Quote:
Originally Posted by Bertuzzied
EFFFFF. This sounds like Marc Savard all over again!!!!
Get on the phones Jets!
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A few things on that:
- Hartley is much better and much more established coach then Greg Gilbert is, was or ever will be. So much less of a concern.
- Other "young" players under Hartley are improving and exceeding expectations. We have real life examples right in front of us that the guy doesn't hate young players. Monohan, Colborne, heck even Bouma and Brodie are all improving and developing nicely under this regime.
- Also, people assume that the Flames / Gilbert miss read the Savard situation. For the record, I think they did, but there is also the chance that with out the tough love the Flames gave him, and his failure in Calgary, Savard might not have turned into the player he was. It's not like Savard "didn't change" anything and went on to be a success. He became a success when he started to do the things Calgary wanted him to do. But I agree, the Flames back then (not the same folks running the Flames now remember) totally gave up on Savard way too quickly.
It be one thing if none of the younger guys on this team aren't getting better and finding ways to succeed and be a part of team on a regular basis, but that's not the case. Sven and Backlund are struggling to meet expectation OF THEM. That last point is important. It's not about how they compare to other vets, because we are a rebuilding team and we aren't trying to ice our best line up each game. We are trying to develop what young talent we have into being the best players.
Again, that's where many get confused. More ice time doesn't equal best development, ALL the time. It can, but not always, and my only beef is that it's a little to early to be suggesting sitting Sven for some games here and there is bad for him. Especially when the coach seems to be doing a good job of improving the youngs guys as a whole (which includes Sven).
If Calgary was a contending team and Sven was our draft pick. He'd likely have to be earning his ice time and pushing a much stronger line up of vets out to earn his spot. That's probably the best way to develop a player. I think Hartley and the staff are trying to "simulate" this for all our young players. Rather than hold them accountible to beat out some of the weak ass vets we have on this team, they are holding them accountible to there potential, and what they expect from each player as if they were on a contending team. Long run, I think that's what will be best for all our young guys.
Clearly Hartley and co feel like Sven is / will be a special player, and if he were competing on a spot for a contending Flames team, should have the ability to still crack the line up. Therefore, this is the benchmark they hold him to, and I for one am glad. If all Sven had to do in our next couple of re-building years is be better than Jackman, he's not going to improve as much as he could.