Former Hitmen standout Connor Rankin finds his ‘next best thing’ as video analyst for Flames
Article content
At any other workplace, Connor Rankin would have undoubtedly been the ringer at staff shinny.
He did, after all, spend five seasons in the Western Hockey League, first arriving in Calgary as a top-line type for the Hitmen.
He attended a development camp with the Pittsburgh Penguins and, later, a main camp with the Edmonton Oilers.
During his stint with the Mount Royal University Cougars, he claimed the Canada West conference scoring title one winter.
Rankin didn’t quite realize his lifelong dream of NHL stardom, but this is the “next best thing to playing in it.” After graduating from MRU last year with an accounting degree, he scored a full-time position with the Flames as a video analyst.
“You look back to when you’re a kid and the goal is always to make the NHL. And just minus a couple words, I did it,” said Rankin, now 27. “Hockey has been my whole life since I could barely walk and to be a part of it after my playing career, it’s awesome. I love the game a lot and to step away from it to get a 9-to-5 job, that’s something that would be extremely tough for me. To be honest, leading up to the end of my playing career, it’s something that was stressing me out. I didn’t know what I wanted to do because hockey was all I knew.
“So to be able to do this and be a part of the hockey community and that’s my career is watching hockey … It’s a pretty sweet gig that I’m very happy to have.”
His gear has changed, with a laptop now his most important tool, but Rankin is still a regular around the rink.
He attends all home games — perched in the press box, which hangs high above the same sheet where he was once a first-liner and fan favourite for the Hitmen — and sits in on amateur and pro scouting meetings. He was among those in the decision room for the 2021 NHL Draft.
And he watches hockey. A ton of hockey.
Rankin was a part-time staffer for the Flames while skating/studying at MRU, but the role has grown. As he put it, “there are a lot of new aspects that are more hands-on that make it full-time.”
With every team looking for a competitive edge, there’s a layer of secrecy around the work of what is known as the hockey research and development department, so Rankin can only kinda-sorta explain his day-to-day duties.
“With analytics, you can generate a lot of data just from the computer A.I. and all those automatically generated sort of things,” he said. “But there are more numbers that the Flames want, including the front office and coaching staff, that you can’t get from that. You need the human eye to watch a lot of hockey and generate those numbers first-hand.
“It includes every NHL game, as well as prospects that are with the Flames organization and draft-eligible players. But I don’t have to sit there and watch the whole 60 minutes of every game, especially on a Saturday night when there are so many. I get clips that are automatically generated.”
Rankin was, not too long ago, producing his own highlight clips.
Originally hailing from North Vancouver, B.C., the talented left-winger split his time in the WHL between the Tri-City Americans and the Hitmen, totalling 121 snipes, 147 assists and 191 penalty minutes in 339 career outings in the major-junior ranks.
He was undrafted but garnered some attention thanks to a 32-goal, 79-point campaign as an overager, eventually signing a minor-league deal with the Oilers. He was toiling at ECHL Norfolk when he opted to take advantage of his scholarship instead, producing just shy of a point per game in four-and-a-half seasons with the Cougars. Between classes and practices, he was already tagging video for the Flames.
“Ever since I was a kid, I always kept stats. In video games, I’d always play the franchise mode and be the GM,” Rankin said. “Stuff like that, I loved that side of it and how things work with the draft and trades and free-agent signings. All that stuff has always intrigued me quite a bit.
“So the fact I get to stay in the game and be a part of that side, it’s incredible.”
For Rankin, the competitive juices still flow. The music is much louder on the drive home after a Flames’ victory.
While you won’t ever hear Beesley announce his name on the Saddledome speaker system, while he stressed there are so many people doing good work behind the scenes, he’s invested and proud to play his part.
“If it’s just a small fraction to help them win and be a part of their success, that’s a pretty cool feeling to do that at the NHL level,” Rankin said. “I truly believe the data that we can supply coaches, management and the players can really help them. And if that’s the difference of a couple wins throughout the year to get into the playoffs, that’s a big difference.
“It’s nice knowing that I can contribute. It’s not on the ice, but it’s nice to know I can do it off the ice.”
And on the ice … yes … there is occasionally staff shinny, although they haven’t laced ’em up recently due to concerns about the latest wave of COVID-19.
“I don’t know if I’ll be much of a ringer,” Rankin protested earlier this season. “With guys like Craig Conroy and Brian McGrattan out there who had successful NHL careers, I’m just hoping to fit in.”
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.