[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

I keep seeing this "doesn't use the talent at his disposal" argument and I'm not sure if it's true.

Really? You're not sure it's true? Have you seen his decisions in using lines? Have you seen his decisions in using personnel on those lines? Have you seen the system that handcuffs one of the best puck moving defenses in the league? Have you seen the crap PP, and instance of using certain personnel over others, regardless of outcomes? You're not sure it's true?

Of the "core" guys:

Gaudreau, Monahan, Backlund, Tkachuk, Hamilton, Ferland have all been pretty good, and have been able to thrive and utilize their talent under Gulutzan.

Performance of individuals and proper use of them are NOT the same thing. You expect that young guys, young stars, are going to see progression and increases in scoring, regardless of the coach. Taylor Hall was scoring points in Edmonton, that didn't mean they were using him properly or developing him as a player. Just because a guy is producing does not mean he is being used in ways that can best help the team.

Dougie Hamilton is one of those big guys that Gulutzan has gone full "Simple Jack" Tug Speedman for the better part of half the season. Arguably the most talented blueliner on the team, and Dull Gul goes and ties his ass to the bench as our PP struggles. Took a real tactician and student of the game to figure out that maybe Hamilton would help generate some offense from the backend. Hilarious that it took better than half the season to make that move.

Giordano has still been really good but we have seen his offense drop off a bit as he has become even stronger defensively.

One of the best offensive defensemen in the league and he, along with his fellow defenders, are locked into a crap system that prevents them from using their greatest strength of moving the puck and joining the play. I'm also not seeing any massive improvement in defensive play. The system just doesn't allow for massive improvements in defensive play, from any player. That is indicative of the goal differential and the individual +/-. The system demands perfection in a game where perfection is rarely attained.

Brodie has been a disaster under Gulutzan and that is fair. Bennett has been able to produce in a 3rd line role but should have developed into more. Frolik was good last year but has been pretty snake bit this year under GG.

Okay, so three key players - one a defender we were certain was going to be the team's best, one a proven two-way warrior, and the third the highest pick in team history - have not really had much success. Could it be that they are thrust into roles that don't suit their particular skill sets? No, Gulutzan is too smart for that, just ask him. Those are three key pieces that he has majorly screwed the pooch with.

For the most part I think these guys are our "most talented" guys and they have all been pretty productive under Gulutzan. Really only Brodie is the one where I'd say something just hasn't been a fit under Gulutzan's system.

I would say that no one is a fit in Gulutzan's system. It doesn't use individual's strengths and forces thew square pegs into round holes, pretty much throughout the lineup.

But every coach has those guys. People here claim that Harltey was so good at utilizing people's strengths but forget the he ran Baertschi out of town, had Hamilton on the 3rd pairing and he struggled to the point that he was almost traded after 1 season, and according to Rhett on the radio was the reason Kipper wanted to retire and have nothing to do with hockey anymore.

Who gives a damn about Hartley? Hartley was a craptastic coach as well. His total reliance on shot blocking and the Hail Mary pass was mind numbingly stupid and just as difficult to watch. Using Hartley as a defense for Gulutzan is all fail.

The argument with Gulutzan that I think is way more valid is that he can't get the less talented guys to play above their skillset and contribute more than their skillset says they should. The skilled guys do just fine for him for the most part though.

No, they really don't. The skill guys are under-used. The system doesn't use the ample skills they have. When you go out and invest all of that capital in a mobile blueline that can move the puck with the absolute best of them, you don't go and handcuff them by making them play backwards and prevent them from jumping into the play.

How many times do we see that blithering idiot watch his team get scored on, then he goes and tosses out the fourth line so the opposition can gain a massive shift in momentum? How many times do we have to watch him make piss poor decisions about who to have on the ice in the final minutes of a hockey game. When I see Brouwer or Stajan anywhere near the ice in the final 10 minutes and I want to punch a puppy. But this brainiac continues to do the exact same stuff, with the exact same negative outcomes, like he's some type of tactical genius. Stop playing your worst players in key situations! Stop handcuffing the one part of your team that so much was invested in, and let them use their strengths! Start looking at ways to get more out of the bottom of the lineup but using the players better! Your best players win you hockey games, so stop playing the craptastic ones so much and start using the best ones in ways where their talents are best used!

It's actually the one thing that Hartley was great at - getting the grinders and lower skill guys to be able to contribute in other ways and to the score sheet every once in a while. GG has really failed at that though as our bottom 6 FWDs and bottom pairing D have really struggled under him both seasons.

Gulutzan has failed because he's a mediocre coach. He is set in his system and doesn't care what kind of players he has at his disposal, his system is what the team will play. This is sad, from a hockey fan's perspective, and pathetic, from a results perspective. There is so much talent on this team that is harnessed by the chains of stupidity that is the system Gulutzan has yoked this team with. It is frustrating to watch talented players get misused, and then players past their prime or out of their element forced into roles they have to right to be in. The problems are mostly coach based. Change the coach with someone who knows how to devise a game plan to leverage the talent on the team, and this team transforms itself into a winner overnight.

I've been a fan of this team since 1981, when they won my heart from another. But I am sick of watching this travesty called Gulutzan hockey. There is way better hockey being played around the league, by teams with lesser talent. The Flames are a terribly frustrating team to watch and it is all on the clowns behind the bench - all of them. It is painful to watch games and I completely understand why the season ticket holders here would be less than inclined to put down money to watch the #### show that takes place most nights. There are many times where I wonder why I bothered to invest in NHL Game Center to watch the Flames, but then I watch the other teams and their games and don't feel bad about my investment. There is still quality hockey out there, it just unfortunately doesn't come from games when the Glen Gulutzan led Calgary Flames are on the feed.