla. In doing so, Gelinas became the first player in NHL history to record three career OT winners to end a series.^[5]

The third round series pitted the Flames against head coach Darryl Sutter and goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff's old team - the San Jose Sharks. After jumping out to a 2–0 series lead on the road, the Sharks returned the favour, defeating Calgary twice at home. After blanking the Sharks in San Jose in game five, the Flames returned home with a chance to go to the Stanley Cup Finals. Led once again by Iginla and Gelinas, the Flames cruised to a 3–1 victory. Gelinas once again scored the series clinching goal, this time in the second period, to return the Flames to the Stanley Cup final for the first time since winning it in 1989.

The Finals versus Tampa Bay became known for controversy. First, referee Kerry Fraser was pulled from his game six assignment in Calgary after drawing the ire of Flames fans following several calls in game four that upset the local fans. Fraser would instead officiate game seven in Tampa.^[6] The officiating in game four prompted a rant by Sutter, in which he alleged that the NHL did not want Calgary to win.^[7]

Late in game six, with the score tied, a shot that deflected off of Gelinas' skate was stopped by Tampa Bay goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin on the goal line. Later replays indicated that the puck may have crossed the line,^[8] however the play was not reviewed at the time, and the NHL would later rule the video was inconclusive, since the puck was in the air not on the ice.^[9] Instead, the Lightning would win in double overtime, and go on to win game seven by a 2–1 score.^[10]

Despite the game seven loss, the playoff run lifted the city to a new high.^[11] Over 30,000 fans celebrated the Flames run at a rally at Olympic Plaza shortly after the finals ended.^[12] Due to the team's playoff success their fans set new expectations, perhaps unrealistic ones, for the Flames.^[11]

2004 Stanley Cup Playoffs

Western Conference Quarter-final vs. Vancouver (3) - Flames win 4–3
Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series
1	April 7	Calgary	3 – 5	Vancouver		Kiprusoff	18,630	Vancouver leads 1–0
2	April 9	Calgary	2 – 1	Vancouver		Kiprusoff	18,630	Series tied 1–1
3	April 11	Vancouver	2 – 1	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Vancouver leads 2–1
4	April 13	Vancouver	0 – 4	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Series tied 2–2
5	April 15	Calgary	2 – 1	Vancouver		Kiprusoff	18,630	Calgary leads 3–2
6	April 17	Vancouver	5 – 4	Calgary	3OT	Kiprusoff	19,289	Series tied 3–3
7	April 19	Calgary	3–2	Vancouver	OT	Kiprusoff	18,630	Calgary wins 4–3

Western Conference Semi-final vs. Detroit (1) - Flames win 4–2
Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series
1	April 22	Calgary	2 – 1	Detroit	OT	Kiprusoff	20,066	Calgary leads 1–0
2	April 24	Calgary	2 – 5	Detroit		Kiprusoff	20,066	Series tied 1–1
3	April 27	Detroit	2 – 3	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Calgary leads 2–1
4	April 29	Detroit	4 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Series tied 2–2
5	May 1	Calgary	1 – 0	Detroit		Kiprusoff	20,066	Calgary leads 3–2
6	May 3	Detroit	0 – 1	Calgary	OT	Kiprusoff	19,289	Calgary wins 4–2

Western Conference Final vs. San Jose (2) - Flames win 4–2
Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series
1	May 9	Calgary	4 – 3	San Jose	OT	Kiprusoff	17,496	Calgary leads 1–0
2	May 11	Calgary	4 – 1	San Jose		Kiprusoff	17,496	Calgary leads 2–0
3	May 13	San Jose	3 – 0	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Calgary leads 2–1
4	May 16	San Jose	4 – 2	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Series tied 2–2
5	May 17	Calgary	3 – 0	San Jose		Kiprusoff	17,496	Calgary leads 3–2
6	May 19	San Jose	1 – 3	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,289	Calgary wins 4–2

Stanley Cup Final vs. Tampa Bay (1E) - Lightning win 4–3
Game	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series
1	May 25	Calgary	4 – 1	Tampa Bay		Kiprusoff	21,674	Calgary leads 1–0
2	May 27	Calgary	1 – 4	Tampa Bay		Kiprusoff	22,222	Series tied 1–1
3	May 29	Tampa Bay	0 – 3	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,221	Calgary leads 2–1
4	May 31	Tampa Bay	1 – 0	Calgary		Kiprusoff	19,221	Series tied 2–2
5	June 3	Calgary	3 – 2	Tampa Bay	OT	Kiprusoff	22,426	Calgary leads 3–2
6	June 5	Tampa Bay	3 – 2	Calgary	2OT	Kiprusoff	19,221	Series tied 3–3
7	June 7	Calgary	1 – 2	Tampa Bay		Kiprusoff	22,717	Tampa Bay wins 4–3

