Hathaway discussion

[calgaryblood]

So what happened with Hathaway? I don't really understand why he was sent to the minors and we haven't heard of him since.

He played hard every shift and was physical and did his job. It doesn't really make much sense to me and I think he could definitely take Bouma's spot and be an upgrade on him. He also seems to be a perfect player to play against the Ducks.

Will we see him in the playoffs? I hope so.

[Gaudfather]

Hathaway they could send down, whereas Lazar they could not.

They also wanted to keep him playing and help Stockton with their run.

I expect him to be added to the roster when Stockton's run is done.

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by Gaudfather

Hathaway they could send down, whereas Lazar they could not.

They also wanted to keep him playing and help Stockton with their run.

I expect him to be added to the roster when Stockton's run is done.

The Flames should be worrying about their season, not about Stockton. He was playing well and physical and didn't deserve to be sent down.

They could have just sat out a different player like Bouma.

When you have guys like Brouwer and Versteeg floating around doing nothing waiting for the next pp to do anything, it shouldn't be the guy who is playing balls to the wall every shift for you sitting out but hey that's just my opinion.

[Toonage]

The bigger issue may be, where does he slot in?

He isn't going to play LW and they're pretty much set at RW.

[GullFoss]

Ok - but now that the flames can call up Hathaway, does he outshine anyone who currently has a spot in the up? Perhaps less skilled, but brings a lot of jam. For lineup spots where players are only going to play 5-10 minutes a night, might make sense to have Hathaway.

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by Toonage

The bigger issue may be, where does he slot in?

He isn't going to play LW and they're pretty much set at RW.

Well they made it work before, don't see why this time would be any different with pretty much the exact same team.

[Roof-Daddy]

It's a numbers game and luckily the Flames were pretty much injury free most of the year.

[Toonage]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

Well they made it work before, don't see why this time would be any different with pretty much the exact same team.

They made it work due to injury, and when they had less cohesive lines.

Now they have a functional top line and a bottom 6 that won them 10 games in a row.

Unless Chiasson goes down to injury or has an awful first few games I just can't see him being brought up. And even then it would probably be Lazar slotting in.

The bottom 6 are

Versteeg-Bennett-Chiasson
Bouma-Stajan-Brouwer

I doubt we see Hathaway-Stajan-Brouwer. And if Chiasson moves out its Brouwer moving up. They won't be sitting him, even though a good chunk of people think they should. This time of the year is the entire reason they have him here.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have Hathaway in the line up and think he'd be a good fit for this series. I just don't see where he fits at the moment.

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by Toonage

They made it work due to injury, and when they had less cohesive lines.

Now they have a functional top line and a bottom 6 that won them 10 games in a row.

Unless Chiasson goes down to injury or has an awful first few games I just can't see him being brought up. And even then it would probably be Lazar slotting in.

The bottom 6 are

Versteeg-Bennett-Chiasson
Bouma-Stajan-Brouwer

I doubt we see Hathaway-Stajan-Brouwer. And if Chiasson moves out its Brouwer moving up. They won't be sitting him, even though a good chunk of people think they should. This time of the year is the entire reason they have him here.

Yeah no definitely not in favour of Chiasson sitting out. He's earned a permanent spot on the bottom 6 and is our best bottom 6 player hands down.

And Lazar slotting in over Hathaway in the playoffs? I hope not, Lazar hasn't earned it at all.

[ComixZone]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

Well they made it work before, don't see why this time would be any different with pretty much the exact same team.

Ferland switching to RW on the top line switched how the lines get set. He transitioned from being an LW playing with Chiasson as his RW, to an RW playing with Gaudreau as his LW.

Chiasson brings more than Hathaway.

Brouwer, Frolik, and Ferland aren't going to be scratched to play Hathaway.

So the only player that you really could scratch for Hathaway is Bouma - and then you're into a "well, Hathaway doesn't play LW" situation.

Bouma Vs. Hathaway is your conversation, and it looks like Gulutzan sees more in Bouma on the left side than he does Hathaway.

[zukes]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

The Flames should be worrying about their season, not about Stockton. He was playing well and physical and didn't deserve to be sent down.

They could have just sat out a different player like Bouma.

When you have guys like Brouwer and Versteeg floating around doing nothing waiting for the next pp to do anything, it shouldn't be the guy who is playing balls to the wall every shift for you sitting out but hey that's just my opinion.

Bolded. What?!?!? Versteeg has been awesome. I'm not sure what you were expecting, but he has exceeded my expectations by a lot. Brouwer I see, but I am also anxiously awaiting what he brings in the playoffs. That was what he was signed for.

As for Hathaway, I am all for him slotting in over Bouma. The contract is the only reason why he has not, IMO. I really hoped that last year's injuries to Bouma were the reason his play was down from the year prior. 2014-2015 Bouma looked like a future 20 goal scorer with grit. One of those 3rd line guys that winning teams seem to have. We now have 3 other mostly full seasons showing that was an outlier and not going to happen again. Hathaway deserves the chance to show what he can do.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by calgaryblood

I don't really understand why he was sent to the minors and we haven't heard of him since.

A: Because he doesn't really represent an upgrade to the team over and above what they have now.

and,

B: They have roster limits and he's waiver exempt.

[GranteedEV]

Hathaway is on a 2-way waiver exempt contract.
Freddie is a center with more offensive ability, so more useful in case of emergency
Brouwer is on a 4.5 million dollar contract for four years. Waiving him now has a lot of consequences we would prefer to avoid.
Bouma is a left shot LW, Hathaway is a right shot RW
Lazar is waiver-eligible and the most valuable piece of these.

Easy choice to send Hathaway down.

[CsInMyBlood]

Hathaway is exactly the player you want against the Ducks. No fear, finish every check, plays a heavy game, makes players want to kill him and never a liability.

I hope we see him at some point in the series.

[bax]

19 points in 28 games this year for Stockton.

He's really become a well rounded player. He will be up once Stockton is eliminated and it is my guess that he earns a full time spot next year

[868904]

Depending on how the series goes, you will probably see:

Lazar/Hamilton replace Bouma/Stajan
Hathaway replace Chiasson

I'd rather have Hathaway than Bouma, but Bouma is very well liked and respected in the dressing room. There's a veteran thing going on here.

Chiasson brings more offense and skill than Hathaway, but Hathaway brings more grit. He's been very good down the stretch but if Chiasson doesn't do much in the first 2 games, I think he'll be the first to come out of the lineup.

[Gunkle]

Hathaway is the embodiment of the Black Ace.
Hell on skates.
He's a massive and demonstrable upgrade to Bouma.
For the life of me, I can't figure out what Bouma is.
Not a shooter, skater, PK killer, not a playmaker, doesn't crash the net, no fearsome forecheck, can't fight.
He and Bollig....birds of a feather.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Bouma is a great penalty killer and is often good on the forecheck. He will also throw big hits now and then. Blocks shots and plays rock solid defense, and is certainly no wilting flower.

Hathaway brings a better motor and is a better agitator. That's it.

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[Gunkle]

I see Bouma who is big but plays small. Though he is able to do several things, he excels at nothing (IMO). Hathaway brings energy, and a forecheck that has forwards skating with their heads backwards in fear.

[Gaudfather]

The fact that Hathaway is not in the lineup also speaks to the depth the Flames have that they rarely get credit for. There will inevitably be someone going down in an extended playoff run and this depth will be needed.