Huberdeau reacts to Sutter's firing; reveals how they 'didn't click'

There was disappointment all around when the Calgary Flames failed to make the playoffs this year, but a ton of it was directed at Jonathan Huberdeau. Huberdeau was the centerpiece of the deal that sent Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers. Tkachuk went on to shine, continuing to do so in the playoffs, while Huberdeau had one of his worst years since coming to the NHL. There was plenty of speculation as to why, with a lot of it dealing with head coach Darryl Sutter and his hard-nosed style with players. In an interview following Sutter's firing earlier today, Huberdeau confirmed at least some of that speculation.

...Having a new coach is going to help my game and my confidence, too."

Jonathan Huberdeau, en Français, did not hold back there.— Julian McKenzie (@jkamckenzie) May 1, 2023

Former #Flames head coach Bob Hartley interviewed Jonathan Huberdeau on @BPMSportsRadio. Asked about how Darryl Sutter handled Jakob Pelletier's debut & what players thought.

"Why say that to the media and then go see the kid to tell him he played well?"https://t.co/2kXKeNXTI9— Julian McKenzie (@jkamckenzie) May 1, 2023

Asked about Sutter's firing today, Flames President of Hockey Operations and Interim General Manager Don Maloney told media step 1 is to hire a permanent GM, who will then choose a new coach. He did say that he debriefed Sutter for two hours after the regular season ended, adding he found that Sutter's style of coaching has a "shelf life".

Don Maloney says he debriefed Darryl Sutter for two hours after the season.

«I found there's a shelf life to that type of coaching.» #Flames— Pat Steinberg (@Fan960Steinberg) May 1, 2023