[Game Takes] Game Takes: Flames 2 Blues 1

[Bingo]

Flames 2 Blues 1

- Smith good on home ice
- Flames start slowly but take the game away in play
- Bennett/Jankowski don't hit scoresheet but dominate
- Sportsnet 360 cut out for me and took away the first 11 minutes of the third period!

Sorry for the delay again guys, another late night with kid's hockey.

[Insane_Flame]

I am in Vancouver and I just switched to SNP. Worked fine.

[transplant99]

As for your comment re: Jagr.

Its apparent to me that the club is better when he doesn't play. Now, that may have everything to do with his groin issues, but man he is some kind of slow. He isnt going to play on the 4th line and he simply cannot keep up on any of the others....so what to do with him? I guess you just let him heal up completely and hope like hell he regains some legs moving forward? I don't know. Im a huge fan but being completely honest I dont see a slot for him anywhere barring injuries.

Bit of a conundrum for the coaching staff.

[jaikorven]

Thanks, Bingo! I always appreciate these write-ups.

30% for the first line is a little bit shocking to me. Granted they were not playing great but I would have thought they would be around 50%. Either way, they won't stay cold for long I wouldn't think. If they do we will have a much harder time getting Ws going forward.

[jaikorven]

double post

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by transplant99

As for your comment re: Jagr.

Its apparent to me that the club is better when he doesn't play. Now, that may have everything to do with his groin issues, but man he is some kind of slow. He isnt going to play on the 4th line and he simply cannot keep up on any of the others....so what to do with him? I guess you just let him heal up completely and hope like hell he regains some legs moving forward? I don't know. Im a huge fan but being completely honest I dont see a slot for him anywhere barring injuries.

Bit of a conundrum for the coaching staff.

I thought he improved the fourth line and they generated some chances. Mind you, that was against the Canucks. And the tough thing is that it's always going to be a choice between Jagr and Lazar who are polar opposites (fast v. slow, energy v. looks like he's going to die, hitting v. gets hit, good offensive instincts v. ummmm, not so good).

But generally, yeah, Jagr's not boosting any other line. And he doesn't deserve PP time over the present group.

[killer_carlson]

Thanks again Bingo. Appreciate the write up.

I like Jagr on the 4th line, platooning until he gets PP time. I think he needs to be on the PP given just how good his hands are.

I also love the step that Sam Bennett seems to be taking in his career. I like Hathaway on that line, but I wonder if Ferland would be a better fit.

[Infinit47]

One of the better games this year. Bennet and Jankowski rally drive a line. Rotating players on their wing, like Hathaway, has been working very well. Ride Hathway until his play drops and then rotate. If his level of play stays this high then it's found money.

[SeanCharles]

Originally Posted by transplant99

As for your comment re: Jagr.

Its apparent to me that the club is better when he doesn't play. Now, that may have everything to do with his groin issues, but man he is some kind of slow. He isnt going to play on the 4th line and he simply cannot keep up on any of the others....so what to do with him? I guess you just let him heal up completely and hope like hell he regains some legs moving forward? I don't know. Im a huge fan but being completely honest I dont see a slot for him anywhere barring injuries.

Bit of a conundrum for the coaching staff.

Jagr would slot in above F. Hamilton, Lazar, Brouwer and Stajan (outside of requiring a 4th line center). When healthy he can bring more to the team over any of these guys.

The only time our 4th line has looked good this year was when Jagr was on it.

I really hope we fix our 4th line cause it doesn't really have much of an identity. The only thing it's good for is giving the top nine a rest and penalty killing (although Backs/Frolik and Jankowski/Bennett while sprinkling in Hathaway/Tkachuk is just fine dealing with PK duties).

I understand if the 4th line doesn't generate offense but a goal every once in a while would be nice and Stajan, Brouwer, Lazar, F. Hamilton and Glass have combined for 2 goals and 15 points in 98 games played. Most of that (2 goals, 9 points) has come from Brouwer who on occasion moves up the lineup and has got significant PP and PK time.

It's fine if they don't score, even with the above numbers, but in order to offset that they need to contribute in other ways. A so far lacklustre PK isn't enough considering they are not even close to Backlund/Frolik in regards to positive impact on the PK. If they were able to generate momentum with hard work, grit and puck pressure they could frustrate the other team or generate some emotion on the bench which would be of significant value to the team.

Instead we have a cast of misfits that typically make up our bottom trio which I suppose is not the worst problem to have on the team. I'm sure if we acquire some depth on the wing, as has been proposed given our need for more scoring, players would move around bolstering our 4th line.

I understand, given Jagr's groin issues, that we haven't seen him have a significant impact for the team on the ice but I feel he is a great guy to have on the team and if he can fight off the injury bug he is still one of our ten best forwards on the team. Probably even higher, when at 100%, in all honesty.

I'm excited for stretch drive towards the playoffs when Jagr will hopefully be in peak condition. We brought him in for the big picture not just regular season games.

GFG!