They say goaltenders are a different breed, and Calgary Flames netminder Devin Cooley certainly fits that bill. In a world where athletes talk in mostly cliches, Cooley tells it like it is. He’s a breath of fresh air. His thoughts may be out there, but the 29-year-old isn’t making apologies. “The game is way too fast out there to let your conscious brain decide. I’m a really bad conscious-brain goalie, if that makes sense,” he said. “I just let my unconscious brain do everything. Don’t have too much fun. Don’t smile too much. Just shut it out and then start making saves, and then I’m like, ‘I don’t even know how I made that save.’” It’s working Whatever Cooley’s doing, it worked on Sunday night. He made 34 saves in the Flames’ surprising 3-2 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champs, the Carolina Hurricanes. It was a much better result than his last start when the Flames fell 7-3 to the Colorado Avalanche. He says it’s all about learning. “See, I told you guys,” he said to the media following the game. “You get lit up in Colorado, and then you learn so much when you get lit up. “Of course, when you get lit up, Husk (Flames head coach Ryan Huska) isn’t going to want to play me, so I had time to work on things. “I’ve been working with Barbs (Flames goaltending coach Jason LaBarbera) and it worked out.” Must-see TV Cooley’s media scrums are becoming legendary. It’s must-see TV, and even teammates like Zayne Parekh can’t wait to hear what he has to say. “I mean, he was great (against the Hurricanes) and I think that’s the Colls we all know, and we know he’s capable of doing that every night,” he said. “I ran out here to see his post-game interview, actually.” “Really, I had no idea. That’s so funny,” said Cooley. “The adrenalin right after the game is like a 10 out of 10. Again, it’s my unconscious mind going, ”You don’t have to be conscious about it. You just say whatever comes out and I’ll deal with it tomorrow if I say something stupid.” The Flames don’t play again until Thursday when they host the Minnesota Wild.
