[CaptainCrunch]

Ok vent time.

I have never been one of those people that talks about respecting people. To be honest it takes a lot to earn my respect.

Showing desire and determination and perseverance in the face of bad odds, that earns respect from me win or lose.

A person or group of people that does something above and beyond ordinary or in the face of possible failure, that's respectable.

I've had more and more trouble attaching respect to pro sports.

But it came to me tonight after this game. I've lost all respect for this group of players. Not because of something that they've done in the community, or said in the papers or on twitter. But because of what they've done on the ice this year.

I've said that there's something lacking in the leadership department on this team. Sure I believe that GG hasn't done a good job this year, he's been slow to adjust, stubborn in rolling lines when he shouldn't have. Been obstinate in terms of player assignments. Believe me, I would be fine with him paying what would be the ultimate pro sports price for his failures this year.

But I have very little respect for athletes who make millions of dollars who clearly didn't relish the challenge of making the playoffs. This team to me quit, we saw it last night and we saw it tonight.

I don't think I've ever followed a team that I consider to be more unlikable then the 2017-2018 Calgary Flames. Now I'm sure that if they read a post like this, they'd go screw you, I'm one of the top of the top of the hockey world and you're nothing.

And they're right, at this point, CaptainCrunch is nothing, as something that went from spending a bunch of money a year on this team, to someone that's gone to spending very little, I'm nothing.

And that's this teams fault

When you have to have a win against one of the worst teams in hockey and you get flattened and wave the right flag, you don't gain my respect or admiration.

I'm sure there are players on this team that can wake up tomorrow and look in the mirror and say, "I tried". But there are lots of players on this team that if they say that, to me they're lying.

I've often said that the Oilers were mentally lazy and I didn't have much respect for them because year after year they quit on their coach and gleefully waited for a new coach.

With the Flames they are a lethal combination of quit and bad leadership and poor coaching. But poor coaching is no excuse for no effort.

If you want to quit, then quit. Put down your hockey stick and take off your helmet and go stock shelves or pump gas. If you want to quick then bench yourself, or don't dress.

But don't waste our time.

There's something entirely rotten in that dressing room, in that collective of young millionaires. A dressing room that lacks pride, and self respect and work ethic.

Look, I get the negativity on this board, we're all frustrated hockey fans, a lot of us have followed this Flames team for nearly 40 years, but I didn't participate of read it because it became tiring and it fed my own feelings of negativity.

so consider this my venting my spleen.

I don't hate the players on this team, far from it. I respect that they go out in the community, that they donate their time and money to laudable efforts. But that's only half of the equation. When your earning millions of bucks a year, then the fans have a right to expect that you're going to try to fight through adversity and die trying.

Instead you raised the white flag over the last three games.

You've basically embarrassed yourself, the uniform that you pull on, and the city that you play for.

Every year it gets harder and harder to come back for another 80 games of hockey. Next year it might finally hit the tipping point with me where I don't come back, where I emulate the players and go through the motions or stop trying all together.

Where when a buddy says "Hey Crunch what do you think of the Flames", or "What did you think of the game last night", and my answer will be a shrug and a "Calgary still has a pro team? New to me".

I mean thank god this board has interesting discussions outside of hockey, or what would be the point right?

Basically whether he admits it or not, Treliving has to understand that this team isn't close, its not a right winger or a bottom 6 player away from jumping over that barrier to contender. They're a major heart and testicular fortitude transplant away.

Shame on the Flames, they've finally done it, they've reciprocated a lack of caring with a lack of caring.