Quote:
Originally Posted by puckluck2
The talent is bottom 3 and we are the 6th worst team in the league. Is that really exceeding expectations by much?
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Yeah, I'd say so. Hartley has given this team a hard working, never give up attitude and the wins might not be there but I like the results so far. During the last road trip the Flames played three of the top six teams in the entire NHL, Colorado, Chicago and St. Louis. They beat the Blackhawks and despite losing to both Colorado and St. Louis they showed a real gutsy attitude to never quit not just give up.
Remember the first period of the Blues game? They were down by two, it was starting to look ugly, everyone here was saying how bad the game was going, how we'll be lucky to finish the game only losing by 6 or so. Instead the 2nd period hits and the Flames don't just quit, they end up only losing by one goal. It's the same story vs Colorado too.
So yeah, the wins aren't there but they aren't just throwing in the towel and losing, they're actually competing, sometimes against the best teams in the NHL and holding their own.
Obviously I'm not a huge fan of everything Hartley does but coaching is everything in the NHL and Hartley has shown he is the leader this team needs right now. The Flames haven't had a true leader behind the bench since Darryl Sutter.