Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post - Who should Treliving target as a potential replacement for Mike Smith?

Kovaz · 11-09-2018, 10:21 AM

I think you've gotta give Rittich a shot at this point. Thing is, you don't have to commit the whole season right away. Last year we had no backup plan after Rittich/Gillies so even if they struggled, they were it. It's a much different situation knowing that we can always go back to "hope Smith figures it out" if Rittich really doesn't have it.

But I think at some point we have to commit to one side or the other. If we think Rittich can be a starter, at some point we have to take the leap and give him a bunch of games. If not now, when? If we don't think Rittich can be a starter, why are we wasting our time with him? We should be aggressively pursuing a trade for a guy who can be.

I look at the way we've handled Valimaki and Andersson this year as an example to follow. They've had bad games, bad giveaways, bad defensive reads. And yet we keep coming back to them because we believe they have what it takes. At some point, a prospect needs to make the leap to being a player. I think it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy if you're not willing to give them a legitimate opportunity. If you only give them the tiniest sliver of a chance, and then immediately yank it away at the first sign of trouble, you're gonna have a lot of disappointing prospects. It's why it's so common to see a team run into injury trouble and suddenly find that some 6th round pick from a year ago is actually a legit player.

11-09-2018, 10:21 AM	#534
Kovaz Scoring Winger Join Date: Nov 2016 Exp:	I think you've gotta give Rittich a shot at this point. Thing is, you don't have to commit the whole season right away. Last year we had no backup plan after Rittich/Gillies so even if they struggled, they were it. It's a much different situation knowing that we can always go back to "hope Smith figures it out" if Rittich really doesn't have it. But I think at some point we have to commit to one side or the other. If we think Rittich can be a starter, at some point we have to take the leap and give him a bunch of games. If not now, when? If we don't think Rittich can be a starter, why are we wasting our time with him? We should be aggressively pursuing a trade for a guy who can be. I look at the way we've handled Valimaki and Andersson this year as an example to follow. They've had bad games, bad giveaways, bad defensive reads. And yet we keep coming back to them because we believe they have what it takes. At some point, a prospect needs to make the leap to being a player. I think it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy if you're not willing to give them a legitimate opportunity. If you only give them the tiniest sliver of a chance, and then immediately yank it away at the first sign of trouble, you're gonna have a lot of disappointing prospects. It's why it's so common to see a team run into injury trouble and suddenly find that some 6th round pick from a year ago is actually a legit player.