Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post - Flames fire Geoff Ward, hire Darryl Sutter, signs 3 year deal

Calgary4LIfe · 03-05-2021, 12:56 PM

I think there are a lot of people wondering how Gaudreau fits into a Darryl Sutter team.

I may be wrong, but I don't think that Sutter is going to change too much. Gaudreau's #1 job on this team will continue to be generating offence. That's the best thing that Gaudreau does as a player, and he is the best at it on this team.

I also don't think that Gaudreau has much of a GAF problem. When I see him play night in and night out, he always seems engaged. Sometimes things aren't working and he gets frustrated, but he seems like an engaged player most of the time. That's something Sutter demands all the time, and Gaudreau fits that.

How will his game really change here?

Think back to Hartley and to Peters. I remember in Gaudreau's first couple of years, I thought he was a sneaky 'Datsyuk-like' player in the way that he backchecks. That's how he is going to grow his game in Calgary again. Sutter isn't going to demand that he goes in hard against guys in the corner, and drops his mitts every 10 games. Sutter is going to demand that Gaudreau plays with a tonne of effort, and that he supports the team with great forechecking/backchecking pressure.

Gaudreau, IMO, is already fairly good at this. Sutter is just going to push a couple of buttons and Gaudreau will just do this more often with more resolve at doing it. Gaudreau will still be a high-scoring forward. Maybe not the 99 point player, but I also wouldn't rule that out.

The bigger question marks for me are Monahan and Lindholm, as well as Andersson and Kylington.

Monahan and Lindholm have been up and down. Sometimes really good, but often underwhelming at centre. Monahan was a solid 2-way centre under Hartley. Yeah, he was just starting his career, but he had effort in every zone. I think Darryl will help Monahan get there.

As for Lindholm - I don't have an explanation for why he is not really working at centre. I mean, he has nights where he seems like the defacto 1st line centre on this team, and then stretches where he seems invisible. I think Darryl will continue keeping him where he is though - don't think he is going to convert him to the wing.

Andersson is a guy I wonder about because he takes short-cuts. I notice him the most when the puck is being dumped into his corner as avoiding contact - not so much not willing to engage physically, but he is often not willing to take the hit to make the play. Yes, if you can avoid a hit, do it, as hits wear you down and impact your season. I am specifically referring to the times when Andersson CAN get to the puck first, but slows up and allows the forechecker to touch the puck first, and then he engages physically. Sometimes you just need to get to the puck first and move it, and take the hit while doing so. Stuff like that. I wonder if Darryl is going to keep all the pairings together, and what an impact he will have on them. I like Andersson, but I notice some of the bad tendencies that he has. I think he still has another level of upside to his game, and I think with Sutter, he is more likely to get there now. Don't misunderstand me - I love Andersson. He is already a very good player for Calgary, and I bet that he will get even better.

Kylington is the other guy. I don't see him being out-muscled all that often (kid is stronger than he looks).

I think what is wrong with Kylington is kind of the same issue as what is wrong with Bennett - mixed messaging. I think they will both benefit from a coach who tells them exactly what they need to improve on, how to improve on it, and will not allow them to be confused about it. When Bennett was scratched, remember what he said? "Maybe playing games." - now that is not an answer I want to hear from a player - that's not a 'character response' from a player in the first place, and Bennett deserves criticism for it. However, the bigger issue is that it seems that Bennett wasn't getting the message. Perhaps it was never conveyed to him on what exactly he needs to work on, or maybe he has been getting mixed-messaging.

Sutter is good at saying exactly what he means. Maybe that's what Bennett needs. Maybe it works out for Bennett, and maybe it won't. There are no guarantees that Sutter will like him. Bennett does make some terrible decisions at times, and his effort on the backcheck isn't always 100% (though he has made some fricken amazing efforts on saving goals that nobody seems to talk about much). I think this is as good a chance as any that Bennett will turn his game around, but it is not guaranteed. I look forward to seeing what happens there.

Kylington is in the same boat. This kid can skate, defend well, move the puck quickly, and shoots the puck like a beast (such an underrated wrister and slapper). Bingo was right in that he seems to pause with the puck a lot. I see Bennett doing this too. I think it is confidence and doing thing that aren't second nature. Darryl helps with this. Maybe he won't like Kylington and he will be expendable, as perhaps this 'freeze' he has at times is something you can't correct. I do think this is a really great shot for Kylington to become a regular NHL'er now.

This team has looked disjointed for a few seasons now. They started looking disjointed when the goalies couldn't make saves under Hartley. Then they looked disjointed for most of the time under Gulutzan. They looked like a machine mostly under Peters for a while, and then it just disappeared somehow. They have looked completely disorganized under Ward.

I think it will take a couple of weeks - and I hope that the Flames win more than they lose until then, and often the energy of the change gives an artificial uptick in performance, so here's hoping! - but I bet this team starts figuring it out.

I really believe in this team still. I still wish Brodie was here too, but Tanev has been really good and I think he will continue to be really good. I am glad that this change has been made before the core players were getting replaced. Gaudreau may or may not be the most purely skilled player that the Flames have ever had, but he is in the top 5 at least. Monahan is an exceptional finisher. I can go on through the list..

This team is a lot better than what their record indicated. What their record indicated was that they are who they are - an under-performing team. Sutter will get them back to performing for sure, and it wouldn't surprise me to see them out-performing expectations in time.

