Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
I get that and fully understand what we have in Bob Hartley. My thing is that we always discuss him coaching to make the playoffs and win every game even though the reality is that he's going to miss the playoffs for the 3rd time in 4 years as Flames head coach. If this is his record trying his hardest to win is Hartley part of the solution for a rebuilding team? If he wants to play his vets to make the playoffs at all costs over developing young players I'm fine with that but the team better win but the problem is that aren't winning enough and haven't over most of his tenure. I feel he needs to be more flexible or he's making a case for his demise.
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But my point here is that this wish for a different coach who will not play to make the playoffs, or who will always decide to play young players for the sake of development at the expense of veterans is a pipe-dream. Insert a new NHL coach, and I expect more or less the same sort of treatment when it comes to the handling of "young players" and veterans. (I set young players in scare quotes, because Nakladal is probably best considered a non-NHL player, who is at an age where he has likely met his ceiling).
The point here being that the Flames' fortunes, and the developmental track of the Flames' prospects is not about to suddenly improve with a new coach. I don't think Hartley is a particularly good strategic coach, but I do believe him to be a highly capable motivator, which is what I think this team needs at this stage in its cycle. I don't expect Hartley to be in Calgary for long, but while he is here, I also don't have many problems with how he handles this group of players. There will come a point where his purpose to in-still a mindset of what makes a NHL team—with messages like, "this is how we practice"; "this is how we train"; "this is how we live"; "this is how hard we have to work"; "this is how hard it is to make this team"; "this is how hard it is to be a successful NHL player"—will eventually become obsolete for this roster, but I don't think they are there quite yet. Eventually, this roster will benefit greatly from having a different coach, but they just aren't good enough, nor experienced enough for that to be the priority just yet.
In other words, Hartley is the coach the Flames deserve right now, but there will come a day when they earn a different kind of coach—one who will win.