[Rumour] Chris Butler won't be back

[Goodlad]

I was pretty indifferent to Butler. Wasn't as bad as some posters insisted, but wasn't good either. My only problem with him leaving is the next whipping boy might be someone I actually like.

[MrMastodonFarm]

Somewhere, Bertuzzied is giggling to himself like mad.

[bubbsy]

greene looked pretty terrible when he played too in my opinion. not that he was blazing to begin with, but his speed after coming back from some injuries just seems even worse.

[Drury18]

I hope the Flames pull out all stops to try to get Johnny Boychuk.

Kid is a shot blocker. 151 in 75 games. Butler had 211 in 82. Boychuk also had 158 hits to Butler's 68.

I'd love to see him and Russell paired together. There's a shot blocking defensive pairing for you.

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by Drury18

I hope the Flames pull out all stops to try to get Johnny Boychuk.

Kid is a shot blocker. 151 in 75 games. Butler had 211 in 82. Boychuk also had 158 hits to Butler's 68.

I'd love to see him and Russell paired together. There's a shot blocking defensive pairing for you.

Giordano - Brodie
Russell - Boychuk


I like that top four, providing neither Gio or Brodie take significant steps backwards from what they provided last year.

Then on the third pair you have Smid on the left, and hopefully a mobile right handed shot Dman as his partner, because Smid is really slow so you don't want someone slow paired with him IMO.

[bubbsy]

boychuck sounds great, except for some tweets i saw yesterday indicating he'd love to play in his hometown edmonton

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

Then on the third pair you have Smid on the left, and hopefully a mobile right handed shot Dman as his partner, because Smid is really slow so you don't want someone slow paired with him IMO.

So Wideman + ?

[Savvy27]

I agree with the idea that Wotherspoon is an adequate replacement on the third pairing and that the Flames should be using a better player than Butler on the second pairing. Boychuk would truly be an exciting addition. Niskanen is another option, though it seems like he'll be receiving plenty of offers.

[FlameZilla]

I will not shed a tear over this one.

Wotherspoon is a capable replacement. Shame that Sieloff won't be ready in time for camp to push him. Kanzig might have an outside chance if he's fit. Kulak or Culkin? There are options.

[devo22]

thanks for everything, Chris. Hope you'll find a team with a fanbase that is more appreciative of your hard work.

[TheDebaser]

He was the worst defenseman on one of the worst teams in the nhl. We can do better.

[flamesfan6]

Originally Posted by PeteMoss

The Matt Greene love surprises me. He was a healthy scratch a fair number of times in the playoffs for the Kings and had by the far the lowest ice time of a defenseman on the team when he did dress.

Basically seems like Shane O'Brien the 2nd. A plug who you sign because he's big.

you know, except for the last 20 games of the playoffs where he played, and Sutter didn't take him off the roster when Regehr could of come back because the team was playing good, 78% of playoff games played... definitely scratched a "fair number of times"

[Drury18]

Originally Posted by bubbsy

boychuck sounds great, except for some tweets i saw yesterday indicating he'd love to play in his hometown edmonton

While being Edmonton born, he does have a strong connection to Calgary that might give us an advantage as well. Boychuk was a member of the Calgary Hitmen for 3 years. He started his pro career in Calgary and he was a very popular player and fan favorite when he was here.

[DoubleK]

Originally Posted by ForeverFlameFan

A right handed UFA. Overpay for Matt Greene, or go for Fayne.

Makes more sense to dress 6 left handed D as the Flames have historically done.

[Kaine]

Don't hate the guy by any means but he will not be missed.

[thethumwood]

Wotherspoon can fill in fine.

Gio - Brodie
Russell - Wideman
Smid - Wotherspoon?

[Bandwagon In Flames]

It's nice that there is less Butler hate on this thread now after a decent season. But really, the only reason Butler is #2 in blocked shots is because he made more passes to the opposing team than to his teammates. Any player that turns the puck over will feel obligated to do everything necessary to fix his mistake. Butler just makes them multiple times a game so he's forced into blocking shots.

Good on him for doing it, but it's the same thing as Berra giving up bad rebounds and playing out of position. Sometimes he'd make the superman save, but mostly it ends up in the back of the net and it was his fault all along.

[Demetric]

what about signing Redmond?

[Mike F]

Originally Posted by Pierre "Monster" McGuire

Interesting news. Who replaces him?

Brooks Orpik

[ForeverFlameFan]

I think Wotherspoon should be in the AHL for a year, just for development purposes. I do want him up here as the first call up. He and Smid are a great pairing.