This year Hartley has basically got a team that has about half the team that is solid NHLers. The other half are bubble players and likely would have trouble catching on with another NHL team. It is relatively easy to get these guys to play hard as the 500k plus money they are making is real world money......
This year Hartley got an under talented team and for the most part they have performed as they were expected.... 27th in payroll and 28th in performance.
The scary thing was last year where Hartley had one of the highest paid teams (basically right to the cap) in the league and had them in 26th spot when Iginla got traded.
He doesn't get near enough of the best (highest paid financial secure) players to play up to their contracts.
Out of the Flames highest paid forwards:
Cammalleri, Mike
Hudler, Jiri
Jones, David
Stajan, Matt
Glencross, Curtis
Stempniak, Lee
There is only Hudler that is actually playing up to his salary this year.... He didn't last year.
On defense Wideman and Smid are not playing up to their salaries... SOB definitely did not.
Gio and Brodie are.
Out of 11 Flames making more than 2M / year only 3
Hudler, Gio and Brodie are playing up to their salaries and Brodie is on his first big contract and not set for life yet.
It is always a fall back that Hartley (along with all failing coaches) say that their best players have to be the best players... The good coaches work to make this happen.
Hartley is not a good coach.
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