As frustrating as it is to have this team likely miss the playoffs, I'd rather have a farm team full of legit prospects just miss the playoffs than a farm team full of AHL ringers make them. It is a development league, after all.
Good to see Wolf, Agostino, Poirier, Morrison, Kulak, Arnold, etc, etc continuing to produce.....all of whom are rookies BTW.
Poirier looks ready to make the jump. Arnold looks like he could easily replace Matt Stajan. Hathaway reminds me a lot of Bouma and may be worth a look next season. Agostino and Wolf may be making a push as well. Flames have a problem of having too many bodies and not enough spots. Good problem to have unless you are a NHL veteran who isn't getting it done for the Flames.
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After watching that highlight package the play of Bill Arnold is pretty noticeable. Addy's season really went downhill when he we down. Looks like he will be a gem.
I think Arnold is a sure-fire NHL'er. I don't see any real weaknesses in his game other than his footspeed - and I would say his footspeed is probably 'average'. Not below-average where he could become a liability. He was a huge catalyst on the Gaudreau-Hayes line, not a passenger. I think if there was a 'weak link' on that line, it was Hayes - and he has without a doubt proven himself to be a good NHL'er (better rookie season than I thought he would have actually - though I didn't consider him a passenger on that line). Arnold I thought was a much more mature player, and would sacrifice not only his body (shot blocking, physicality) but also sacrificed his point production to be the defensive force out there. He was instrumental in the defensive side of the puck and would cause turnovers for that line.
Goes to Adirondack and does more of the same. Unfortunate injury this year for him - I thought he would get a crack at the NHL this year with the way he was playing.
He will solidify the 4th line (or even a 3rd line) down the road for the Flames. When Stajan inevitably moves on in 'x' seasons, I bet he takes over that role and becomes one of those unsung heroes from the Flames that just continuously gets the job done. I bet he becomes the type of player that other fans casually look at the stats page and think "He is ok, nothing special", but the fans of the team believe is irreplaceable. That is who I think Arnold will eventually become in Calgary.