Player stats

Jarome Iginla's 41 goals placed him in a tie for the league lead, earning him his second Rocket Richard Trophy. Iginla shared the award with Atlanta's Ilya Kovalchuk and Columbus' Rick Nash, both of whom also scored 41 goals.^[13] Iginla also led the league in playoff goals, as his total of 13 was one better than Tampa's Brad Richards and Ruslan Fedotenko.^[14] Iginla led the team in scoring for the fourth consecutive season,

Miikka Kiprusoff, acquired from the San Jose Sharks early in the season, set a modern NHL record low Goals Against Average of 1.69 in 39 games played. He recorded five shutouts in the playoffs, a franchise record. Kiprusoff's performance with the Flames led to his being named the starting goaltender for team Finland at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, where he led the Finns to the championship final.^[15]

Skaters

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes

		Regular season					Playoffs
Player	#	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Jarome Iginla	12	81	41	32	73	84	26	13	9	22	45
Craig Conroy	22	63	8	39	47	44	26	6	11	17	12
Shean Donovan	16	82	18	24	42	72	24	5	5	10	23
Martin Gelinas	23	76	17	18	35	70	26	8	7	15	35
Jordan Leopold	4	82	9	24	33	24	26	0	10	10	6
Dean McAmmond	37	64	17	13	30	18	—	—	—	—	—
Matthew Lombardi	18/49	79	16	13	29	32	13	1	5	6	4
Oleg Saprykin	19	69	12	17	29	41	26	3	3	6	14
Steve Reinprecht	27	44	7	22	29	4	—	—	—	—	—
Chris Clark	17	82	10	15	25	106	26	3	3	6	30
Toni Lydman	32	67	4	16	20	30	6	0	1	1	2
Robyn Regehr	28	82	4	14	18	74	26	2	7	9	20
Chuck Kobasew	7	70	6	11	17	51	26	0	1	1	24
Stephane Yelle	11	53	4	13	17	24	23	3	3	6	16
Rhett Warrener	44	77	3	14	17	97	24	0	1	1	6
Andrew Ference	21	72	4	12	16	53	26	0	3	3	25
Denis Gauthier	3	80	1	15	16	113	6	0	1	1	4
Ville Nieminen	24	19	3	5	8	18	24	4	4	8	55
Krzysztof Oliwa	33	65	3	2	5	247	20	2	0	2	6
Chris Simon^†	15	13	3	2	5	25	16	5	2	7	74
Marcus Nilson^†	26	14	0	5	5	14	26	4	7	11	12
Steve Montador	5	26	1	2	3	50	20	1	2	3	6
Dave Lowry	10	18	1	1	2	11	10	0	0	0	6
Lynn Loyns^†	20	12	0	2	2	2	—	—	—	—	—
Mike Commodore	2	12	0	0	0	25	20	0	2	2	19
Martin Sonnenberg	25	5	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—
Brennan Evans	—	—	—	—	—	—	2	0	0	0	0
All traded players	—	—	3	9	12	40	—	—	—	—	—

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Calgary. Stats reflect time with the Flames only.
Bold denotes league leader

Goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

		Regular season									Playoffs
Player	#	GP	Min	W	L	T	GA	SO	Sv%	GAA	GP	Min	W	L	GA	SO	Sv%	GAA
Miikka Kiprusoff^†	34	38	2301	24	10	4	65	4	.933	1.69	26	1655	15	11	51	5	.928	1.85
Jamie McLennan^‡	29	26	1446	12	9	3	53	4	.910	2.20	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Roman Turek	1	18	1031	6	11	0	40	3	.914	2.33	1	19	0	0	0	0	1.000	0.00
Dany Sabourin	50	4	169	0	3	0	10	0	.848	3.55	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Calgary. Stats reflect time with the Flames only.
^‡Traded mid-season
Bold text denotes league record
Italics denotes franchise record

