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Report: Glen Gulutzan will be the next head coach of the Calgary Flames (Update)

It’s taken some time, but it seems like the Calgary Flames have finally decided on a head coach.

According to TSN hockey insider Darren Dreger, Glen Gulutzan will be the next head coach of the Flames. Gulutzan, who’s been serving as an assistant coach with the Canucks for the last three seasons, has a year and a half of NHL head coaching experience with the Dallas Stars.

You can get to know Glen Gulutzan by clicking the video at the top of the page.

It’s unclear when the Flames will make the official announcement, but it’s bound to happen in the next few hours or days, per Dreger.

The Stars missed the playoffs in each of the two seasons that Gulutzan was behind the bench. The 44-year-old also spent time as the head coach of the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL before moving on to be the head coach of the AHL’s Texas Stars.

“I have a lot of respect for him and confidence in him,” said Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins, per the Calgary Sun. “He’s smart, he’s structured, he works hard and he more than does his job. He’s been real good for us. I like a lot of things about him.”

After Jim Playfair, Mike Keenan, Brent Sutter and Bob Hartley, Gulutzen will become Calgary’s fifth head coach since 2006-07. Of those coaches, Hartley had the longest stint behind the Flames bench (2012-2016).

Gulutzen will inherit some good young forwards like Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau and Sam Bennett, as well as a solid defense. The biggest issue in Calgary has been finding a proven starter in goal. If the Flames can land Marc-Andre Fleury from Pittsburgh, that would go a long way in helping Gulutzan succeed.

UPDATE:

It looks like the official announcement will be made today.