(Substitute for) Impaler's Mid Season Report Card - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

DeluxeMoustache · 03-12-2013, 11:48 PM

Well, Impaler said he hasn't watched enough hockey to issue a mid season report card. So somebody has to get this started... Using the same formula, with grades issues comparing to expectations. I think a lot are generous. I would think of a B as a respectable enough pass. ** Note that expectations were low. The team has 2 Cs for goodness sakes, and one was hurt half the season.

Iginla - B- - Iggy has shown a lot of compete. Some would issue a lower grade due to the slow start. He was snakebitten early but still getting a lot of shots and chances, and generally has consistently been the most dangerous player on the ice. Has found scoresheet in 15 of 24 games. Would do better with a top line center.
Cammalleri - C - Streaky and disappears for stretches at a time. 7 points in 2 games against Detroit and Dallas are the outliers and flatter his overall point totals.
Tanguay - B- - has shown some creativity and vision but looks for passes to a fault, and his defensive compete has not been adequate
Glencross - C- - has trailed off since a good start. Lazy at times without the puck.
Hudler - A - Has shown good hockey IQ and creativity, and seems decent without the puck. You notice him most games. On pace for career high points per game.
Cervenka - C- - has shown flashes of creativity and chemistry with Hudler but struggling with compete and play away from the puck and adapting to the North American game
Stajan - A- - Facing the toughest competition and zone start situation even strength and doing a good job driving possession. Only drawback is that he struggled on the PK early
Backlund - A - has been quite good at driving possession and showing flashes of finally being able to have increased responsibilities
Stempniak - B - Generally sound game with streaky offense as expected. 5 goals in his first 9, then 1 in his last 15.
Comeau - C- - Skates fast and tries to compete. Has been qood on the PK. Offensively, plays die on his stick in the offensive zone and 5 on 5 he seems to have trouble on the backcheck, watches the puck and not the man on the backcheck.
Begin - B - brings enough energy in limited 4th line minutes.
Jackman - D - pretty ineffective this year
McGrattan - B - did what was expected his first game back
Jones - D - won some faceoffs but struggled despite being heavily sheltered. Failed to stick for good reason.
Baertschi - C - being outmatched in terms of size and strength have hampered his ability to compete and find a regular shift
Horak - C - Needs more development. Seemed overmatched and failed to impress in limited time up

Bouwmeester - B- - Marked improvement in offensive contribution, joining the rush and getting back (as was expected of him 3 years ago). Plays the toughest competition and zone starts, and struggles with that assignment, particularly defensive attention to detail.
Giordano - C - Having trouble elevating his game against higher competition. Not sure where the hits, shot blocks, and offense have gone. Just sort of underwhelming.
Wideman - B+ - steady play all around. 10 points in his first 13 and just 2 points in his last 11
Brodie - A - has stepped up significantly when given an expanded role
Butler - B+ - has been solid and dependable and done the job asked of him. Starting to contribute by jumping in to the rush of late at appropriate times.
Smith - C - Has been steady. Sheltered, and not a lot happens offensively or defensively while he has been on
Sarich - C - Solid enough in minimal service. Not enough play to really comment.

Kiprusoff - C - Brutal stat wise but the C and D situation results in hideous d zone coverage and ridiculous unstoppable scoring chances, and that isn't helping anything here
MacDonald - B - ok as backup but rebound control has been questionable
Irving - C- - thinking we may have seen the last of him
Taylor - B - decent in limited service, he had a good game and got his first win, but also trouble with rebound control.

Overall: C- I like the offensive game enough, though they continue to struggle against tight checking teams, and find the d zone coverage beyond terrible. It's not as a result of the offensive game, giving up odd man rushes. More so poor attention to detail, too many guys uncontested net front and in the slot given a ton of time. The team really is easy to play against in their own zone.

nightfx · 03-13-2013, 12:01 AM

Looks good to me!

trublmaker · 03-13-2013, 12:07 AM

I'm thinking when you're last in your conference overall grade should be an F-. Team as a whole seems to lack heart too often, but much more entertaining hockey than last years brand. Just can't seem to finish it.

Five-hole · 03-13-2013, 12:13 AM

Good comments; generally agree. Here's my marks. B is met expectations for that player. If the marks were graded against where they have been playing (example: first line center) many of them would be much, much worse.