Transactions

Trades

July 3, 2003	To Calgary Flames Rhett Warrener Steve Reinprecht	To Buffalo Sabres Chris Drury
July 16, 1999	To Calgary Flames 4th round pick in 2004 Future Considerations	To Carolina Hurricanes Bob Boughner
November 16, 2003	To Calgary Flames Miikka Kiprusoff	To San Jose Sharks 2nd round pick in 2005
January 9, 2004	To Calgary Flames Lynn Loyns	To San Jose Sharks Future Considerations
February 24, 2004	To Calgary Flames Ville Nieminen	To Chicago Blackhawks Jason Morgan Conditional draft pick in 2005
March 6, 2004	To Calgary Flames Chris Simon 7th round pick in 2004	To New York Rangers Jamie McLennan Blair Betts Greg Moore
March 8, 2004	To Calgary Flames Marcus Nilson	To Florida Panthers 2nd round pick in 2004

Free Agents

Player signed	Former team
Krzysztof Oliwa	Boston Bruins
Josh Green	Washington Capitals
Jesse Wallin	Detroit Red Wings
Matt Davidson	Columbus Blue Jackets

Player lost	New team
Scott Nichol	Chicago Blackhawks
Mike Mottau	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim

Draft picks

Main article: List of Calgary Flames draft picks

The 2003 NHL Entry Draft was held in Nashville, Tennessee on June 21–22, 2003. The Flames selected nine players in the draft.^[20] Calgary selected offensive minded defenceman Dion Phaneuf with their first pick, ninth overall. Phaneuf's coach with the Red Deer Rebels described him as being a physical player on draft day. "This kid doesn't hit to hit. He hits to hurt. It's a mind-set that's rare in the game. At any level. You can't teach it, you can't fake it. You're either born with it, or you're not."^[21] Phaneuf quickly made an impact in the NHL, scoring 20 goals as a rookie in 2005–06, earning a nomination for the Calder Memorial Trophy as top rookie.^[22] Phaneuf was nominated for the Norris Trophy as top defenceman in 2007–08, just his third year in the NHL.^[23]

Rnd	Pick	Player	Nationality	Position	Team (league)	NHL statistics
Rnd	Pick	Player	Nationality	Position	Team (league)	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1	9	Dion Phaneuf	Canada	D	Red Deer Rebels (WHL)	470	85	183	268	644
2	39	Tim Ramholt	Switzerland	D	Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)	1	0	0	0	0
3	97	Ryan Donally	Canada	LW	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
4	112	Jamie Tardif	Canada	RW	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
5	143	Greg Moore	United States	RW	University of Maine (Hockey East)	10	0	0	0	0
6	173	Tyler Johnson	Canada	C	Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL)
7	206	Thomas Bellemare	Canada	D	Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
8	240	Cam Cunning	Canada	LW	Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
9	270	Kevin Harvey	Canada	LW	Georgetown Raiders (OPJHL)

Statistics are updated to the end of the 2010–11 NHL season. Players in italics were active on an NHL roster in 2010–11.

Farm teams

Lowell Lockmonsters

After shutting down the Saint John Flames, the Flames entered into an agreement to share an affiliation with the Lowell Lockmonsters with the Carolina Hurricanes. The Lockmonsters posted a 32–36–6–6 record, out of the playoffs with a 6th place finish in the Atlantic Division.

Las Vegas Wranglers

The Las Vegas Wranglers entered the ECHL as an expansion team, immediately entering an affiliation agreement with the Flames. The team was immediately competitive, finishing second in the Pacific Division with a 43–22–7 record. This did not translate into the playoffs however, as the Wranglers lost in the divisional semi-finals.

References

Player stats: 2006–07 Calgary Flames Media Guide - 2003–04 stats, pg. 108.
Game log: 2003–04 Calgary Flames game log on espn.com
Team standings: 2003–04 NHL standings at hockeydb.com

