[MissTeeks]

Apparently I've been shirking my responsibilities. Anyhoo.

Flames netminder Smith says Gord Downie's passing will be felt throughout NHL

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...-an-old-goalie

Wednesday’s heartbreaking news — that Tragically Hip front-man Gord Downie had died after his battle with brain cancer — hit close to home for Calgary Flames puck-stopping stalwart Mike Smith.

After all, Downie was the pride of Kingston, Ont., only a half-hour south of Smith’s childhood stomping grounds.

And …

“Goalie union,” Smith said, mustering a grin on an emotional day. “You know, Gordie was an old goalie.”

Indeed, Downie was the last line of defence during his minor-hockey days in Amherstview, Ont., his crease career apparently highlighted by a provincial title as a bantam.

He’ll be remembered as a music legend, as a national treasure, as a slice of Canadiana.

“It’s tough. It’s hard,” said the 35-year-old Smith. “It’s a sad day as a Canadian boy growing up outside of Kingston and the Tragically Hip being such a big part of my life for over 25 years now. I’ve got to know some of the guys over the years.

“It’s obviously a sad day for his family, being a father and a husband, but I think for the bigger family, too — for the people around Canada that have grown up idolizing this guy. He’s been such an iconic figure for Canadian people for so many years. It’s a sombre day.

“I’m sure every dressing room in the NHL this morning was listening to the Tragically Hip.”

The NHLPA posted a heartfelt goodbye on their Twitter account: “The soundtrack of car rides to practices, bus trips to tournaments, and dressing rooms across Canada. Hockey was a part of you and you will always be a part of hockey. Thank you, Gord Downie.”

“As Canadians there are a ton of songs that resemble what we do and what we’re all about,” Smith said. “I think Gord was such a unique writer and the way he delivered his message on stage was like no one else. I think you watch the way he performs, and nobody else would be able to imitate what he did. I don’t think it’s just one song. I could be here all day naming songs that I love, but I think just how unique he was as a person, as an artist, it will live on forever.

“His performances live will be unmatched. He was an entertainer, and he’s definitely going to be missed.”

Can Jaromir Jagr end the Flames' search for a first-line right-winger?

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...e-right-winger

Calgary Flames star Johnny Gaudreau didn’t deny that an autograph from the legendary new guy is on his wish-list.

He hasn’t asked quite yet, but Jaromir Jagr might want to keep a Sharpie close by.

“I think you wait until you get a picture with him on the ice,” said Gaudreau, hopeful that photographers captured a special moment in Saturday’s 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks. “I might try to find the one that he got his first assist on. Me and Monny are both in it, probably, hugging. I think that would be pretty sweet, to have me and Monny and to have him sign it. That would be a pretty special piece to have.”

If the shutterbugs missed Saturday’s celebration, Gaudreau, Jagr and centre Sean Monahan can try for another photo op Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes at the Saddledome (7 p.m., Sportsnet Flames/Sportsnet 960 The Fan.)

After logging sporadic shifts as the right flank to the Flames’ dynamic duo during the past pair of outings, including an assist on Gaudreau’s third-period bank-shot in Vancouver, Jagr has now practised for three consecutive days with Nos. 13 and 23.

Jagr is slower than the other obvious options for that first-line role, but he’s undoubtedly the most skilled.

“I think that Johnny and Monny are just fantastic off the rush,” said Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan after Wednesday’s practice. “And with Ferly (Micheal Ferland) being injured there for a couple of days, it was a chance to see how Jags would look in that position. For me, the biggest thing he can give them is that zone-time. He’s just so good at holding pucks in the offensive zone, and I think we’ve seen that even before he’s gotten fully up to speed.

“I think what he’s going to add is just that offensive zone-time. Johnny and Monny are the best in the league at creating off the rush and off broken plays and that sort of thing, but to create more zone-time for both of those guys would be a huge advantage.”

Jagr is the latest in line, although reinforcements will be needed — he told Gulutzan before signing a one-year contract in Calgary that he’s comfortable logging about 14 or 15 minutes per night, while Gaudreau and Monahan average closer to 17 or 18.

“For me and Monny, I think we’ve been doing this for quite some time now — rotating right-wingers. So I’m a little used to it by now,” Gaudreau said earlier this week. “But still, it’s nice to find a player you can keep building with. It gets easier on the ice when you’re playing with a player you’ve been playing with for a while.

“Hopefully, we can do that with Jags.”

Typically, Gulutzan needs to sit down with his top-line right-winger to remind them not to reinvent themselves just because of their starry company.

In this case, he’s having those chats with Gaudreau and Monahan, who have combined for five goals and 15 points so far.

“They have to continue to do their thing,” Gulutzan stressed.

Jagr has been preaching the same, and the young guys ought to listen.

Not just because their latest sidekick is one of the all-time greats, but because Gaudreau is still after that autograph.

“My first few days, I could barely even talk to him I was so nervous,” Gaudreau said of Jagr. “But now it’s a lot easier — especially playing with him now and talking to him on the bench and talking to him after games a little bit and just being around the locker-room with him.

“It’s a lot more easy to communicate with him and just come to reality a little bit more.”

