Marcus Nilson, one of the unsung heroes of the Calgary Flames’ fairytale run to the Stanley Cup final in 2004, is back with his former team.
The Flames have hired Nilson, who is based in Sweden, as a European pro scout.
The 47-year-old has been hanging around the Saddledome for the start of training camp, his first trip to his old home rink since he wrapped a decade-long stint as an NHL forward.
“It means a lot, because I love this team and this city,” Nilson said. “To be able to put some work in and be a part of the organization, it’s awesome. I’m super pumped.
“Through the years, I’ve always kept tabs and just rooted for the team. Every year, you’re like, ‘I hope the Flames do well.’ ”
In future years, Nilson hopes to be one of the reasons the Flames are doing well.
He will be scouring the various leagues in Europe for could-be contributors, whether they’re soon-to-be free agents or drafted prospects who could be available via trade.
Flames’ man in Europe
This is a position Flames general manager Craig Conroy — another fan fave from the 2004 team — has been keen to fill. The organization hasn’t had a full-time set of eyeballs on the European pro circuit since Hakan Loob retired.
“They’re going to have to tell me where to start and I’ll just keep getting better at it, I guess,” said Nilson, who has no previous scouting experience and is getting a crash course this week on the Flames’ software systems. “It’s going to be a learning period, obviously. But once I get into it, I’m going to do everything I can to do a good job. And hopefully … I mean, the main goal is maybe get a ring, you know? That’s why you want to do it.”
Nilson was oh-so-close to winning a ring with the Flames in 2004.
He arrived at the Saddledome that March as a trade-deadline acquisition, proving to be a perfect fit for a hard-working, hard-hatted bunch that advanced all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.
Nilson turned out to be one of Calgary’s most trustworthy checkers and penalty-killers during that run. With 11 points, he also finished fourth on the Flames’ spring scoring charts, trailing only Jarome Iginla, Conroy and Martin Gelinas — a.k.a. The Eliminator.
Those guys are all co-workers again.
Iginla is a valued voice in the hockey-ops department as special assistant to the GM, while Gelinas is on the player development staff.
(The Flames have also reunited with Dave Lowry, who has returned as an assistant coach.)
Flames Craig Conroy, Marcus Nilson, Martin Sonnenberg and Jarome Iginla practise in this photo from June 2004. Postmedia Calgary archive
“With Marcus, I always appreciated the way he did things, the way he went about his business,” Conroy said during a break in the action at training camp. “With him, it was always about the team. So it’s nice to have him back in the fold.
“He’s excited about this. And he’s a Calgary Flame, which makes it even better.”
Nilson smiled wide Saturday as he looked at the Flaming C crest on his new jacket.
He wore that logo for a grand total of 228 games between 2004-08, including 34 playoff outings.
He skated for another eight seasons in Europe before calling it career.
Learning on the fly
“He’s going to appreciate the little things that guys do,” Conroy said, detailing why he thinks Nilson has a bright future in the scouting business. “Anybody can see the star players. We can go in and most people can say, ‘Wow, that player is really good!’ But it’s all the other guys. The battles, the faceoffs, how a guy defends, stick position, how he plays away from the puck … Marcus is going to pick all that stuff up. It’s just going to take some time.”
The timing of this offer was right for Nilson, whose son Eric was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks earlier this summer.
With both of his kids now out of the house, it was an easy answer when his former Flames teammate called with a job offer.
“Through the years, I had other opportunities. Not here, but … ” Nilson said. “And I was always thinking to myself, ‘Well, if I’m going to do something, it’s going to be with the Flames.’
“Obviously the 2004 run sticks out. But just the whole experience of playing here, being in the city, the fans, everything was just awesome.”
Related
ICE CHIPS: The Flames open their exhibition schedule Sunday with their annual split-squad matchup against the Edmonton Oilers. It is expected that the home lineup will include the top forward trio — Nazem Kadri between Jonathan Huberdeau and Matt Coronato — and prized blue-line prospect Zayne Parekh.