Scapegoating.
Average goaltending and winning just the league average overtime wins and the Flames would have pushed Vegas to the limit and maybe won. Those two things happening a few times over the course of 82 didn't involve any different style or effort from the team as a whole, playing much better, instead just getting a save and or an OT goal every few weeks.
And if Sutter and the team gets in pushes Vegas, or wins a round and slays the Oilers dragon, he's not going anywhere for a while, no matter how disgruntled those same players that are happy today who didn't like their buttons pushed in the regular season, think or not.
Sutter's style isn't for everyone, but if it gets results it is. This year wasn't on him nor did players quit on him except Kadri. Toffolli and Zadorov had great years and some players need that pushing for it. Pushing made Tkachuk and JG better players thanks to Sutter last year.
Will hold judgement based on the new coach and Gm, but the more concerning thing for me is some players are clearly running the show again, like they did extending Ward. Those players, who have been here a while, clearly liked the days of having it easy under GG and Ward, and look forward to kicking the soccer ball in practice again and playing some music. It's pretty clear from the exit interviews who those are.
Hope I'm wrong, but the last two attempts (3 if you count Playfair way back when) at finding a "players" or "teaching" coach ended in wasted multiple seasons with players who lounged around and didn't get pushed to potential and the Flames figured it out that they need a task master (Keenan, Hartley, Peters,Sutter). Brent Sutter was somewhat in the middle. The new management cannot let the inmates run the asylum behind the scenes with the coach, GM or any other managerial choice.
And oh well, if they don't make it next year, the built in excuse will then be because of the ptsd Sutter gave them when he got mad at them this year.
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