Quote:
Originally Posted by Bingo
late late 1st round pick and a 2nd rounder ... what you want them to start in the NHL? That's a good development plan.
Check out how many non top ten picks start in the NHL without AHL seasoning and get back to me.
Does Backlund in the NHL for a stretch in his FIRST pro season warrant no attention from you at all?
Players move into roles and levels based on their play. If the play dictates the AHL is still a struggle then you'd call them up anyway because you think the first contract might get wasted? The Flames have had one top ten pick in Sutter's tenure ... guess what? He didn't play in the AHL.
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Sure thing boss:
TJ Oshie
Patrik Berglund
Ryan O'Reilly
Michael Del Zotto
Vicktor Tikhanov
Nick Folingno
Milan Lucic
Anze Kopitar
Marc Staal
Martin Hanzal
Andrew Cogliano
Matt Niskanen
Marc-E Vlasic
Paul Statsny
Guillaume Latendresse
Mason Raymond (only 31 games in the AHL)
Kris Letang (only 10 games in the AHL)
Brent Seabrook
Ryan Getzlaf
Brent Burns
Ryan Kesler
Mike Richards
Corey Perry
Patrice Bergeron
Matt Carle
Wojtek Wolski
Andrej Meszaros
..just to name a few
I am not saying going the AHL route to develop players is bad, my point is... the Flames don't do that. We have what? Boyd, Nystrom, Pardy, Gio as our "developed" players? From the list above you could argue that 80% of that list is franchise players or impact players who have been with the same organization that they were drafted by.
Nobody can argue that Sutter loves his vets, but the fact that he says he would like to give 2-3 roster spots to players on the farm is a total lie. Sure nobody might be ready to make the jump but whos fault is that? I will let you decide
EDIT: I am not turning this into a "I Hate Sutter" thread but the facts don't lie. Our development system is not working at all, you can blame it on whoever you want: scouting, management, owners, etc but it all comes down to who is in charge and who is the one that hires all of these people. The Flames are known for ruining prospects/bubble players for simply not giving them a chance, hence my first post. Backlund has looked GREAT since he has been with the big squad but looks lost with Abbotsford, look what a chance can do.