Quote:
Originally Posted by Gaskal
That's the complete opposite impression to the one I have of his systems methodology.
He said in an interview that he tries to have systems in place merely as a guideline, but he wants his players to use their own creativity and game sense. That, however, is really contingent on the players themselves and if they're not confident or are clutching their sticks too hard, and the results are suffering from it.
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Few players have really flourished under his system and if the players don't have confidence it's because they aren't confident in the system. If these guys really felt they just had to stick with the system and things will turn around that would happen but it's obvious by their play over the past year that they really haven't bought into Gulutzan to the point of no doubt. Hartley's system was flawed but the players bought in and when the goaltending could hold up it's end of the bargain there was no lead safe for opposing teams as the Flames felt confident if they executed in the 3rd period they would come back. When Gulutzan's flames get down or have a bad bounce go their way they look totally deflated and the hill ahead seems insurmountable. Outside of a couple of winning streaks this team really hasn't had the look of a confident team for the most of his tenure as Flames head coach.