[GDT] Rangers at Flames - 7pm MDT

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by Gary83

How exactly do you judge how our goalie's performance is going to be after he's put in what, 2 and a half preseason games? He's not even playing in front of what our gameday roster will be.

I've seen him in about a dozen games dating back to his tb days (watched him play the Panthers a couple times)

He is better than he was then, but not by a huge amount.

Plus I like goalies a lot so I tend to focus on them more to see if there is anything there, especially with new kids on the block.

I didn't think that he would be more than a fringe starter then unless he took a few steps forward in his game, and in the 5 years since I last saw him outside of highlights, he's made maybe 1 or 2 steps forward, not as much as you would hope for considering the developmental time thus far.

Unless he takes a huge step forward soon, I don't see him being any more than what I said.

[8sPOT]

I wonder if the decision will get easier after each game regarding Monahan. I would think if he continues to play how he has been, and I would argue he's progressed and gotten better, then he should be on the team. Even as a rookie he's our biggest center. I just like watching the kid too, he has the hockey sense of a pro, the size of a pro, and I don't care about burning a year of his ELC. That's way overblown.

We aren't the Oilers. We have some solid vets, both forwards and on the backend. Our rookies would not be expected to carry the team.

[stemit14]

I think everyone on the flames played well tonight and made a case for them to make the team. Especially bouma, Monahan and Reinhart. Lots of tough decisions to make for sure

[Da_Chief]

Originally Posted by Caged Great

I've seen him in about a dozen games dating back to his tb days (watched him play the Panthers a couple times)

He is better than he was then, but not by a huge amount.

Plus I like goalies a lot so I tend to focus on them more to see if there is anything there, especially with new kids on the block.

I didn't think that he would be more than a fringe starter then unless he took a few steps forward in his game, and in the 5 years since I last saw him outside of highlights, he's made maybe 1 or 2 steps forward, not as much as you would hope for considering the developmental time thus far.

Unless he takes a huge step forward soon, I don't see him being any more than what I said.

You were declaring him a bust before any pre-season games in the off-season. You've got 10 random goalies on your CPHL team, none of them are starters in the NHL, one might be down the road so for you to sit there and bash Ramo is absurd. I can guarantee you if Ramo was available, he'd be no. 11 on your roster. The fact he's not on your makes me feel good about his chances as we've seen how well you evaluate talent in the CPHL.

[red sky]

I only caught the second period online and thought the Flames looked pretty disorganized. I guess I missed the two best periods. Too bad.

[Poe969]

Never mind Monahan, Stajan is the Franchise #1 C!

He actually played really good last night, I wonder if he'll keep it up this year...

[EYE_Overstand]

Stajan has really come around since Hartley arrived. He has been very consistent

[heep223]

We were in Section 223 and the players box was for some reason right beside us (usually they're in the media boxes I think?). They were all up there, Cammy, D. Jones, Begin, Jackman, Butler, and all the young guys. Cammy is really short, wow!

I overheard Begin talking at different points to a few of the young guys (couldn't tell who they were), asking them questions, pointing things out on the ice, asking them about the coaching, their career paths, giving them advice. It immediately became clear to me how important this is for a rebuilding organization and why Begin is still with the club. Also clearly Hartley's ears in the dressing room.

[MissTeeks]

brian mcgrattan‏@bigern1046m

cut proof kevlar socks saved my season, maybe my career last night! should be mandatory piece of equipment! pic.twitter.com/EqHoGofnUb

[JJsChaos]

If Cammalerri's hand is as bad as I think it is, Monahan would fit right in for his 9 games until Cammy can make it back.

[skudr248]

Glad mcgrattens alright you could see him limping to the dressing room from the stream at the end of the game, cut proof kevlar socks ftw!

[8sPOT]

That's the thing, each person is different. By many accounts Monahan has the maturity of a 30 year old, thats huge. Being able to play is one thing, but the ability to live the lifestyle and grind of an NHL season would be very difficult for most 18 year olds, I feel Monahan would be fine.

