Article: Season Ticket Holder Meeting Notes and Info

[Caged Great]

Tonight, I attended my first season ticket holder meeting. It was a very interesting experience.

Here are the Cole’s notes of what I recall from the meeting.

The Flames are waiting for the next municipal election before moving ahead with their building plans. (My Notes): It’s a bit of a headache putting in all the plans through committees and getting that process started with certain alderpersons and have them possibly change and having to start the process over again addressing the new people’s concerns.

The Flames have been evaluating their players and seeing whether or not they fit in the long term situation or are they going to be on their way out. Cervenka was given a 3 year 12 million dollar contract in the KHL, (My Notes): He would’ve been stupid to not take that kind of money so it makes a lot of sense for him to go back.

The rest of the article is over on Fireside Chat


http://www.firesidechat.ca/2013/05/2...otes-and-info/

[dammage79]

Thanks for that. Hopefully puts to rest some of the angst around here about how they intend to re-build.

[Caged Great]

I did leave some specifics out just because there was a lot of things that were said in confidence as they did not know that I would be there (they didn't think any media or amateur media in my case was there) so I tried to give the most important details without mentioning quite a bit of the behind the scenes stuff that they might not otherwise mentioned.

If there is something specific you would like to know whether or not it was discussed, I might be able to answer it or let you know if it wasn't brought up. I know I didn't remember everything off the top of my head, but a question might jar my memory.

[Caged Great]

Something that I forgot to mention is that Kipper has indicated that he wants to retire but the Flames are giving him some time for him to figure out whether he wants to come back or not. It's completely open to him and that they have plans to address the situation with him or not (If he doesn't come back they will have an extra 5.833 million to work with) and they expect to spend to or near the cap. They have the flexibility to do so.

[mikephoen]

I was there tonight as well. I thought it was a pretty good session, and nobody asked any really awful questions which was nice. One woman really, really likes Backlund though.

I was really surprised how emphatically Jay answered the question of Iggy's possible return. He flat out said 'No'. He didn't even leave the door open a little in that regard.

He also more or less confirmed Giordano as the next captain. He said in the exit interviews he asked every 'regular' player who they would want and Gio was the overwhelming favorite.

He had some harsh words for Tanguay as well. He said he 'hurt Tanguay's feelings' in the exit interview. The anecdote Feaster used was that Tanguay said that because he was getting older he was worried about a long rebuild and Feaster told him that if he played harder and more consistently the rebuild wouldn't take as long. I definitely got the impression that the Flames coaches and management were just as mad at Tanguay this year as people here were.

They said a lot about wanting to get bigger and wanting players that compete hard.

Good write up by Caged Great as well, thanks for that.

[Jacks]

The question of captaincy also came up and there is a clear cut favourite but I will not share that.

Curious, why not?

Edit: nm, already answered above.

[dammage79]

Well that answered my questions on who they were mad at lol.

[dammage79]

Ah! Someone should ask if Kipper does retire if that they fear any retribution from the league concerning cap circumvention. Or is that a total non-issue.

[Jacks]

Originally Posted by dammage79

Ah! Someone should ask if Kipper does retire if that they fear any retribution from the league concerning cap circumvention. Or is that a total non-issue.

Not applicable, it was a 6 year contract and therefore exempt from any penalty.

[calgARI]

Thanks for posting that.

I wonder how they are planning to spend the 20 or so million.

It certainly seems like they are going to go hard for the top 3.

[calgARI]

Originally Posted by mikephoen

He had some harsh words for Tanguay as well. He said he 'hurt Tanguay's feelings' in the exit interview. The anecdote Feaster used was that Tanguay said that because he was getting older he was worried about a long rebuild and Feaster told him that if he played harder and more consistently the rebuild wouldn't take as long. I definitely got the impression that the Flames coaches and management were just as mad at Tanguay this year as people here were.

Very strange that he would share that but he is as good as gone.

[Freeway]

High-end draft-eligible players at Memorial Cup:
-Portland: Jones, Petan, Bjorkstrand
-Halifax: MacKinnon, Drouin, Fucale
-London: Domi, Horvat, Zadorov

The Flames likely have seven of these nine guys in their Top 30.

[theTrumanShow]

Just curious, but why wouldn't you want to share everything that was discussed? Just curious what the point of that would be?

[saillias]

Originally Posted by mikephoen

He had some harsh words for Tanguay as well. He said he 'hurt Tanguay's feelings' in the exit interview. The anecdote Feaster used was that Tanguay said that because he was getting older he was worried about a long rebuild and Feaster told him that if he played harder and more consistently the rebuild wouldn't take as long. I definitely got the impression that the Flames coaches and management were just as mad at Tanguay this year as people here were.

If you told that to Glencross or Cammalleri I wouldn't mind, but Tanguay is the wrong guy for that kind of approach, he's going to sulk and probably wants a trade now.

