Martin Gelinas Calgary Flames - Assistant Coach

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The Calgary Flames announced on June 14, 2012 that they named Martin Gelinas as assistant coach. Gelinas joins head coach Bob Hartley; associate coach Jacques Cloutier; along with goaltending coach Clint Malarchuk to round out the Flames coaching staff for the 2012-13 season.

"We are excited to add Marty to our coaching staff," said Flames Head Coach Bob Hartley. "As a player, he was known for his incredible fitness and conditioning as well as an unparalleled work ethic. We know that he will bring the same enthusiasm and commitment as a coach combined with his experience from his former position in player development with Nashville. He will be well respected by our players for his reputation as a former player, his on-ice accomplishments and his eagerness to improve our team."

"I’m happy to be back with the team and the city that I know so well," said Gelinas. "I have so many fond memories of my time as a player in Calgary and my family and I have made it our home ever since. I look forward to contributing to Calgary’s success and being part of a winning team."

Gelinas played two seasons with the Flames from 2002-2004 during which time he recorded 87 points in 157 games. In another 26 playoff games he scored 8 goals and notched 7 assists. He is best remembered with the Flames for scoring three playoff series-clinching goals in the same year, two of them in overtime, during the Flames 2004 Stanley Cup run. Gelinas may have scored the go-ahead goal in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals as well. With the Flames leading the series 3–2, he deflected the puck over the goal line but no goal was awarded. His heroics during the Flames 2004 Playoffs earned him the nickname, "The Eliminator".

Retiring from the NHL following the 2007-08 season with the Nashville Predators, Gelinas played one more year in the Swiss National A League before joining the Predators front office as director of player development. A former first round pick of the Los Angeles Kings in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, Gelinas played 21 NHL seasons amassing 1273 games and 660 points. He is one of only a few players to have reached the Stanley Cup Finals with four different teams, winning the Cup in 1990 as a member of the Edmonton Oilers.

While drafted by LA, Gelinas never played for the Kings, as he became a key component of the infamous "Gretzky Trade" in August of 1988. In his first full season with the Oilers in 1989–90, he won the Stanley Cup, defeating the Boston Bruins. Along with Joe Murphy and Adam Graves, they made up a popular Oilers' forward line known as 'The Kid Line.' He was traded to the Quebec Nordiques during the 1993 off-season and following a brief stint in Quebec, he was claimed on waivers by the Vancouver Canucks. He was an important member of the Canucks' 1994 postseason run against the New York Rangers, his second appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. For the 1996–97 season, he was voted the Canuck's Most Valuable Player. He was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in January 1998. He would play the next five seasons with the Hurricanes, leading the club to the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals (his third) against the Detroit Red Wings. The next season, he would sign as a free agent with Calgary and enjoy two productive seasons including his fourth visit to the Finals. Following the NHL Lockout in 2005, he signed as a free agent with Florida where he played two full 82 game seasons before his final NHL campaign with Nashville in 2007-08.