[Split98]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

This is not a very good post.

I completely disagree. Yes, Johnson's run was very important to the Flames run up the standings, but it is really impossible to say how much better or worse the team would have been with someone else in his place. The Flames would be worse off without Johnson, but still much better off than the Western Conference bottom feeders.


Johnson is not the Flames starter. He has not been handled like the starting goalie to this point, and I see no reason to believe that this is suddenly about to change now. Johnson and Elliott are playing in textbook tandem scenario, and will continue to do so for the full season.

It is preposterous to suggest that Elliott should be relegated to mop-up duties as a backup goalie. The Flames needed him to win a bunch of games in December and he delivered. The Flames will doubtlessly need him to win many more games down the stretch, and I am hopeful that he will return to the form that he has characteristically shown over the course of his time in St. Louis.

I am not opposed to re-signing Johnson for another two years, but this is not a question that should be breached now, and likely not until the end of the season.


The only way Rittich will see any time in Calgary this year is if one of Johnson or Elliott sustains an injury. It certainly is something that could happen, but there is no way the Flames are going to call him up and play him just to "see what we've got." This team is competing for a playoff berth and will not jeopardize that on the faint hope that David Rittich is an upgrade on the two goalies in Calgary.


This is nonsense.


The upside in keeping Elliott around is in the distinct possibility that he performs much better than he has down the stretch. I like Johnson and I like how he has performed to date, but I am not in any way convinced enough to cast aside the other goalie who is the same age, and who has been among the League's leaders in each of the past four seasons.

It is way too early for the Flames to move on from Brian Elliott.

All I'm reading is that we have differing opinions.