^ Iginla, Flames hungry for cup run, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, April 6, 2004, http://www.cbc.ca/cgi-bin/templates/stanleycupView.cgi?/news/2004/04/06/Sports/canucks-flames040406, retrieved November 29, 2006
^ Roarke, Shawn P. (May 18, 2006), When things get hairy, Canes call for Commodore, National Hockey League, http://www.nhl.com/features/spotlight/commodore051806.html, retrieved November 29, 2006
^ Where's the Calgary Flames golden hard hat?, Calgary Flames Hockey Club, archived from the original on October 4, 2006, http://web.archive.org/web/20061004233403/http://www.calgaryflames.com/cgi-bin/news/comments.cgi?type=newsroom&file_num=0000000582, retrieved November 29, 2006
^ Dinger, Ralph, ed (2009). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2010. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 162.
^ Calgary 1, Detroit 0, OT, Yahoo! sports, May 4, 2004. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
^ Veteran ref drew ire of Calgary fans, espn.com, June 5, 2004. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
^ Flames' Sutter sticks by his claims, tsn.ca, June 3, 2004. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBBgCRIxrtg&feature=related
^ Christodero, Damian, One last shot, St. Petersburg Times, June 6, 2004. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
^ No cup, but Flames' season still a success, cbc.ca, June 8, 2004. Retrieved November 29, 2006.
^ ^a ^b Flames' fall from glory | Hockey | Sports | London Free Press
^ Calgary salutes Flames, slam.canoe.ca. Retrieved November 30, 2006.
^ 2003–04 Rocket Richard Trophy winners, Hockey Hall of Fame, http://www.legendsofhockey.net:8080/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/SilverwareTrophyWinner.jsp?tro=MRT&year=2003–04, retrieved November 29, 2006
^ NHL Scoring – Goals – 2004 playoffs, ESPN, http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/statistics?stat=nhlscoring&league=nhl&sort=goals&order=true&qual=true&season=2004&seasontype=3&pos=all, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ Burnside, Scott (September 12, 2004), Goalie forces foes to take Finns seriously, ESPN, http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=1880238&type=story, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ Flames acquire Reinprecht, Warrener, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, July 5, 2003, http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2003/07/03/flames030703.html, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ Kelley, Jim (December 20, 2003), Flames undergoing red-hot reversal, ESPN, http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/story?columnist=kelley_jim&id=1690222, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ Game Story: Montreal 1, Calgary 2, ESPN, November 20, 2003, http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=231120003, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ Johnson, George (November 5, 2005), Let's remember where these Flames came from, ESPN, http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/story?id=2212533, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ 2003 NHL Entry Draft results, National Hockey League, archived from the original on May 2, 2006, http://web.archive.org/web/20060502193057/http://www.nhl.com/draft/2003/round1.html, retrieved 2006-11-27
^ Johnson, George (2003-06-22), Sutters sense Dion has right stuff, Calgary Herald, p. B1
^ NHL Announces 2005-06 Trophy finalists, National Hockey League, 2006-05-04, http://www.nhl.com/news/2006/05/271296.html, retrieved 2008-09-17
^ Traikos, Michael (2008-04-22), Lidstrom, Chara, Phaneuf named Norris Trophy finalists, The National Post, http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/postedsports/archive/2008/04/22/lidstrom-chara-and-phaneuf-named-norris-trophy-finalists.aspx, retrieved 2008-09-17

Calgary Flames seasons

1980s	1980–81 · 1981–82 · 1982–83 · 1983–84 · 1984–85 · 1985–86 · 1986–87 · 1987–88 · 1988–89 · 1989–90

1990s	1990–91 · 1991–92 · 1992–93 · 1993–94 · 1994–95 · 1995–96 · 1996–97 · 1997–98 · 1998–99 · 1999–00

2000s	2000–01 · 2001–02 · 2002–03 · 2003–04 · 2004–05 · 2005–06 · 2006–07 · 2007–08 · 2008–09 · 2009–10

2010s	2010–11 · 2011–12

Highlighted seasons indicate Stanley Cup championship

Calgary Flames

Franchise	Seasons · Players · Coaches · General managers · Records · Draft picks · Award winners

Lore	Atlanta Flames · Battle of Alberta · Harvey the Hound · Red Mile · The Monday Night Miracle

Affiliates	Abbotsford Heat (AHL) • Utah Grizzlies (ECHL)

Arenas	Stampede Corral · Scotiabank Saddledome

Broadcasters	Sportsnet Flames • The Fan 960

See also	Calgary Hitmen · Ice hockey in Calgary · Calgarypuck

2003–04 NHL season by team

Atlantic	New Jersey • NY Islanders • NY Rangers • Philadelphia • Pittsburgh

Northeast	Boston • Buffalo • Montreal • Ottawa • Toronto

Southeast	Atlanta • Carolina • Florida • Tampa Bay • Washington

Central	Chicago • Columbus • Detroit • Nashville • St. Louis

Northwest	Calgary • Colorado • Edmonton • Minnesota • Vancouver

Pacific	Anaheim • Dallas • Los Angeles • Phoenix • San Jose

See also	Entry Draft • All-Star Game • 2003 Heritage Classic • Playoffs • Final • Transactions