Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
The writing was probably on the wall when Conroy was sent to oversee AHL operations for the past season as there seemed to be a disconnect between what the Flames felt was best for their prospects and what maybe what some in the Heat thought was best for the team. I don't think Ward did a bad job but he really only started leaning on prospects this season (with Conroy in charge) as past seasons he overly relied on AHL vets. For all we know it was Conroy that made this recommendation given he had a front row seat for a full season.
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Realistically, were there prospects worthy of playing time? In Ward's first year there were hardly any Flames prospects on that team. It got better prospects wise in year 2 and 3 and at the end of the day Ward did a good job which even Burke acknowledged.
Player development is as inexact of a science as scouting and drafting players IMO. Is it going to help a player's development by giving him lots of playing time down at the farm when he's not ready? Or is it better to have your prospects be a part of a winning team. I think both are important. Prospects need playing time and not be afraid to make mistakes, at the same time they need to be in a winning culture or they will get used to losing.