Adam Frickin' Cracknell

[dobbles]

So as many of you may remember, I came to these boards as a fan of the Quad Cities Flames after they spawned almost 10 years ago. Getting the chance to see 60 or 70 AHL games live and having insanely cheap front row season tickets was an amazing time.

I have continued to follow pretty much anyone that donned a QC Flames jersey and wanted to make a thread today to talk about Adam Cracknell. He has continued to stick in the league and has actually played really well with the Stars this year. He has played a strong energy role on their 4th line and has managed to chip in a few goals and remain a plus player. He has managed to carve out a decent career of 166 NHL games after being a player that was not very good while in the AHL. My memories of him mostly consist of him skating around the offensive zone and never passing.

I have not looked recently, but I think the only players still in the league from those 2 seasons are Cracknell and Curtis McElhinney. Other notables that stuck around until rather recently were Nystrom, Prust, and Pardy. Not too shabby for a 9th round pick!

Just wanted to shine a little light on the former Flame prospect as he has been a pretty nice bright spot on the underachieving Stars team. Even aside from the score sheet, he gets his name called for positive reasons just about every game. As a Stars convert (most probably remember me as a Wings fan) I watch pretty much all their games.

[Gallick]

I really enjoyed watching the Blues 'CPR' line - Cracknell, Porter and Reaves - a couple of years ago. Thought it was one of the best fourth lines in hockey at the time. They were fantastic against the Kings in the playoffs in 2013. Played really simple hockey, hit everything that moved, and were relentless on the forecheck, a perfect energy line. Always nice to see Flames castoffs succeeding elsewhere.

[dobbles]

Originally Posted by Gallick

I really enjoyed watching the Blues 'CPR' line - Cracknell, Porter and Reaves - a couple of years ago. Thought it was one of the best fourth lines in hockey at the time. They were fantastic against the Kings in the playoffs in 2013. Played really simple hockey, hit everything that moved, and were relentless on the forecheck, a perfect energy line. Always nice to see Flames castoffs succeeding elsewhere.

Agreed on that line. Reaves was someone we played against in the QC days when he was with Peoria. (so was Porter for that matter) He took an awkward hit to his leg in one game and had to be carried off. Came back a few shifts later to play. One of those typical tough guy hockey moments that earns tons of respect and makes us remember why sports like basketball and soccer can't compare to hockey!

[Erick Estrada]

My brother is s decent beer league goaltender and Cracknell lit him up bad in a summer pick up hockey game a few years back. You realize fast that even fringe NHL players are still really, really good hockey players. I always pull for guys like Cracknell that don't give up on the dream and continue to work hard.

[HappyGilmore]

Cracknell is a beauty. Told him I was Hitchcocks relieitive and was going to tell him he was out getting wasted. He replied with "I don't even get to play anyway", had some cool NHL stories.