Iginla - B- - Shows hustle but hasn't made enough difference in many games.
Cammalleri - B- - Streaky. When his linemates are on, looks very good, but the opposite is true too. For the money he is making, he should make his linemates better, and he often does not.
Tanguay - D - Very disappointed with his play. Some flashes of offence but a turnover machine on transition.
Glencross - C - Could use more hustle.
Hudler - A- - Great player but his D-zone play is suspect at times.
Cervenka - B- - Up and down. Willing to be patient with him.
Stajan - A- - Drastically improved. Could use more finish.
Backlund - A
Stempniak - B+ - Streaky offence but good play away from the puck. He's what a vet at that price should bring you.
Comeau - B- - Much better lately. Can't fault his compete - has just been way too high up the depth chart at times.
Begin - B
Jackman - C
McGrattan - B
Jones - B- - I liked his game generally. Not sure where things went wrong. No finish.
Baertschi - C+ - Starting to see development of the NHL game on D, but hasn't been put in a position to succeed offensively and nor has he forced the coaches' hands in putting him there.
Horak - n/a

Bouwmeester - B+ - Has trailed off of late, but a marked improvement from his first 3 years. Playing a more physical game and asserting himself in all zones. Still struggles at reading the play when the opposition is set up (e.g. PK.)
Giordano - C- - Generally pretty bad. Lots of compete but he's forcing everything to little result.
Wideman - B - Initially looked like a steal but has regressed to what I thought: offensive-minded D with suspect defence.
Brodie - A - Fantastic progression this year.
Butler - B+ - Much improved skating and puck play but is still weak at establishing presence in the D zone.
Smith - B- - Generally fine. Would like more offence.
Sarich - n/a

Kiprusoff - D - I've seen more weak goals this year in a handful of games than in many full seasons on his resume. Many at awful times in the game.
MacDonald - B+
Irving - C - Hoped to see more after being given his shot.
Taylor - n/a

Overall: D

Flashes of great play but a general lack of cohesion, character, grit, and leadership. These pieces do not fit together.

Jacks · 03-13-2013, 12:14 AM

Agree with most of that but C is a passing grade, we aren't passing anything.

Walter Reed · 03-13-2013, 12:25 AM

Grading Kiprusoff a "D" IMO is too low, that said I wouldn't give any player an "A" either ...

H2SO4(aq) · 03-13-2013, 12:45 AM

as has been commented already, as per your grading, well said on pretty much every player, however, look at the standings and just bump everyone down a letter grade. results speak.

but great analysis, honestly.

Vulcan · 03-13-2013, 01:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walter Reed

Grading Kiprusoff a "D" IMO is too low, that said I wouldn't give any player an "A" either ...

I think it's right on. You can blame the team in front of him all you want but he's got the worst stats of any of our 4 goalies. We use to say the same about his backups but where are his backups today. This is a results orientated job and Kipper isn't getting it done.

killer_carlson · 03-13-2013, 01:28 AM

For a guy whomis paid to be a third liner yet is second on the team for goals scored, Glencross sure gets a lot of grief.

His grade is too low. He would be close to a 30 goal pace over 82 games.

DeluxeMoustache · 03-13-2013, 01:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

For a guy whomis paid to be a third liner yet is second on the team for goals scored, Glencross sure gets a lot of grief.

His grade is too low. He would be close to a 30 goal pace over 82 games.

Fair enough. I remember what he, Conroy and Moss used to be as a line and fear his move to one dimensional player has made him Olli Jokinen on the wing (and pro rating on a short sample includes a really hot and unsustainable start).

Offensive contribution for dollars, tough to argue. But overall game for minutes, the big picture is fuzzier, my opinion only

Erick Estrada · 03-13-2013, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

For a guy whomis paid to be a third liner yet is second on the team for goals scored, Glencross sure gets a lot of grief.

His grade is too low. He would be close to a 30 goal pace over 82 games.

Yeah. He has had some rough games of late but I feel too many forget where he came from and how much he gets paid. Anything less than a B is being overly critical IMO.

Poe969 · 03-13-2013, 07:07 AM

So this team is getting decent grades but is last in the west? I'm not saying that the players are bad, but collectively they are. It just goes to further my position that this team is full of "support" players. If these guys were all on different teams and didn't have to be the "go to" guys they are here, they'd do better. Good assesments though.

cDnStealth · 03-13-2013, 07:23 AM

The only players I have been consistently impressed with this year are Hudler, Backlund, Bouwmeester and Stajan.

