Gulutzan getting canned isn't going to happen. He hasn't been close to being terrible enough to warrant that treatment.
With that being said, I do think that he just isn't the right coach for this team either. It seems to me that the Flames' place in the standings has a lot more to do with how terrible the Western Conference has been this season.
There are 2 recurring issues I have with this team:
1) They have no compete at times. No resiliency. No 'fight-back' to them.
2) To many players regressing - the most important players to boot.
It makes the on-ice product rather boring to watch, and it does become rather difficult to cheer for a team that just doesn't work hard.
There is absolutely no way that Treliving is going to make a move this season on the coaching front - and Gulutzan has at least a half-season of rope next year as well (though he probably has to really bomb to hang himself next season too).
I just think that this team needs a task-master. A coach that BOTH motivates well (like Hartley did) and can instill a strong system that makes use of the personnel on the roster effectively (what Gulutzan is supposed to be about).
Flames were an "inconsistent-effort" team until Darryl was hired. They were an inconsistent team after he bumped himself upstairs and replaced himself with Playfair. The Flames remained an "inconsistent-effort" team right until about the halfway point of the 1st season of the rebuild under Hartley. Now it seems that it is 'back' now.
I don't much agree with Feaster's tenure, but he nailed it perfectly when he said: "This organization has a disease". It was this inconsistency that starts permeating throughout the lineup that I absolutely can't stand. Flames fans stood up and applauded that hard-working team at the Dome during a few losses that first rebuild year. Why? Because it was so damn refreshing seeing a team that competes so hard all the time.
I can't say the same of Flames under Gulutzan. This team just doesn't compete, and I am getting alarmed at how some players just aren't improving under his tenure - players that I thought the Flames would need to take steps forward if they were ever going to compete down the road.
Gulutzan is safe though - he has to completely face-plant the rest of the way through if Treliving is going to make a change in the off-season. I fully expect him back - though that all changes if Treliving isn't re-signed, as I am assuming the new GM would want a new coach (just like Treliving did - he was never keen on Hartley to begin with, and even - surprisingly at the time - didn't extend Ward in the AHL who was thought of very favorably then). I would be shocked if Treliving isn't back for a few more seasons however.
Useless rant, I guess. Just wish this organization had a motivator AND someone with structure at the same time as a coach for once. Give me the guy who knows how to get the team to play hard if I had to choose between the two, however. At least the games are more enjoyable to watch, and the team is easier to cheer for.
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