Expectations for the season

[Street Pharmacist]

Big question: What would a good season be this year? What do you think it will be in the end? How many Rookies will play? What are you looking forward to?




It's mentioned in every thread almost. The Flames will likely suck. I'm not sure they'll be as bad as some predict, but they will be out of any shot of the playoffs early. I don't see a 10/11 Oilers bad, but bad.


Offense:
They have no quality finishers save Cammaleri. No real set up man except maybe Hudler. Basically, no real first line players (maybe Cammaleri). Lots of secondary players. I don't foresee too many goals from this group. The entire forward core scored 67 goals in 405 combined NHL games last year. If you average it out and make it 12 average forwards over 82 games, that's 163 goals from the forwards. Lots of caveats there, for example the fact that many of these players will get more ice time than they did last year. Contrast that with the fact they'll be playing with less talented linemates, and it's a decent guess IMO.

They have no number 1 puck mover. They do have a PP threat in Wideman, and an emerging talent in Brodie. The rest are not going to contribute to the goals department much. I don't see very many goals from the back end overall. Last year this group had 14 goals in 245 NHL games. Same formula as above and you get 28 goals in an 82 game season.

Add it up and the goals aren't going to come often. That's 191 goals projected, or a 2.3 G/G. Only 3 teams were worse last year, and only 1 the year before.

Defense:
The GA stat is going to be dependent on a team with a lot of turnover learning to play their coverage in a system that's new to many. There aren't a lot of forwards that don't back check (Hudler maybe), so that should help. I didn't see a statistical way to project this, and it'll be highly reliant on the system and the players buy in anyways.
As for the D, there are a few Dmen that aren't known for their defensive prowess (SOB, Butler, Wideman) and this may be an Achilles Heel.
In net, there does not appear to be a quality starter, but it's probably too early to make that call.

I expect quite a few GA, few GF and maybe 70-75 points for a 27th overall finish.


I know I'll be in the minority here, but this will be a long season for me I think. The frustration for me is the lack of purpose there will likely be when there is no playoffs in the future really early on. It takes away the intensity and injects some apathy. A loss may be no big deal if there are Rookies playing well, but that's hard to do when the team around them is bad. It's too early in the rebuild to expect anything more if you ask me. I'm even debating getting Center Ice as in BC I won't get many games otherwise. Normally it's not a question.

I'm excited for the future, but maybe not for this season.

[Vulcan]

No expectations.

[robaur]

playoffs.

if not, then finishing above the oilers.

[Karl]

Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist

I expect quite a few GA, few GF and maybe 70-75 points for a 27th overall finish.
.

This sounds about right.

I'm not only excited about how the young guys will do, but also how our 'trade bait' guys perform this season as well.

[terminator]

Cup

[saXon]

Expectation: proper levels of pugnacity, testosterone, truculence and belligerence.

[Poe969]

Tough season to watch but more fun than most years resulting in us drafting Ekblad.

[irrevocable]

A good season for me would be Sven breaking out and finding some real consistency at the NHL level.

[Azhouse]

Originally Posted by robaur

finishing above the oilers.

This x 1000...stupid oilers

[djsFlames]

A hard, competing team that never lets up, whether ahead 3-1 or down 5-1. A team that wont take s#### from anyone, on and off the ice.

I don't expect them to do great things, but I would predict, based on the kind of fight these guys have shown already that they'll do a hell of a lot more than people give them credit for. I think it'll come to light that the being in the shadows of Jarome and Jbo were, in some ways, a hinderance. I say they'll be in the playoff dogfight well into the new year.

On a personal level though, I want to see both our top guys (Sven and Sean) stay here and have outstanding years, even if not entirely statistically. That by year's end, they've come to demonstrate that they can impact the outcome of games for this team in their own ways.

[Caged Great]

My expectations is that we'll likely see 40+ players cycle through the team over the course of the season. Some young guys will have breakout seasons, others will disappoint. More information will be gained on everyone, and adjustments to projections will be made. Some veterans will be traded and others will remain.

[Henry Fool]

One or two major breakout seasons from young players would be nice.

As for the play style, I hope they play solid all around without lapsing into scared-to-lose tightass hockey, which is never sustainable and always terrible to watch. Solid loose hockey that isn't lazy but doesn't turn every game into a grind either. Could be a tough balance to achieve but going full Brent will lead to neurotic, pussified hockey. They have young legs and minds and they should use those strengths.

