Quote:
Originally Posted by Funkhouser
Foo got top line duty
Yeast Mode got scrubs
Mangiapane has earned a spot imo and could be a good fit on our new 4th line of Ryan and Czarnik
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This is a product of the Flames system though.
Down the LW we already have two extremely high end LWs not likely to be displaced in Johnny and Tkachuk. Then there’s Bennett who is likely now a left winger too. And all of a sudden, now we have some great RW depth after seasons of wishing for it. So he can’t just switch to his offwing as a natural LW.
The problem with this situation is that if Andrew truly needs skilled players to succeed, that likely won’t come to fruition on the 4th line. I imagine he might be getting viewed at as a trade chip soon unless someone moves. Maybe Frolik gets traded, but even then it looks like the most he’d get is 3rd line duties at best. Maybe Ryan and Czarnik are his teammates instead of our current offerings, but if they don’t buyout Brouwer or trade Lazar then I doubt it.
I think last season showed Treliving the days of having a crash and bang 4th line and hoping to win a Cup are long over. You need speed and skill to succeed more than ever now in the modern NHL. Today you want your bottom line to be very good in their own end and have enough skill to chip in offensively. The Flames are sure as heck not going to get anything offensively out of anyone serving 4th line duty with Brouwer, Hathaway and Lazar. All 3 were, outside of one hot streak for Hathaway, invisible on the scoresheet throughout a full 82-game season.