Yikes that article is an indictment on Flames management and coaches. Lucic and Tkachuk basically telling it like many of us believed it was that the organization mismanaged Bennett. This is the kind of thing we ripped the Oilers for doing yet it happened right in our own backyard.
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“When he was in Calgary, he was always bouncing around,” said Tkachuk, another former Flame. “He played wing with me for a handful of games. I played the majority of my career there with Mikael Backlund, who I also love playing with — but I think when Benny was on the wing with us, that’s when our line played our best. But with Benny … he never really was that top-six centerman like he is here. He could have been in that position and would have thrived in it.
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“You had (Sean) Monahan scoring 30 goals a year at the time and then you have (Mikael) Backlund,” Lucic said. “So the opportunity for him wasn’t really there in the top six, which is interesting because you would think a guy who goes fourth overall would get a top opportunity right away.”
“We were our best line in the bubble, especially in that Winnipeg series and early on in the Dallas series,” Lucic said. “Even getting to play with him that first year when (former Flames coach Geoff) Ward took over, I was like, ‘Man, why does this guy not get to play more?’ I remember saying that to Benny, and I said it to Wardo. I remember thinking that he brings jam, he has skill, he plays a hard style.
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Glen Gulutzan was easily the most damaging head coach hire since Brad Gilbert as he got the ball rolling on Bennett's mishandling. I'm so glad the slate is wiped clean as this organization badly needed a fresh start the same way Bennett and Tkachuk needed a fresh start away from the Flames.