(Mike Yeo in Minnesota will lose his job after this season if hasn't learned this lesson. Even with added talent, his team still played like an expansion team, which left them drained and without a higher gear.)

[Lanny_McDonald]

Dead last. We have the worst defense in the NHL. We have the worst forward group with potential to score. We have no proven goaltending. You can't get much worse than that, so dead last is the expectation. Anything better is a bonus. I just hope for some entertaining games along the way and some breakout performances from players we hope to be part of our core going forward.

[ParaguayPlett]

Given that Cammy is in a contract season, I'm hoping that he has a strong run that can net us a decent pick up when a contender comes knocking. The last few seasons have shown that the price for rentals is back where it should be, and that teams in rebuild can get a decent return.

Hate to say it, but my expectation is that we're in for a really, really long season.

Goaltending: I have practically zero faith in Ramo, nor MacDonald. Sadly, Berra will more than likely have to wait. If he does get some action, I'm a little concerned that he'll get shelled a few times like Irving did, and his confidence will be rocked enough for us to forget about him two to three years from now. Expect a lot of routes coming our way.

Defense: I really, really, really wish that O'Brien wasn't a Flame. He's a bad-penalty-per-game kinda guy, and brings very little upside. Wideman is fine, but I look at him more like a poor man's Phaneuf. I hope that the 'C' lifts Giordano's game a lot, but that's a very tough act to follow, and sometimes Gio can go dormant. At least there's Brodie to watch and get excited about.

Forwards: This is where our excitement should come from. We're not going to be lighting the lamp a lot this year, but within this group is where we'll find the nuggets of our future. Sven will have a lot of CP's eyes on him, as we hope and pray for his ascent into greatness. Glenny will be good for a good chunk of our goals, and I'll definitely be picking him as a sleeper pick in my pool this year... because SOMEONE has to score for us.

I like the Galiardi pick up, and I'm hoping that he can find some of his touch from years past. Same goes for Jones, but I don't have my hopes up. Up the middle is where things are most interesting. Hopefully Stajan can do what Cammy can, and up his value for trade time. Backlund is a darkhorse, but my patience with him is waning quickly.

Lastly, we've got Monohan. Every time he steps on the ice, we'll be watching to see what's to come. He'll probably get weak minutes. He'll probably go 9 and out. But damn, he's the reason this season (at least the first nine games) will be at all watchable.

That all said, it's going to be a long wait until Draft Day 2014 lifts our spirits again.

[Sutter4Mayor]

I'm happy with the Flames only having 8 wins this year. As long as those wins come against the Oilers and Canucks.

[bubbsy]

it would be great to see a team that is relentless on the forecheck and considered a team that outworks the opposition on a nightly basis, regardless of the end result.

It would be disappointing not to see backlund or baertchi emerge as legit top 6 players.

I also intend on watching the trade deadline time as a critical and busy period for the flames, similar to last season. Today, we sit with 2 picks in the first 4 rounds, 1 pick in the first 60 picks. I would be disappointed if we don't have 2-3 picks in the top 60 when all is said and done.

[Henry Fool]

Originally Posted by ParaguayPlett

[...]
Lastly, we've got MonOhan. Every time he steps on the ice, we'll be watching to see what's to come. He'll probably get weak minutes. He'll probably go 9 and out. But damn, he's the reason this season (at least the first nine games) will be at all watchable.

That all said, it's going to be a long wait until Draft Day 2014 lifts our spirits again.

Mahonen.

[flambers]

Its going to be a tough season, Flames are in a tough divsion and the loses are going to add up.

Expectations, continue to add pieces for the future... Hope the veterans can play really strong and then move 1 or 2 at the dead-line.

Flames need Kari Ramo to elevate his game....

[Badgers Nose]

Entertaining hockey, that's all.

[1991 Canadian]

I'm actually somewhat content with having low expectations this year. The last few years where we have missed the playoffs, I fooled myself into thinking that the offseason moves were enough to push them into serious Stanley Cup contention.

Oh we've got WJC blue-chip defenceman Jay Bouwmeester, surely we'll do well this year.

Oh, we've got Alex Tanguay and Olli Jokinen back, surely this will push us over the edge.

Oh, we've got Cervenka, Hudler and Wideman, how can we lose?

Here's hoping my expectations are wrong once again, as I don't see Calgary doing any better than 3rd last.