- Craig Conroy says calling Jonathan Huberdeau’s recovery a setback was his own mistake
- Huberdeau will not open training camp, but he is pain free for the first time in years
- Read below for what Conroy actually meant and who Calgary is bringing to camp instead
Craig Conroy wants the word setback back.
The Flames general manager told Sportsnet’s Eric Francis on Friday that Jonathan Huberdeau has not hit any medical roadblock in his recovery from hip resurfacing surgery. Conroy picked the wrong words on the radio three days earlier, and he says the winger getting back on the ice is a matter of when, not if.
Francis asked him about the comment that spooked the fan base:
“It was a poor choice of words on my part. It’s not that there was a setback. It was more the hope in me that he was going to be ready for camp. What I meant was it was a setback that he won’t probably be ready for the first day of camp. That’s where I made my mistake.”
Conroy created the mess himself Tuesday night on QR770, telling host Jock Wilson that Huberdeau had “a little bit of a setback, maybe two weeks ago, with his skating.” Take a listen to the clip that set it all off:
Surgery came in March, and recovery from hip resurfacing runs seven to nine months. That puts the earliest realistic window right about now and the latest one deep into December.
He explained why nobody in Calgary is circling a date:
“There’s an appropriate timeline for this, between seven and nine months, and obviously we were hoping for the earliest return possible. But everybody is different.”
Huberdeau is skating regularly with teammates and looked good this week, per Conroy, though the Flames plan to pull him out of the group early in camp and have him work with the coaches on his own.
Careful is the right setting here. Hip resurfacing has ended more NHL careers than it has saved, and the split is stark. Patrick Kane and John Klingberg both got back to real hockey in their mid-30s after the same procedure, while Ed Jovanovski, Ryan Kesler and Carl Hagelin never played meaningful games again.
That contract is a big part of why every update matters. He is 33 with five years and $52.5 million left on the deal, and last season he managed 10 goals and 25 points in 50 games while hurting every day.
Pain is no longer part of it, which is why Conroy sounds unbothered about the finish line:
“Yes, he’s feeling good and is without the pain that he used to have at all times, so that’s the best part. Now it’s just for him to feel 100 per cent ready to go into physical contact, game-playing and all that. We believe it’s just a matter of when, not if.”
Calgary is covering the hole with one tryout. Alex Nylander is coming to camp on a PTO after scoring 24 goals and putting up 53 points in 65 games for the Calder Cup champion Toronto Marlies. The 28-year-old was born in Calgary while his dad Michael played for the Flames.
Nobody else is getting an invite. “Even with the Huby situation, I think we’re going to go with the guys that are here, and give those younger guys an opportunity,” Conroy said.
Opening night is Oct. 1 against Seattle at the Saddledome. Conroy would not attach that date, or any date, to Huberdeau.
