'Look Forward To The Next Hundred'

NEW YORK — Ryan Strome had plenty of family on hand for his 899th career NHL game.

His parents made the trip down to D.C. from the Toronto area, to watch Strome and younger brother Dylan duke it out in the U.S. capital.

Tonight’s affair at Madison Square Garden will be a bit more of a bi-coastal celebration, as Strome becomes the sixth member of the 2011 NHL Draft class to reach 900 career NHL appearances.

“My wife always gets balloons with my kids every 100 games,” Strome - acquired last week from the Anaheim Ducks - explained. “So she can't do that today because I'm not there, but they congratulated me this morning over the phone and it's exciting.”

Strome is one of two Flames poised to reach a career milestone tonight when the Flames continue their five-game, Eastern road swing against the Rangers. But he and fellow forward Adam Klapka have taken very different paths to this point in their NHL careers.

In his youth, Strome was a highly-touted prospect out of the Ontario Hockey League. Drafted fifth-overall by the New York Islanders, his 13-year career has included two stops in the New York area, and now two separate stints in Wild Rose Country.

Klapka, meanwhile, went undrafted, and was signed out of Czechia as a free agent. Tonight, the 6-foot-8 winger is slated to suit up in his 100th career NHL contest.

“When I signed with the Flames, like, I would never (predict) it was gonna be that many games,” a smiling Klapka said Tuesday morning. “I'm really appreciative for that and I hope I'm gonna add a couple hundred more.”

For Strome, tonight’s setting is special, too. The 32-year-old played 263 games for the Rangers, and he amassed more points (195) with the Blueshirts than with any of his three other NHL clubs before landing in Calgary.

“Kind of funny how it works out. I mean, I was supposed to be maybe going to Toronto or Winnipeg this week and things changed with the trade,” said Strome, who put up a career-best 59 points with the Rangers in 2019-20. “I think anytime you get to come to New York, it's a special place. Playing for the Islanders and the Rangers, I spent almost 10 years here. So, you know, a lot of great friends and great memories. 

“It’s exciting, a place that obviously I'm very familiar with. And I had a couple milestones in this arena. I think maybe 500 and 600. It's cool how it works out and I'm just excited to play and I'm excited to try to get two points in a great building.”

For Flames Head Coach Ryan Huska, Madison Square Garden offers a bit extra electricity, too. And he’s quite confident that his group will treat tonight’s special moments for Strome and Klapka the right way.

Even if the team is still getting to know Strome a little bit.

“That's a massive amount of games,” Huska said of Strome, who ranks second among active Flames in career appearances. “It’s a special accomplishment, and I think it shows or tells a lot about the player. Ability to stay healthy is one thing, finding opportunities where he can be in the lineup and contribute to a team's success, consistently over and over in situations like he's been in, and a lot of those times, having to help mentor some younger players along the way. 

“And I think that says a lot about his character and the type of person he is, and that's a big reason as to why he's a part of our team now.”

Huska, too, is encouraged by Klapka’s ability to solidify a fourth-line role. The winger has dressed in all but one contest for the Flames this season.

“When he first started, you wondered what he was gonna be like, like, a big, gangly, skinnier guy. Now he's a mountain of a man. He really is. And I think his game is coming along,” the bench boss said. “There's a lot to his game that we like in regards to being able to possess pucks down low in the offensive zone, and how he goes to the net really hard. 

“And I think over time, his game's gonna continue to get better and better, because he is one of the players for our team that is an imposing player. He's a physical presence for us, but at the same time, he's got a nice skill set where he can control the play in the offensive zone that we think, in time, he'll be able to help us generate more.”

Ahead of a special night for both men, Strome took pause.

Amid what’s surely been a whirlwind week, the veteran, too, has found a quiet moment to reflect. 

For both Strome and Klapka, it’s a moment to consider how far they’ve both come, but also to lean on the lessons of that journey for the road ahead.

“I think every time you get to, you know, a hundred-game milestone, you reflect a little bit,” Strome said. “Been lucky to do this for a long time and feel very privileged, and I think that every hundred games seems to have its new challenges. 

“I think it's a great time to reflect for a quick second and just see where you're at, and look forward to the next hundred.”