Dan Vladar’s first game against the Flames came with a little extra weight attached.
The Flyers goaltender finally faced his former team on Sunday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome, and it happened to be the last time Philadelphia will visit the building before Calgary moves to Scotia Place in 2027-28. For Vladar, it was a full-circle moment nearly 495 days after he joined the Flyers and the only NHL club he had yet to see from the other side.
Vladar made 22 saves in Philadelphia’s 4-3 overtime loss, closing out his first trip back to Calgary with a strong individual performance even if the result didn’t go his way. Owen Tippett summed up the feeling afterward: “Obviously a guy like that coming back to where he used to play and how much it means to him, it sucks we couldn’t get him a win,” said Flyers forward Owen Tippett following the game.
The matchup carried a bit of history for Vladar, who arrived in Calgary in the 2021 off-season in a trade from the Boston Bruins that sent a third-round pick to Boston. He went on to make exactly 100 appearances for the Flames from 2021-22 through 2024-25, backing up Jacob Markstrom for three seasons and Dustin Wolf for one.
When he reached free agency on July 1, 2025, Vladar was after a bigger role, and he found it in Philadelphia. Both meetings with Calgary in 2025-26 came in the second game of back-to-back sets for the Flyers, and Vladar had already established himself as the team’s starter early in the season. He played the first game in each of those back-to-backs and dressed as the backup against the Flames.
The Flyers rewarded that run of play on July 1, 2026, when Vladar signed a five-year extension that keeps him in Philadelphia through the 2031-32 season.
That trust has been built on more than just the stops. Sean Couturier said before Sunday’s game that Vladar has become a real presence in the room.
“Yeah, he really took over, I think, last year,” said Flyers forward Sean Couturier, prior to Sunday’s game. “On and off the ice, I think he’s now become an older guy around.
He’s using his experience, his voice to kind of have a leadership role in the room. So, like you said, not only on the ice that he’s really stepped up, but in the room I think he’s been a great leader for us.”
Rick Tocchet pointed to the same thing when talking about what makes Vladar such an important part of the group.
“Well, I think obviously he can stop the puck,” said Tocchet. “He’s a great goalie, but I think for his character, he’s unreal.
Like, he’s a crest guy. He thinks about the team first, not about himself, and that’s infectious when it’s in the room.”
After years of grinding through backup duty with the Bruins and Flames, Vladar has settled into a new role and, in the process, found a long-term home with the Flyers.
In Other News...
Devin Cooley Is Giving Flames Fans A New Subplot To Watch
Devin Cooley has found himself with an unexpected little spotlight beyond the Flames crease, and its creating a fresh subplot for Calgary fans to follow. After his motivational comments about the unique pressures goalies face started making the rounds, the Calgary netminder saw the reaction extend well past his own locker room, with Pittsburgh rookie Sergei Murashov publicly thanking him for the perspective.
Cooley said he appreciated the shoutout and noted that the response has not stopped there, with other goalies also reaching out since the remarks went viral. He has backed up the attention with solid play this season, and now there is at least a chance the story gets another chapter if he and Murashov cross paths when the Flames and Penguins meet again. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Suddenly Have A Blue Line Decision They Can't Rush
Kevin Bahls injury has left the Flames staring at a blue-line problem they did not want to be dealing with this early, and it is one that cant be solved by simply forcing a move. The loss of a defenseman for the season after Achilles surgery changes the conversation in a hurry, especially for a Calgary team that still has to think carefully about how it wants to build out its back end rather than just react to the first available option.
Craig Conroy now has to weigh whether the answer comes from a young defenseman already in the system or from a short-term addition that actually fits the timeline. The temptation to patch the hole is obvious, but the Flames do not sound inclined to make a trade just for the sake of filling space, which leaves the next step on defense very much unresolved as the season approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Flames Blue Line Loss Leaves Craig Conroy Facing A Tough Choice
Kevin Bahls absence has left the Flames with a hole on the blue line that is hard to ignore, and it has put Craig Conroy in a spot every general manager knows well: address the need now, or trust the group already in the room. Bahl had become a meaningful part of Calgarys defensive mix, so losing him for the rest of the season changes the shape of the back end and forces the club to weigh its options with a little more urgency than it would have liked.
What makes this decision tricky is the kind of move Calgary is likely to consider. The market does not always hand out clean fixes, and the Flames have to think about more than just plugging a gap for a few weeks. A young defender or a shorter-term addition could make more sense than a pure rental, but whichever direction Conroy chooses, the loss of Bahl has turned a manageable situation into one that now demands a careful answer. [Read more 🡒]