03-05-2021, 12:56 PM	#1008
Calgary4LIfe Franchise Player Join Date: Jun 2010 Exp:	I think there are a lot of people wondering how Gaudreau fits into a Darryl Sutter team. I may be wrong, but I don't think that Sutter is going to change too much. Gaudreau's #1 job on this team will continue to be generating offence. That's the best thing that Gaudreau does as a player, and he is the best at it on this team. I also don't think that Gaudreau has much of a GAF problem. When I see him play night in and night out, he always seems engaged. Sometimes things aren't working and he gets frustrated, but he seems like an engaged player most of the time. That's something Sutter demands all the time, and Gaudreau fits that. How will his game really change here? Think back to Hartley and to Peters. I remember in Gaudreau's first couple of years, I thought he was a sneaky 'Datsyuk-like' player in the way that he backchecks. That's how he is going to grow his game in Calgary again. Sutter isn't going to demand that he goes in hard against guys in the corner, and drops his mitts every 10 games. Sutter is going to demand that Gaudreau plays with a tonne of effort, and that he supports the team with great forechecking/backchecking pressure. Gaudreau, IMO, is already fairly good at this. Sutter is just going to push a couple of buttons and Gaudreau will just do this more often with more resolve at doing it. Gaudreau will still be a high-scoring forward. Maybe not the 99 point player, but I also wouldn't rule that out. The bigger question marks for me are Monahan and Lindholm, as well as Andersson and Kylington. Monahan and Lindholm have been up and down. Sometimes really good, but often underwhelming at centre. Monahan was a solid 2-way centre under Hartley. Yeah, he was just starting his career, but he had effort in every zone. I think Darryl will help Monahan get there. As for Lindholm - I don't have an explanation for why he is not really working at centre. I mean, he has nights where he seems like the defacto 1st line centre on this team, and then stretches where he seems invisible. I think Darryl will continue keeping him where he is though - don't think he is going to convert him to the wing. Andersson is a guy I wonder about because he takes short-cuts. I notice him the most when the puck is being dumped into his corner as avoiding contact - not so much not willing to engage physically, but he is often not willing to take the hit to make the play. Yes, if you can avoid a hit, do it, as hits wear you down and impact your season. I am specifically referring to the times when Andersson CAN get to the puck first, but slows up and allows the forechecker to touch the puck first, and then he engages physically. Sometimes you just need to get to the puck first and move it, and take the hit while doing so. Stuff like that. I wonder if Darryl is going to keep all the pairings together, and what an impact he will have on them. I like Andersson, but I notice some of the bad tendencies that he has. I think he still has another level of upside to his game, and I think with Sutter, he is more likely to get there now. Don't misunderstand me - I love Andersson. He is already a very good player for Calgary, and I bet that he will get even better. Kylington is the other guy. I don't see him being out-muscled all that often (kid is stronger than he looks). I think what is wrong with Kylington is kind of the same issue as what is wrong with Bennett - mixed messaging. I think they will both benefit from a coach who tells them exactly what they need to improve on, how to improve on it, and will not allow them to be confused about it. When Bennett was scratched, remember what he said? "Maybe playing games." - now that is not an answer I want to hear from a player - that's not a 'character response' from a player in the first place, and Bennett deserves criticism for it. However, the bigger issue is that it seems that Bennett wasn't getting the message. Perhaps it was never conveyed to him on what exactly he needs to work on, or maybe he has been getting mixed-messaging. Sutter is good at saying exactly what he means. Maybe that's what Bennett needs. Maybe it works out for Bennett, and maybe it won't. There are no guarantees that Sutter will like him. Bennett does make some terrible decisions at times, and his effort on the backcheck isn't always 100% (though he has made some fricken amazing efforts on saving goals that nobody seems to talk about much). I think this is as good a chance as any that Bennett will turn his game around, but it is not guaranteed. I look forward to seeing what happens there. Kylington is in the same boat. This kid can skate, defend well, move the puck quickly, and shoots the puck like a beast (such an underrated wrister and slapper). Bingo was right in that he seems to pause with the puck a lot. I see Bennett doing this too. I think it is confidence and doing thing that aren't second nature. Darryl helps with this. Maybe he won't like Kylington and he will be expendable, as perhaps this 'freeze' he has at times is something you can't correct. I do think this is a really great shot for Kylington to become a regular NHL'er now. This team has looked disjointed for a few seasons now. They started looking disjointed when the goalies couldn't make saves under Hartley. Then they looked disjointed for most of the time under Gulutzan. They looked like a machine mostly under Peters for a while, and then it just disappeared somehow. They have looked completely disorganized under Ward. I think it will take a couple of weeks - and I hope that the Flames win more than they lose until then, and often the energy of the change gives an artificial uptick in performance, so here's hoping! - but I bet this team starts figuring it out. I really believe in this team still. I still wish Brodie was here too, but Tanev has been really good and I think he will continue to be really good. I am glad that this change has been made before the core players were getting replaced. Gaudreau may or may not be the most purely skilled player that the Flames have ever had, but he is in the top 5 at least. Monahan is an exceptional finisher. I can go on through the list.. This team is a lot better than what their record indicated. What their record indicated was that they are who they are - an under-performing team. Sutter will get them back to performing for sure, and it wouldn't surprise me to see them out-performing expectations in time.