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//  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Theo Fleury's Return To The Flames Seems Bright

Wednesday, September 16, 2009
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Just two weeks ago, Theoren Fleury was as far away to the NHL as Pete Rose is to Cooperstown.

Yet, here he is two weeks later, skating with the team, which drafted him, and who he helped win a Stanley Cup with in his rookie season.

Yes, city of Calgary, Theo Fleury is back—just a tad older.

Fleury, the 5-foot-6 forward, was reinstated by the NHL a few days ago, and was invited to the Calgary Flames training camp. The 41-year-old is trying to make it back into the NHL after leaving in the 2002-03 season when he last played for the New York Rangers.

Fleury, who skated on a line with Curtis Glencross and center Daymond Langkow on Monday, did not play in the exhibition game against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. For now, neither Fleury nor head coach Brent Sutter know when Fleury will hit the ice in a Flames uniform. Fleury admitted that he still needs to get his reps in during practice. 

“I think being out for so long, they want to ease me into this thing -- and I think it's probably wise," said Fleury on Monday. "The more practices I get, the more comfortable I'll feel. When it comes around to having that opportunity to play, I'll be real comfortable at that point."

"Someone who's been out of the game as long as he has, there's a process and you've got to be patient with it," First year Flames Head Coach Sutter said.

Fleury has been with the Flames since Sunday, where he began conditioning skills. Surprisingly, Fleury had no problem with them; at least the results didn’t show. According to the Calgary Sun, Fleury tested around 8% body fat, and scored a 59 on the VO2 test, which Captain Jarome Iginla scores in the 60s. Not bad for a 41-year old, whose been out of the NHL for six years.

The hardest part for Fleury seems to be his concentration on the ice, and really who could blame him? Of course, luckily for Fleury, head coach Brent Sutter is new, and is placing in a new system—so at least Fleury isn’t the only Flame who seems out of place sometimes out on the ice.

"With a new coach here, I think we're all learning a new system. I'm basically starting on par with everybody learning the system. It's just a matter of concentrating when I'm on the ice," Fleury said.

"You want to make an impression on the coaching staff, first and foremost. You want to be relied upon in any situation."

 

On Monday, Fleury received support from another player in his 40’s, who made another comeback in the NHL. Claude Lemeuix, who played for the San Jose Sharks last season, called Fleury, and gave him some advice.

 "He just said, 'This game is made for you now. If you're as fit as you say you are, you should have no problem playing,'" Fleury said.

And for Fleury, there is more than that in terms of his comeback. After being suspended indefinitely by the league in 2003 for substance abuse, Fleury, who says he’s sober now, wants to revive his career and make things right.

Is this about closure? I think it has a lot to do with it,” Fleury said, who spent a decade with the Flames. “I didn’t leave the game the right way. Maybe this will be the right way.”

Certainly the right way is paved from what he does on the ice. Like former Flame, and teammate of Fleury, Joel Otto said to the Globe And Mail, “If anyone can do this, it’s Theo. He’s always been that determined.”

The people in Calgary sure hope so.

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