[Vinny01]

Awesome thanks I always love these updates

[dammage79]

Originally Posted by saillias

If you told that to Glencross or Cammalleri I wouldn't mind, but Tanguay is the wrong guy for that kind of approach, he's going to sulk and probably wants a trade now.

Pretty sure that or getting bought out was going to happen regardless. Just another part to remove from the Iggy and friends regime. No slight on Iggy intended.

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by theTrumanShow

Just curious, but why wouldn't you want to share everything that was discussed? Just curious what the point of that would be?

Respecting the Flames management as I did not identify myself as a writer for a blog and posting it on here. They might not have said some things had they known I was going to do a write up. I figured that the most important thing was to give the bullet points on what is to come rather than what is going on with the current personnel now.

If someone else wanted to give that info in a reply in this thread, that's fine and they did, I just didn't feel comfortable doing so myself.

[flamesrule14]

Going to the session tomorrow night which should be interesting. Really looking forward to it.

[united]

My summary - no clicking a link required or information withheld.

This is all from memory and paraphrased. No direct quotes so don't take it that way, and hopefully others can fill in anything we missed. Some repeated info as I did this during the breaks in the game seven and after.

- New building plan will be released in time and everyone will be blown away; waiting for elections and other politics. Much of the same as in the past.
- Flames will be introducing a ticket re-sale website for fans like other teams have.
- Flames are working on an electronic ticket for season ticket holders, in the form of a card, but will still try to accommodate those who prefer paper tickets.
- Flames are building additional washrooms in the Saddledome. I didn't catch where, if they mentioned it, but sounds like an interim fix until the new building. No complaints from anyone, I'm sure.
- Flames will be playing 7 pre-season games, 4 at home. Hosting Oilers, Rangers, Islanders, Coyotes.
- Prospects will play against the Dinos this summer again.
- Price increase was less than they could have increased but more than zero. Understand this frustrated some fans, but said there's still people in line to scoop up season tickets, and they could have increased the tickets when the team was good instead of freezing the prices.
- MacDonald's contract was structured so it was high enough to be fair value, but low enough that if he gets sent to the minors it wont count against the Flames' cap hit.
- They view Backlund as a third-line center going forward and a good one as his ceiling. Fan posed the question that he has some of the best advanced numbers on the team, but Feaster countered with he has big time durability issues.
- Flames know their need for the past few years has been a #1 and #2 center; will pursue but hard to get.
- Decision to trade Iginla was basically made after the back-to-back losses to the Kings. Iginla kept mentioning (over the past two season) "just give us five more games to prove we can win" - time ran out at that point. Sounded like Iginla truly wanted things to work here.
- Tanguay mentioned he's in his 30s and too old to go through a rebuild. Feaster said Tanguay was upset after being told part of the reason for the rebuild was because he didn't play well enough consistently.
- Cory Sarich was signed because the free agent defenceman they targeted was signed or re-signed (couldn't make out which) by Colorado. Sarich was the next best option. (O'Brien? Zanon?)
- No decision on Kiprusoff retirement yet; giving him time. Large amount of cap space regardless.
- Flames have studied all teams for cap implications and have made note of some who will be in big trouble this summer. Potential targets for transactions with the Flames large amount of cap space. Good players will be available.
- Talked about Decision Lens and PUCKS again - same as previous years info.
- Flames think there is three top talents in the draft, then another tier. Interesting as most of us were under the impression there is four top.
- Flames had almost all scouting staff at Memorial Cup as 7 players they rank in their top 30 were in the tournament.
- Three first round picks and plenty of cap space gives them lots of options to move picks up if a good deal is there.
- This summer, Flames will seek that Gaudreau, Arnold, Agostino to turn pro but suspect they wont.
- While some players in Jankowski's draft will play many games before his debut, they maintain he will go down as one of the best players in the draft in the long-term. Feaster joked he wouldn't be around in 10 years to take the praise. Flames will draft for the best players long-term, not those immediately ready.
- Flames want a bigger and harder-hitting #5 #6 defencemen. Aren't happy being small throughout the roster.
- Further, wants bigger forwards going forward as well.
- Flames are almost certain who the next captain will be but aren't sure when they will announce it. Most likely right before free agency to help recruit, or in the pre-season. After the season, they asked all players if they had an anonymous vote, who they would pick as captain and Giordano won in a landslide.
- Flames will continue retiring? honouring? one player per year for a few years to come. Three players are ready for that honour right now but waiting for the time to be right. If they are part of another organization they might when their team is visiting the 'Dome.
- "Any interest bringing Iginla back?" "No". All there was to that answer.
- Briefly talked to Cervenka but he signed a 3-year, $12 million deal in KHL.
- Stajan was rebound player of the year but at best he's a #2 center and really a #3 center, like Backlund.
- Flames spent time studying every draft from 12 years ago to 2 years ago (10-year span), analyzing mistakes teams made, such as: over or under-valuing moving up/down, as well as certain attributes like size or skill .
- Used the word rebuild instead of retool several times, but said you can still compete for the playoffs while rebuilding. Especially in a year with the cap going down and some ugly contracts around; room to improve fast.
- Flames have a ~5'9 player ranked in the 10-12 range on their draft board. Feaster knows that would be risky so mentioned he better be a st. loius type player (physical freak and work ethic) to get picked that high. Willing to take the criticism if they believe he's that good and they pick him.