It's becoming more and more evident to me that the kid should stick.

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by Goodlad

I'm really not even sure what is the best option at this point. It's a toss-up between preserving a year of his ELC and trying to sell the fans on the future of the club. Looking at how the club up North has now burned through 2 of their 1st overall picks' ELC's with not even a playoff berth to show for it I feel like we'll be better served in the long run sending him back to juniors.

Originally Posted by nightfx

I would hope they don't send him back to a league he's clearly too good for just because they want to save one year on his ELC

Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist

Yeah. What's so bad exactly about losing a year of ELC?

This was a big concern of the San Francisco Giants and their fans in 2010 with Buster Posey. Many people wanted him to stay at AAA just to keep control of his arbitration rights longer. They ended up promoting him to the majors and let him play. He won rookie of the year while only playing in 2/3 of the games and they won the World Series. This off season they gave him the biggest contract for a catcher and/or Giant.

My long winded point, is if Monahan is ready, then bring him up. You can't let a minor contract detail keep him down if he is better suited at the NHL level. It's a good problem to have that we would want to use, not burn, a year of his ELC this year. If you keep putting things off for the future, you end up being the Cleveland Browns, who have been rebuilding for 20 years. If Sean's good enough, the money and contract issues will take care of themselves. It's not like we have a ton of prospects who are going to be garnering that kind of money. If Monahan's earned it, let him have it.

[Niemo]

Send the kid back! We know he is already NHL calibre, but we are looking for a star out of Monahan. I think 1 more year of junior after a 9-game trial can't hurt. If anything, it will allow him to tweak and work on his offensive game more and hopefully dominate the OHL and WJC.

I compare his situation to that of Couturier and I really think that Couturier would've benefitted a lot from 1 more year to dominate junior and the WJC. He played an important role for the Flyers on their 3rd line, but his offense wasn't given a chance to develop.

[Poe969]

I'll be happy if he stays up or goes down. Either way, I'm just pumped we have a prospect like Monahan in our system and on our team!

It's making hockey a lot more fun to watch, really have no expectations for the Flames this year but seeing that there is a few good players in the system and a potential franchise player here already

[PeteMoss]

Monahan isn't too good for juniors. He was the 15th leading scoring last year (granted he was on a terrible team and served a long suspension)... he can go back and still develop. Its not like he's putting up 3 points per game or something stupid.

I'm fine with him being up with the Flames if he's earned it and they think he can develop that way... but sending him back isn't going to set his development back.

[kyuss275]

Originally Posted by Poe969

I'll be happy if he stays up or goes down. Either way, I'm just pumped we have a prospect like Monahan in our system and on our team!

It's making hockey a lot more fun to watch, really have no expectations for the Flames this year but seeing that there is a few good players in the system and a potential franchise player here already

I fully agree. The Flames are in a win-win situation with Monahan. Either he plays well enough to stick and learn off veterans in the NHL or he goes down and dominates in JR's.

I really wanted the Flames to pick Monahan and he as exceeded expectations in his first camp. At least in my eyes.

[Niemo]

Give Monahan 1 more year to dominate juniors the same way Sven did. It would be a really good confidence booster for his offensive game as well. I fear that if we rush Monahan, we will put a cap on his offensive potential - Similar to Couturier, J. Staal.

[the-rasta-masta]

For everybody thinking this team is going to get a top 3 pick next year, I'm not sure if I see it. This might be more of a 6-12th draft pick team again, especially if Ramo keeps up his solid play.

[Wolven]

Originally Posted by MissTeeks

brian mcgrattan‏@bigern1046m

cut proof kevlar socks saved my season, maybe my career last night! should be mandatory piece of equipment! pic.twitter.com/EqHoGofnUb

That's crazy. I bought two pairs of the Kevlar socks after Cooke cut Karlsson. Thankfully I haven't "needed" them yet but I feel a heck of a lot better just having them on.

Seeing this just drives the point home all over again. Excellent purchase, I highly recommend it to anyone playing at any level.