Two Healthy Goalies, One Less Worry: Great News for the Flames

The Calgary Flames are getting Devin Cooley back after a short injury absence. His return may matter for more than who starts Friday night. Sometimes getting a player back means more than simply filling a spot in the lineup. It gives a team another option, and that can be important over a long season.

The Flames got some good news Thursday. Devin Cooley is off injured reserve and ready to return after missing four games with a lower-body injury he picked up against Edmonton on October 28. At first, it sounded like he might be out for a while, so this is a welcome surprise.

Wolf Has Been Strong in Cooley’s Absence

Whether Cooley starts Friday’s home game against Anaheim is another question. Dustin Wolf remains part of the picture, and the early expectation is that Cooley will at least be available as the backup. That may not sound like a particularly dramatic development. After all, a backup goalie returning from injury rarely generates much excitement. But there is something worth considering here: teams need more than one goalie they can trust if they hope to get through a long season.

It is tempting to look at Cooley’s activation and immediately ask whether he will challenge Wolf for playing time. That’s understandable. Goalie decisions draw attention, and every start can become a referendum on who should get the next one. But perhaps the more useful question is what Cooley’s availability gives Calgary.

An injured goalie leaves a team with fewer choices. It can put additional responsibility on the remaining netminder and make every decision about rest, workload and matchups a little more complicated. Having another option available gives the coaching staff some flexibility.

What Cooley’s Return Gives Calgary

That doesn’t mean Cooley is suddenly the answer to every question in Calgary’s crease. Nor does it mean Wolf’s position has changed. It simply means the Flames have another healthy goalie available as they work through the season. For Cooley, the immediate challenge is getting back into a rhythm. For Calgary, it’s having another option when the schedule gets demanding.

Friday’s game against Anaheim will tell us whether Cooley is ready to dress, and perhaps whether he gets an opportunity to play. But his return is already a positive development. Sometimes a team doesn’t need a dramatic change in goal. It just needs another healthy option. The Flames have one back.

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