Joel Otto Autograph Card

The Calgary Flames did the right thing last week by extending head coach Bob Hartley's contract, though it's weirdly timed that they're in the midst of an eight-game winless streak that is showing some of the lapses (mostly inexperience, but also a bit of a lack of depth now that the mid-season fatigue is close to upon us) many experts saw in them at the beginning of the season when they predicted the team would fall just short of a playoff spot.

Now that Hartley's safe in his seat, perhaps changes will come among his assistants. Hartley's long-time associate coach Jacques Cloutier (the pair won a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche) seems safe in his position, so either Martin Gélinas will go, or they will add someone else, perhaps a special teams specialist.

As I wrote back in April, I think Joel Otto will be that person. He's already on the WHL's Calgary Hitmen coaching staff (owned by the Flames), is a former Flames letterman, Stanley Cup champion, World Cup champion, Team USA captain, face-off specialist, second-unit powerplay and first-unit penalty-kill center, and totally ''Flames tough''. Like Hartley, he's a terrific teacher and respects players who work hard; where Hartley's more of a motivator, Otto seems more of a congratulatory type. The only thing I see that would make him not take the job would be its implications of long road trips and being away from his family more, i.e. the same reasons why Larry Robinson will step down from a similar role with the San Jose Sharks after this season.

And so I present you this card showing him with the Flames' mid-1990s uniform, alternate captain's ''A'' clearly visible, signed on-card clearly in thin black sharpie, from In The Game's 2012-13 Decades - The 1990s (#A-JOT in the set of Autograph inserts):

ITG thinks these through very well; I'm particularly fond of the picture of the Olympic Saddledome - where the Flames and Hitmen currently play their home games - in the background; there are plans for the teams to move into a new arena within five to ten years, so this may become an archival piece as well as a great card to have.

Joel Otto: 4 Autographed Items

I got mail at my old place on Monday, one that made it there despite there not being enough postage on the envelope (thanks, Canada Post employees, some of you have a heart!) and that only took 21 total days round trip. I'd written Joel Otto a fan letter that I sent along with these 4 cards on March 24th, 2014, care of the WHL's Calgary Hitmen - where he is an assistant coach - and got them all back on April 14th (2014), signed in black sharpie, with the clearest signature I've seen in a long time:

In today's NHL game, Otto would have been a prized commodity: a 6'4'', 220-pound right-handed centerman who played tough, won face-offs and was among the top-3 of his generation in shutting down the opposition (second perhaps only to Guy Carbonneau, in my opinion, with Bobby Carpenter in third place). If neither of them rings a bell, picture Tomas Plekanec's shut-down ability, Patrice Bergeron's ability in the dot, and Ryan Getzlaf's size - in one mean player.

A two-time Selke nominee, he won the Stanley Cup in 1989 as a member of the Calgary Flames, with whom he spent the first 10 years of his career before moving on to the Philadelphia Flyers for the final three. Except for his last season, he was always good for 40-60 points, close to 20 goals and over 150 penalty minutes a year, and his playoff statistics are also impressive: 27 goals, 47 assists, 74 points, and 205 PIMs in 122 career games, and astonishing stats when his team went deep in the postseason: a 5-10-15 output in 20 games in 1985-86 as the Flames lost the Cup to the Montréal Canadiens, and 6-13-19 in 22 games in 1988-89 as the Flames took their revenge on the Habs.

A Minnesota native, he represented Team USA many times internationally, including at two World Championships, the 1987 and 1991 Canada Cups (he was team captain for the latter), the 1996 World Cup (which the U.S. won), and the 1998 Olympics.

Let's have a look at the cards, first those showing him wearing the Flames' classic red (away) uniform, starting with this 1990-91 Score (American) card (#128 in the set) by Pinnacle Brands, with the 1989 Cup Finals patch on his left shoulder, entering the offensive zone in control of the puck:

Next up is this Pro Set 1991-92 Series 1 card (#37 in the set), sporting the alternate captain's 'A', which was pretty much a fixture on his chest:

And a sticker from Panini's 1992-93 Panini set (#43 to stick in the collector's album), sporting the NHL's 75th-anniversary patch that all teams wore that year, fighting for prime in-slot real estate in front of the New York Rangers' Joe Cirella:

And finally, showing him in the Flames white (then-home) uniform, from Pro Set's 1992-93 Parkhurst set (the French Canadian Version, card #253 in the collection), sporting both the 'A' and the 75th patch in a weirdly-cropped picture that barely shows Los Angeles Kings goalie Kelly Hrudey:

Again: what a tremendous return!

I am fairly confident that he will be on the Flames' coaching staff before long, as an assistant (possibly associate) coach in charge of both the powerplay and the penalty kill - in which he both excelled.