American Coronato commits to Flames with new deal: 'It’s a great place to play'

In his first meeting with Calgary Flames media members after he was taken 13th overall in the 2021 NHL Draft, Long Island native and Harvard commit Matt Coronato was asked about the prospect of playing in a smaller Canadian market.

The wound from losing blueliner Adam Fox – the team’s third round pick in 2016 who also played at Harvard but refused to sign with the Flames before eventually making his way to the New York Rangers – was still fresh. Coronato gave a predictable response, brushing the question off and said he was excited to be taken by any team and that he had an open mind.

Four years later, reporters now have no reason to question the 22-year-old Coronato’s desire to be with the Flames. 

On Saturday, the team announced a seven-year pact with the budding two-way, 30-goal scorer that will pay him a tidy average of $6.5 million per season until he’s nearly 30 years old. Coronato is coming off an impressive sophomore campaign where he notched 24 goals, 47 points, was a fixture on the top line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri and was trusted by head coach Ryan Huska in critical, late-game defensive situations during the team’s push for a playoff spot. 

“It’s a great place to live,” Coronato said. “It’s a great place to play. There’s a new building coming, which is very exciting for everyone.”

General manager Craig Conroy said that discussions began in earnest over dinner during the team’s trip through the East Coast late in the season, a stretch where Coronato played some of his best hockey of the season. He scored four goals over three games against the New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, and New York Rangers.

“The last few days, it kind of heated up where both sides wanted to get it done,” Conroy said.

“We were open to listening to maybe a bridge deal or long-term, and it seemed like they were really open to the long-term, which was exciting for us and we were able to get this done.”

In the recent past, the Flames have signed restricted free agents to shorter deals. 

Blueliner Rasmus Andersson signed for six years and $27.3 million back in 2020 when he was 23 years old. Two years earlier, defenceman Noah Hanifin signed for six years and $29.7 million at age 21. They had more experience than Coronato. 

“It was a little more tricky,” Conroy said of his small sample size. 

What encourages him is Coronato’s attitude and work ethic.

Near the end of the season, blueliner MacKenzie Weegar called him one of his favourite rookies ever, in part because of how hard he pushes himself. The general manager compared Coronato to one of his old teammates, former Flame Michael Cammalleri. 

“In the end, we just believed that Matt’s going to be a goal-scorer in this league for a long, long time,” Conroy said. 

“With what he does every day, he’s always trying to get better.”

Coronato emphasized the reasons for deciding to make southern Alberta his long-term home. One is the franchise’s trajectory. 

“I want to play competitive, meaningful games,” he said. 

“That last stretch playing those meaningful games was, if you ask any guy on our team, that’s what you want to do. You want to be a part of competitive games and we want to make the playoffs. Going forward, this is a great place to be if you want to do those things.”

The other reason is the Flames’ tight-knit locker room.

“I love my teammates and the staff has been great,” he said.

“Just the closeness of the group of guys we have here is really special…this locker room and this group of guys from this past year, there was something special to it. I think part of the reason we had that run down the stretch playing in those meaningful games was just how much character and how much compete was in that room and how much every guy cared about the guy next to him.”

Coronato’s long-term pact will be noticed both in the Flames’ locker room and around the league. 

Calgary has a budding group of young, impactful players, including Zayne Parekh, Connor Zary, and Dustin Wolf, who they want to build around. Coronato’s commitment to a city in another country and thousands of miles from where he grew up will have a lasting impact–perhaps most of all for a fanbase that, at times, has been left heartbroken by Americans who have previously left for elsewhere.

“I’m American too and I love Calgary,” Conroy said. 

“I loved playing here. I love the passion of the city and the fanbase. It’s a great thing because I think there’s maybe been a little bit of a narrative and I don’t think that’s true. I really don’t. I think that’s changing. Matt’s gonna help change that. I understand the Harvard, American from Long Island, but you know what? I think Matt just changed that whole narrative and I’m so excited that he wanted to be a Flame and he wanted to be a Flame for a long time.”