Quote:
Originally Posted by Tinordi
He's responsible for the state our organization is in right now, which is an utter mess, so no, not forgiven.
Agreed with that too. The trade was so bad and Sutter's history really make you wonder who was pulling the strings on that deal and subsequent franchise sinking deals that followed.
Ken Kling and Co. have gotten off with remarkably little blame.
|
Conspiracy theories are interesting, but I think the real problem was Darryl Sutter was given autonomy to manage the Flames however he wished, without any interference from the brass. The organization (and a ton of Flames fans) had complete in confidence Sutter, thinking he was a brilliant hockey mind--hence the oft-heard expression, "in Sutter we trust." I have to give where credit is due; Darryl Sutter knows hockey. He was good for the Flames organization. He instilled a winning culture, resurrected an ailing franchise and made it profitable. This is why he was allowed to run the team without interference. Which is great, except Darryl Sutter is no Warren Buffet when it comes to business, and a GM in the NHL has to be good at hockey and business. This accounts for why Jay Feaster is the Flames GM--a person who I have increasing respect for as a GM, something we can argue about in a different thread.
I was unhappy when Dion Phaneuf was traded, but now I'm indifferent. I'm happy he is the captain of the Leafs, but I am relieved he is no Denis Potvin. I'm not surprised that trade gets all the attention and is viewed as the worst. The truth is the real bad trade, not-to-mention the strangest was Olli Jokinen and Brandon Prust for Chris Higgins and Ales Kotalik. I did learn something about the Flames ownership group from Darryl Sutter losing his mind. The ownership will spend to cap ceiling, but they will not bury a contract in the minors. I guess that is fair.