Flames Best #9 Of All Time: Lanny McDonald

There’s no more endearing image in Flames history than Lanny McDonald and that HoF mustache hoisting the Stanley Cup above his head, in the last game of his storied NHL career. If you thought anyone other than Lanny would be here at #9 please see yourself out.

Lanny McDonald was a fixture with the Flames for eight seasons after already having an established and successful NHL career. But Calgary is where that holy grail prize that had eluded him for so long, would finally be captured. The NHL record books are loaded with players who got THAT close to kissing Lord Stanley’s Cup, but never got the chance. Lanny McDonald looked like he was going to be one of those players as father time was knocking and 1988-89 was probably going to be it for the NHL legend. McDonald had come close before, in 1986, with the Flames losing to the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals. 1989 would prove to be sweeter than any other season as McDonald and the Flames would get back to the Stanley Cup Finals and exact revenge on the Montreal Canadiens. Despite sitting out the middle three games of the series, McDonald (36 years old) was put in the lineup in Game 6 and would score the Flames second goal of the contest and the rest is history. Calgary would win 4-2 and after 1,111 games played, Lanny McDonald was finally able to drink from the Cup.

Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios via Getty Images Studios/Getty Images

McDonald played 492 games with the Flames, the most of his career with any team (Toronto and Colorado), but due to his age and injuries he put up less numbers than he did in his other NHL stops. He would score 215 goals in eight seasons with the Flames and dish out 191 assists. His 66 goals in 1982-83 still stands as a franchise record and his name dots the landscape of the Flames record books. He’s 6th all time in goals (215), 5th in even strength goals (153), 7th in PPG (61), 10th in GWG (25) and 6th in hat tricks with nine. He also holds the Flames record for being team Captain six different times over his tenure in Calgary.

McDonald retired after the 1989 season, amassing a career that spanned 16 years and saw him score 500 goals and hand out 506 assists. He would play in four ASG over his career, two of those with the Flames and win a Bill Masterton Trophy in 1982-83 and King Clancy Trophy in 1987-88. In 1990 Calgary retired Lanny’s number 9, the first of only three players to have their number retired by the Flames. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall Of Fame in 1992 and is also inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall Of Fame (1993) and Canada’s Sports Hall Of Fame in 2017.

Lanny McDonald currently chairman of the board of the Hockey Hall of Fame and is active within the Calgary Flames organization.

Other Players Having Worn #9 In Flames History

Keith McCreary (1973-75), Bill Flett (1976-77), Larry Romanchych (1977), Jean Pronovost (1979-80), Denis Cyr (1981-82)

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