I'll add more after this point as I remember. Thanks to those who add to or correct what I have here.

- The Heat will remain in Abby. Flames and Canucks had many conversations on different possibilities but nothing good enough materialized. Flames are happy having the Heat in Abby and Abby is happy having them there.
- They tried to trade Irving several times but there was never an interested partner. He'll walk as a free agent.
- They tried to trade for O'Reilly multiple times but the price was too high. Eventually decided on the offer sheet. The Flames still maintain that their interpretation of the rules was correct even though it's different than the NHL's, and the Flames would have fought it legally had it gone through. Ken King admitted the Flames made an error in not getting clarification from the league prior to submitting it. The Flames know of at least six other teams who also submitted offer sheets - but O'Reilly chose the Flames over the other teams - who thought the rule was the same as the Flames thought. They also believe Colorado didn't understand the rule of they would've walked with the picks.
- The Flames are interested in just shy of 60 players attending the combine.
- Lots of draft stuff but take it with a giant grain of salt as they hinted at things but nothing was outright said. My interpretations. Feaster hinted heavily that the Flames rank MacKinnon #1 and they'd love to have him; followed by Jones and Drouin. Barkov #4 (interchangeable with Drouin right now) with Nishchuskin the wild card. Flames interviewed Nishcushkin yesterday and they are still not certain about his contract status - he says it's not an issue but the team still says it is...they will look more into it. Feaster mentioned "center(s)" numerous times, and also talked about Monohan and Lindholm being in the group of centers. I really took out of it that the Flames want centers (no surprise).
- Question regarding the danger of drafting goalies in the first round. Feaster said usually goalies who don't bust play for other teams when they make it, but that they'd told an agent they have a goalie in their top 30 in rankings...knowing he'd tell other teams that. Also said with three first-round picks they could afford the risk - and hope other teams think that's their thinking. My interpretation is they wont take a goalie but really who knows. Hopefully other attendees can chime in.
- They have extended Ward's contract by one more season, but going forward the Heat will run the same system as the Flames, prepare for games the same, have the same training, nutrition etc.
- Advanced stat guy from last year was there this afternoon. The guy has legit points - and I use advanced stats quite frequently myself - but, man, practice your questions beforehand or something. Like last year, he rambled on and on and on without saying much. Mentioned Backlund and Brodie as players who took huge steps and Feaster agreed. I sort of tuned this part out so hopefully others can fill this in.
- Ken King once again made a point of saying him and the owners do not meddle or prevent Jay from making moves he thinks are beneficial.
- Conroy told a story about how veterans in his career who made the younger and newer guys feel comfortable made a huge difference. Followed it up with one where he found Hankowski sitting by himself at the 'Dome as everyone else had left for a group lunch type thing...ripped into Giordano and Glencross for leaving him behind - this needs to change going forward.
- Regular season starts October 1, 2013.
- Prospect tournament in Penticton will happen again and the Flames will participate.
- Jankowski played most of the season as a winger - but they used him on both sides without trouble - because he was a freshman. They expect he will be Providence's #1 center next season.
- Gillis approached Feaster about a depth defenceman they (the Canucks) didn't have use for. Feaster says Gillis tried to convince him that he would be an upgrade on many of the Flames' defenceman but ultimately the Flames weren't interested, and Feaster suspects Gillis just wanted to trade the defenceman as opposed to buying him out. (Ballard?)
- Question about the Flames doing an Oil Change type production. They did a trial one at the start of the season and sent it to major Canadian sports channels. Nothing yet, but don't be surprised if they do produce one eventually.
- Further to mentioning the teams in cap trouble they've identified, as he mentioned last night as well, said the Flames are excited about the new rules in the CBA where a team can retain up to 50% of contracts. Opens the doors for things such as: "take our overpaid but good player + pick/prospect + we'll keep a portion of his salary in return for not much" deals. For teams with internal budgets and not unlimited money, paying 50% of a player's contract could be more valuable than buying him out at 2/3rds of his contract.
- The Flames have no fear of a Justin Schultz situation with Gaudreau. They are confident he will be signed.

[nickerjones]

Originally Posted by united

- Flames have a ~5'9 player ranked in the 10-12 range on their draft board. Feaster knows that would be risky so mentioned he better be a st. loius type player to get picked that high. Will take the criticism if they believe he's that good and they pick him.
.

so ....

Max Domi
Ht/Wt:5'10"/190 lbs
Position:C
Team: London (OHL)

He is the only one projected in the first round close to 5'9 right?