Wranglers feeling the pressure

By Rob Miech

Monday, June 2, 2008 | 2 a.m.

The one time Calgary Flames General Manager Darryl Sutter comes to Las Vegas this season to check out the kids, call them the Flickers, they just about trip over themselves.

The Wranglers struggle to connect passes. They flop with a two-man advantage. The goalie becomes a sieve during a six-minute stretch that decides the game.

It isn’t any game. Cincinnati takes a 2-1 lead over Las Vegas in the best-of-seven ECHL Kelly Cup Finals.

It’s the wrong time to fall flat. Not when a city responds with a near-sellout crowd that’s primed to celebrate.

Not with Sutter sitting high above the ice, in Suite 2 of the Orleans Arena, to evaluate everyone and everything. If it weren’t important, he wouldn’t be here.

“It’s pretty simple,” Sutter says.

Assembling a winning franchise that develops youngsters in Las Vegas and feeds them to Calgary via Quad City in the American Hockey League, isn’t so simple.

Sutter keeps his eyes moving the moment he enters the building. He probably noted whether the shoes and the belt of the valet who parked his rental car matched.

“We have spots in our organization that are available,” says Sutter, 49. “I’ll see if there’s anyone that could fit in.”

For five seasons, Sutter and his five brothers played at the same time in the National Hockey League.

The 2000-01 campaign was the 25th consecutive season in which at least one Sutter (pronounced SUH-ter) played in the NHL.

The Wranglers have been Calgary’s Double-A affiliate since their inception in 2003, an association rooted in Sutter’s relationship with Las Vegas coach and general manager Glen Gulutzan.

Both are from Western Canadian cities. Gulutzan’s wife, Nicole, hails from Calgary. Sutter remembers watching Gulutzan in his junior hockey days.

The pact between the two clubs, according to Sutter, is renewed annually on a handshake.

“As long as everybody’s doing a good job and everyone’s happy,” Sutter says. “It’s not about how long it is. That’s irrelevant. In this business, it’s about knowing people and trusting them.”

Reflecting the cutthroat nature of the business, he’s also watching a few Cyclones. He’s seen about 20 players from both Las Vegas and Cincinnati play from way back when.

“Certainly, there’s always diamonds in the rough somewhere. Tonight, if there’s someone that jumps out and I ...” Sutter says, letting his voice trail off.

He says Gulutzan and assistant coach Brent Bilodeau are important parts of the Flames system in assessing talent all over the ECHL.

They’ve excelled in evaluating talent, since Gulutzan-signed free agents Gerry Burke, Jason Jozsa, Jason Krischuk and Mike Madill have all spent time at Quad City this season.

With one call from Sutter, those players would have worn Flames sweaters this season. A handful of Gulutzan-picked talent has signed NHL contracts and played in the AHL in 2007-08.

Moreover, the Wranglers are the first franchise in the 20-year history of the ECHL to record three consecutive 100-point seasons, and that pressure to win suits Sutter well.

“It’s important that they’re in a place where they’re developing to get to the next level,” he says. “Not every ECHL team can say that, and not every NHL team can say that they have that relationship.

“Our No. 1 goal is to develop young players. Las Vegas’ No. 1 goal is to win a championship. It’s kind of going hand-in-hand this season.

It’s about players being taught how to be professionals on and off the ice. They’re boys, Sutter says; they have a lot to learn.

Unfortunately for them, Sutter left town Friday morning.