Flames: 28-34-5, 61 points, 6th in Pacific, 12th in West, 27th in NHL.
Coyotes: 28-32-7, 63 points, 5th in Pacific, 11th in West, 25th in NHL.
I figured since the season is winding down, and I only have a few more opportunities to write these threads, that I would give my year in review for the team and specific people. There really isn't a whole lot to write about for these games, so I figured this would be a better use of my time. I will start with the recently departed players since their body of work is done, work my way through the veterans, and end with the recent additions to give them more of a sample to talk about. My personal player rating is in brackets.
Karri Ramo (B+) 17-18-1, GAA-2.63, Sv%-.909 : Ramo started the year off terribly, almost single handedly losing games for the Flames. A string of sub .900 Sv% games got him demoted to Stockton for 1 game. Ramo could have sulked, but he decided to keep working and get back in game shape. Following his recall, he went on a very solid run of games where he willed this team back into the playoff picture. After the all-star break, his game started to tail off again, but he was still a solid option in net. A serious knee injury ended his season, and may have all but ended his NHL career. All in all, Ramo is what he is, a 1B starter who did his best to help this team. I have to give him credit for never giving up and battling hard every night.
Jiri Hudler (B-) G-10, A-25, P-35, -1 : Jiri had a troublesome campaign from the start. Even though he was putting up points, he was not very effective or much of a difference maker for the Flames. Despite 9 points in the first 11 games, Jiri was a bit of a liability defensively, and was noticeably slower. It's very likely that he started the year with a slight groin injury that he's been battling ever since. However, Jiri wasn't the only veteran who struggled this year, so I won't put all the blame on him. After the halfway point of the season, Hudler looked much more engaged in the play despite the team's poor spot in the standings. In the end, Hudler was a solid veteran who was paid to produce points, and he did that regularly in his time with the Flames.
Kris Russell (C+) G-4, A-11, P-15, GWG-1, -4 : Russell had a mildly disappointing year. Much of that had to do with the massive regression of his regular partner, Dennis Wideman, but even away from Wideman, Russell didn't improve that much. As an undersized defender, Russell was always in tough against the bigger, physical teams, but he always battled hard and tried to find a way to defend despite regularly losing puck battles down low. He compensated by being one of the best shot blockers in the game again this year, but even when he regained the puck, he had trouble moving it out of the zone. That's the problem I had with Russell this year, he didn't play to his strengths, that being skating and puck movement. He was slowly becoming a liability in his own zone, and he wasn't able to get the puck up ice and attack offensively, hence the dip in his numbers. Russell wasn't the biggest problem for this team's defense, but the holes in his game sure did show up this year.
Markus Granlund (C) G-4, A-3, P-7, -1 : Different year, same story with Granlund. After being demoted near the start of the year, Granlund played very well in the AHL and earned a call up. He scored 3 goals in his first 6 games back, and looked like a solid 2-way forward who could be dangerous at times on offense. Then, slowly but surely, he faded into the woodwork, adding very little in terms of offensive production, or even offensive chances. While being a good positional player, he would get outmuscled easily most nights and found himself on the wrong side of the puck. Granlund was, and is, a smart player with some good skill, but he's never been able to figure it out with any regularity at the NHL level. He was a warm body most nights and not much more.
Ladislav Smid (C) G-0, A-0, P-0, -7 : Smid did the nearly impossible this year coming back from a neck injury that should have ended his career. Reminded me a little of Gary Roberts or Daymond Langkow back in the day. When he finally made it into the lineup, he looked like the Smid of old. He was physical, decently agile, and made safe plays. He stabilized the bottom pairing when he was in the lineup, but due to his slower foot speed he was exposed at times this year. Another injury to his neck has likely ended his season, and possibly his career this time. Smid is a borderline NHLer at this point, but I have to applaud his heart and determination.
David Jones (D) G-9, A-6, P-15, GWG-2, -8 : I've been up and down on David Jones in his time with the Flames, but I'd say I was up on him more than down. However, this year he really frustrated me, and I'm glad he's gone. After a couple of hot streaks in October and November where Jones scored with regularity over a handful of games, he disappeared. There were long stretches of the year that I couldn't tell you one positive thing David Jones did in a game. In fact, since November 17th, he scored just 2 goals for the Flames, a span of 38 games. He didn't hurt your team necessarily, but he sure didn't contribute anything to winning. That is the very definition of a plug. All for the bargain price of $4 million a year.
As for the game tonight, just a few notes. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is questionable for the game as he sat out last game against Vancouver. All of T.J. Brodie, Sam Bennett, and Deryk Engelland are questionable for the Flames, but none of their injuries were very serious, so expect all of those players to be back in the lineup very soon. Because of that and the lack of lineup options, I can only post the lineups from last game. Expect updates throughout the day. Joni Ortio is the confirmed starter for the Flames.
Edit: Updated lines. Changes are in bold.
Flames
Gaudreau-Monahan-Ferland
Agostino-Backlund-Frolik
Bouma-
Jooris-Colborne
Bollig-Stajan-
Hathaway
Giordano-Hamilton
Engelland-Jokipakka
Nakladal-Wotherspoon
Ortio
Coyotes
Tanguay-Vermette-Duclair
Rieder-Hanzal-
Tikhonov
Domi-Richardson-Doan
Martinook-Gordon-Plotnikov
Grossman-Stone
Dahlbeck-Michalek
Murphy-Connauton
Domingue
Go Flames Go!!!!!!