Peak performer: Calgary climber shares Mount Everest experiences at Flames team-building session

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...ilding-session

Each June, when a squad reaches — cue the cliché — the NHL’s mountaintop, every guy on the roster enjoys a spin on the ice with the Stanley Cup hoisted high above their heads.

When an expedition approaches the summit of Mount Everest, it might only be one or two climbers who actually stand on the peak.

That’s what the Calgary Flames learned from adventurer and motivational speaker Jamie Clarke during Monday’s awe-inspiring team-building session at a downtown restaurant.

“It was one of the best speeches I’ve ever heard, to be honest,” said Flames captain Mark Giordano. “You take away the team aspect of it and how much preparation and how much works goes into it. And I took away that at the top of the mountain when the guys get to go to the top, it’s only two out of the group that get to actually touch the summit.

“I mean, that’s a buy-in when you know that you’re not going to be the one with the glory at the end to actually touch the top of the mountain, but you put all the time and the weeks into climbing up there. Really, climbing that mountain is all about a group of people coming together and having their separate roles and buying in.

“It was a pretty moving speech, I’ll tell you that.”

Clarke provided words of wisdom and encouragement to Team Canada prior to the world juniors last winter, has spoken to the national sledge-hockey team and has addressed one other troupe of NHLers, but Monday’s audience was extra-special for a guy who has been a season-ticket holder at the Saddledome since shortly before the Flames’ run to the Stanley Cup final in 2004.

“One of the messages I was trying to get across to the group is if you have high-performance individuals, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to have a high-performance team,” said Clarke, who is also author of two books, CEO of an outdoor-apparel company and has climbed each of the Seven Summits — the highest mountain on each continent. “So what does it take? That chemistry that we speak of, almost in cliché these days, how do we tap into that? The DNA of that chemistry is ultimately an unselfishness. So how do you conjure up that unselfish play by a group of high performers who are compensated very well, who come to the ice with confidence and accomplishment, yet have them buy in deeply — not just on the surface — to a system of play that is put in place by the coaches and to go out there and play that system unselfishly and turn into not just high-performance individuals, but a high-performance team?

“There’s no other way to win.”

The Flames’ climb is just getting started. Thursday’s home clash against the Carolina Hurricanes (7 p.m., Sportsnet Flames/Sportsnet 960 The Fan) marks the seventh contest on their 82-game regular-season slate.

And then, for the 16 teams fortunate enough to earn an invite to the Stanley Cup dance, the fun really starts.

“(Clarke) put in perspective what the mind can do,” said Flames centre Mikael Backlund of Monday’s message. “It’s pretty cool how strong your mind can be. When your body wants to give up, still your mind can be strong.”

“He was talking about being prepared, being focused, and every little mistake can matter,” added right-winger Michael Frolik, one of four Flames with his name already engraved on the Stanley Cup. (Troy Brouwer, Kris Versteeg and just-signed Jaromir Jagr are the others.)

“Over there, every bad decision, any little thing, it can cost a life. Obviously, it’s not like that in hockey but in that same way, every little detail can matter. I think it’s the same with a run in the playoffs, too. When you go all the way, every little play, every little thing can matter.”

That’s the goal, of course — to go all the way.

Flames star Gaudreau scoring points with brother-in-law thanks to superb start

http://calgaryherald.com/sports/hock...o-superb-start

Thousands of poolies probably invested a first-round pick on Johnny Gaudreau.

But unlike the legions of others counting on the Calgary Flames’ left-wing whiz to lead their fantasy teams to glory, this particular fan also happens to have Johnny Hockey’s cell-phone number.

He can provide encouragement and feedback.

“My brother-in-law took me early, so he’s pretty excited,” Gaudreau reported with a smile after Monday’s practice at the Saddledome. “He’s been texting me before every game — ‘Have a good night tonight.’

“I’ll be getting some heat if I don’t play well.”

Sure, it’s a small sample size, but it’s nonetheless noteworthy that Gaudreau is the first Flames skater since Phil Housley back in 1994 to have at least nine points to show for his first half-dozen contests.

The 1993-born Gaudreau, to add a bit of perspective, was a toddler then.

“It’s just nice — you don’t have to worry about the outside people giving you a hard time or anything like that, and the team is winning and everything is going well right now,” Gaudreau said of his superb start. “But there will be another month and next thing you know, you’ve gone two or three games without getting on the scoresheet and your team is losing and, you know, you’re facing some adversity.

“I try to just play my game every single night. Whether I get a point or not or get on the scoresheet, I think it’s most important if the team wins.”

“Johnny has been fantastic, even his defensive play,” praised Gulutzan, who had legendary newcomer Jaromir Jagr skating on the top line with Gaudreau and centre Sean Monahan during Monday’s practice. “I’ve watched him come back hard on the track and identify the right guys and break up some plays. I told him that this morning — I said he’s been really good in that area.

“He just looks freer and less pressure on himself. This is a player who really cares about the group, cares about the team and his teammates, and he wants to do well and he wants to win. I think last year, the business side of it can get to a guy who is pretty pure at heart of the game. I just see him a lot freer now and creating every shift and helping us in both ends.”