[Dion]

Flames have reached an exceedingly dangerous time within a uniquely delicate moment

If that dogged push begins to tail off, though, if the night-to-night desire and motivation dwindles, even ever-so-slightly (and we’ve seen warning signs lat ely), if the losing takes its toll and the increasingly helplessness of the situation grips them, if the return for effort doesn’t seem worth the bother, then this has the potential get very ugly very quickly.

“No, no, that won’t slide,” coach Bob (The Rebuilder) Hartley vowed the other day. “I can make that promise to you and to our fans. Because that’s the culture we want to create.

“We want to teach the Brodies, the Monahans, the Boumas, the way to be a good pro. Whatever the score is, we’re gonna keep competing. It’s funny you’re asking me about this, because that was my topic this morning at my team meeting. Basically, for the last month and a half, two months, we’ve been in every game, that’s what we want to build.”

“The commitment to this organization, to our fans, the commitment to winning hockey games, to battling in every game,” replies Hartley flatly by way of rebuttal, “is non-negotiable.

“I will never allow a losers’ mentality to creep into our locker-room.”

http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...375/story.html

Olympic candidates on the Flames await naming of national hockey rosters

His dad, Ladislav Smid Sr. — an elite defenceman for HC Dukla Jihlava which, in the team’s glory days, was ruling the Czechoslovakian Elite League — competed for his country at the 1964 Olympic Games in Innsbruck, Austria. And, many times, Smid has heard about the time Czechoslovakia beat Canada for the bronze medal.

“He always shows it off,” Smid was saying the other day with a chuckle. “Kind of reminds me who the boss is.”

There’s also a good chance for Hudler to crack the squad after scoring 11 goals and 22 assists in 41 games this season. He represented the Czech team at the 2013 and 2003 world championships and also was on the world junior team.

“He feels the same, like I do. He’d like to be there. He’s done everything he could,” said Smid who, like Hudler, played at the 2013 world championships and also represented his country at the world junior level.

“But, honestly, I don’t know . . . nobody’s going to tell you whether you’re in or out. I guess it’s going to be a bit of a surprise.”

“A huge honour,” said the 27-year-old native of Frydlant, Czech Republic. “My dad went ... so I would like to experience it at least once, too. He said it was a great feeling to be there for your country and a huge honour.

“Hopefully, fingers crossed, that I’ll make the roster.”

Berra, who hails from Bulach, represented his country at the 2013 world championships but has never been to an Olympic Games.

“They’re really different,” he said. “All of the NHL players are there. The teams are different. The opponents are different. All the teams are going to be better. They’re two different things. The Olympics are every four years.”

http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...361/story.html

Flames patient with struggling rookie Sean Monahan

“That’s a big part of the learning process he needs to go through,” said head coach Bob Hartley. “The one thing: we’re going to stay on top of Monnie. He’s our best young asset. And that’s part of the learning.

“He needs to face this and we’re facing this as a group. The veterans and the coaches are great with him and we’re going to try to get his stride back.”

“And that’s how, I guess, every season goes,” said the former Ottawa 67’s captain. “You have to adjust to that as a player. It’s a good learning experience for me and I have to be better.

“No excuses.”

“It’s unfortunate because he was playing so well,” said Hartley of Monahan’s injury and subsequent slump. “But he’ll get back there. There’s no doubt in my mind. He has the willingness to do it, he has the attitude to do it. He’s fun to work with and you watch him work in practice.

“He’s a young player and right now as a team we’re struggling, so it’s pretty normal for him to be questioning his game and stuff like this.”

We’re going to keep playing him,” Hartley added. “Not that we’re trying to play favourites on him, but here’s a special case. He’s working hard, wants to do well. What he’s going through right now, I think it’s going to serve him really well for his career.”

“I don’t want to make him a one-trick pony,” Hartley said. “I want Sean Monahan to be the most complete hockey player in the NHL, the most complete centreman in this league. I want him to learn the three zones and there’s going to be at time we put him in those situations, so he learns from them.”

http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...354/story.html

Calgary Flames rookie Sean Monahan misses world juniors to learn NHL lessons

“This is where I wanted to be,” Monahan reiterated after Sunday’s practice at the Saddledome. “My goal was to make the team at the start of the year, and I think for them to keep me instead of sending me to the world juniors, that’s a pretty big honour.”

“I have a lot of good buddies on that team, so I watched basically the whole tournament. It’s pretty frustrating to see what happened,” Monahan said.

“They worked hard. Obviously, it’s a tough tournament to win. You’re playing against the best of the best. Everyone knows that Canada’s expectation is to win gold. It’s just, I guess, unfortunate it didn’t happen.”

“The injury kind of slowed him down, but that’s a big part of the learning process that he needs to go through,” Hartley said. “One thing is we’re going to stay on top of Mony. He’s our best young asset, and that’s part of the learning. He needs to face this, and we’re facing this as a group. The coaching staff, the veterans, are great with him. We’re trying to get his stride back.

“And we’re going to keep playing him. Not that we’re trying to play favourite with him, but here’s a special case.

“He’s working hard. He wants to do well. What he’s going through right now, I think it’s going to serve him very well for the rest of his career.”

http://www.calgarysun.com/2014/01/05...rn-nhl-lessons

Calgary Flames forward David Jones looks to The Bambino for inspiration amid slump

“I actually read a good quote by Babe Ruth saying every strikeout he had was exciting because he was that much closer to his next home run,” Jones reasoned. “You kind of have to look at it that way — every shot you get, you’re that much closer to scoring your next goal.

“It’s just odds, you know? If I get five shots a game, there’s gonna be a good chance one of those goes in.

“There’s no way you can get that many shots and not score. It’s just probability.”

“I thought that was a good analogy,” said Jones, who has gone 15 straight games without a goal. “You can’t really change the things you’re doing.

“I’m getting chances. I’ve just gotta keep shooting. That’s all it is. Get one, maybe get a bunch. I’ve always kind of been a streaky scorer that way. They come in bunches. It’s just a matter of keep getting the puck to the net and go to those hard areas.”

“Team confidence, scoring-wise, I hope I’m not giving you guys a big scoop right now that it’s not very high,” Flames head coach Bob Hartley told reporters after Sunday’s practice at the Saddledome.

“The only way we’re going to get through this is to make sure we stay together and we get a game where we can score three or four goals to get that good feeling back into us. That’s what we need.”

http://www.calgarysun.com/2014/01/05...ion-amid-slump