Playing faster is all upstairs. The Flames don’t have a fast team - only Dube is what I consider fast in the NHL - but the main issue is not physical (though I’d sure like a fast winger over 200 pounds). It’s in making decisions instantly or close to it. The Flames take far to long to get a pass off (and then it’s often a miss). They telegraph. This includes guys like Gaudreau who have a great passing rep (IMO Johnny is a terrific at area passing and merely good at passing to a stick).
If you watch the teams who have a “fast” rep, I’d say their speed isn’t mostly from having a burner like McDavid or Mikhayev, it’s from turning the puck over, and getting going the other way quickly with fast passing. Look at Boston. Is Bergeron fast? He’s not slow but he doesn’t beat players to the outside a lot. Marchand has speed but who else? Look at Vegas. There’s no reason the Flames can’t do this, unless they are full of stupid players.
ETA: I don’t think this was a matter of the system not fitting the players. You can only go so far with that anyway, because any team is a pretty big mix. It’s a matter of buy-in and execution.
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