[sureLoss]

another great write up from Wes Gilbertson

https://calgarysun.com/sports/hockey...ind-for-flames

Derek MacKinnon was there to focus on another guy.

At another position.

On the other team, in fact.

For MacKinnon, the Calgary Flames’ director of pro personnel, the purpose of this March 2016 scouting mission to Prague was for a live look at winger Daniel Pribyl, perched among the leading point-producers in the Czech Extraliga.

“So I went to the game with Daniel’s agent, was sitting with his agent, and as the game progressed, I literally leaned over to his agent and said, ‘Who is the goalie?’ ” MacKinnon recalled, noticing that Pribyl and his HC Sparta Praha pals were having trouble solving the lanky lad in the opposing crease. “The agent asked me, ‘Why?’ and I said, ‘Well, I really like him.’

“He was just explosively quick. I think they scored five on him, so the results weren’t there, but he probably stopped five breakaways and two or three other ‘A’ chances where he just exploded across the net.

“Now, there were other holes in his game, but he caught your eye.”

So who was this goalie?

A relatively raw and relatively unknown David Rittich, a workhorse that winter for BK Mlada Boleslav.

Not wanting to sound the We-Gotta-Sign-This-Guy! alarm after just one viewing, MacKinnon worked on digging up video of Rittich.

Impressed again, he forwarded the footage to Flames goaltending coach Jordan Sigalet.

“Jordan, right from Day 1, was like, ‘Holy, this guy has something,’ ” MacKinnon said.

Has something, indeed.