Itse · 03-13-2013, 07:33 AM

Stempniak: A. One of the few consistent performers on the team, easily the best bang for the buck, and a rare positive +/- stat.
Hudler: B+. Does what he is paid for.
Stajan: B+. Solid two way play, but not enough points.
Backlund: B+ Two steps forward, but one step back with the injury.
MacDonald: B. Competent backup. Not his fault that it makes him the best goalie we have.
Wideman: B. Has done exactly what he was brough here to do.
Cervenka: B. Tough start for the season. Decent points, not that great defensively. Low expectatations save his rating.
Brodie: B. Slight improvement, as expected. Best bang for the buck out of the defensemen.
Iginla: B-. Not an impact player anymore, but leading the team in scoring as expected.
Smith: B-. I feel he was better last year.
Comeau, Begin, Horak, Babchuk, Jackman, Sarich: B- Not much expected, not much delivered.
Giordano: C+. I think this board tends to overrate how good his "best" actually is, but this season it's clear he's not meeting expectations.
Tanguay and Cammalleri: C. Okay personal points but terrible defensive game. Not too far from expectations.
Bouwmeester: C. Started to put up some points, but still not an impact player on most nights, and still not good enough defensively.
Butler: C.
Irving: C-. Looked like a guy who will never get his nerves under control.
Kipprusoff: F. Second to last in SV% out of all the goalies in the league. The weakest link in a pretty bad team. Another case of the management waiting too long to trade players.

Overall: D-. Not really surprising that they are doing worse than last year, but last in the conference is still ugly.

Poe969 · 03-13-2013, 07:36 AM

How can you give out a bunch of decent grades and say overall they're a D? And Stempniak has been a surprise but he's got 16 points and that's an A? I guess if your marking based on their contract and what they produce but the overall decent grades are kind of mind bottling...

cDnStealth · 03-13-2013, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poe969

How can you give out a bunch of decent grades and say overall they're a D? And Stempniak has been a surprise but he's got 16 points and that's an A? I guess if your marking based on their contract and what they produce but the overall decent grades are kind of mind bottling...

Aren't these grades usually assigned based on individual expectation? An "A" for Stempniak doesn't mean he has to go out and score 30 goals.

Poe969 · 03-13-2013, 08:03 AM

Ya, I understand that Stempniak has been a decent surprise but I still don't know if I'd give him an A. He has been a pretty decent player for us thouogh.

As for some others, I still don't know how individually they'd have a bunch of decent grades yet collectively they're crap

cDnStealth · 03-13-2013, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poe969

Ya, I understand that Stempniak has been a decent surprise but I still don't know if I'd give him an A. He has been a pretty decent player for us thouogh.

As for some others, I still don't know how individually they'd have a bunch of decent grades yet collectively they're crap

Oh I agree. There should be a lot more D's and F's flying around.

Huntingwhale · 03-13-2013, 08:15 AM

I'd put Tanguay down to a D+. When was the last time he made a pretty pass? Often times he looks like he's floating around and it was getting pretty tiresome after a while when he refuses to shoot and tries to force passes to Iggy. Tanguay is one of those players who you think has a quiet night, yet puts up a point or 2 on the board. I honestly thought he'd be a more effective player with Hartley on board, but I'm not convinced. Ignoring his point totals, I'm very disappointed in his play this season.

Brodie I'd give a B-. He has shown improvement since last season which is a good thing. Still has the occasional hickup, but he's young and learning. I'd like to see him solidify a top 4 spot in the upcoming years.

Wideman gets a C+. He started out as an A, but man has his offence died down since the first couple weeks. 2 pts in his last 11 games, after posting 10 in his first 13. Haven't seen him ''QB" the PP efficiently for a while now. I've still yet to see any of the supposed brain-farts other fans warned us about so I think he is underrated defensively. I'd like to see his offence pick up though.

Iggy gets a C+. He's done a lot more for the team then just score, but he cannot carry this team anymore. Not his fault as age plays a factor, but I'd like to see him more fired up.

-----------------------

Coaching gets a C-. At times the team is fun to watch, other times its full of head scratching decisions. Not pleased at all with their defensive play.

Goaltending gets a D+. Kipper is off this year, and without him playing at an elite level the true colors of this team are shown. Our backups have no rebound control.

Defense as a whole gets a C-. Decent offense from the backend, but Gio sucking this season has hurt us more then anything this year IMO. Other then Brodie and Bow, our backend is slow. As a whole they are incredibly soft and nothing disgusts me more then watching them NOT clear the net.

Offense gets a C. At times they attack hard and put up chances. But for all the skill shown, there is no finish. Missing wide open nets. Not shooting and chosing to pass. Looking for the pretty play. Frustrating to watch.

---------------

Overall this team gets a C. I think with the parity around the league and how any team has a chance to win on any given night plays a factor. The fact that we are in last place in the West yet only 6 pts out shows just how close this conference is a whole. Unfortunately while other teams trend upward, the Flames trend downwards. Hearing Feaster say managment will not blow it up is frustrating as a fan to see. 3 years ago I was on-board with some retooling here and there. I thought that the Flames might be the exception to the rebuilding rule. That somehow they could pull off the feat of staying competitive while not blowing it up. I've come to the realization that a rebuild is on its way, whether is forced or not.

Poe969 · 03-13-2013, 08:15 AM

just shows how accepting not only the organization but the fans have become with mediocrity