2020/2021 Trade Speculation and Rumours

[djsFlames]

Originally Posted by New Era

Would you pay him $9M for what he brings to the table?

Considering 9M is the new 7M and he hasn't yet hit his prime, is one of the elite pests and penalty drawers in the league, and given how much that i would hate to see him anywhere else, yes.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

People say this, but aside from being hyper-emotional at times, what says “captain” to you?

He gives a solid interview. As fans, we eat that up.

[timbit]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

Considering 9M is the new 7M and he hasn't yet hit his prime, is one of the elite pests and penalty drawers in the league, and given how much that i would hate to see him anywhere else, yes.

With the diminishing Salary Cap, based on the serious drop in revenue , 7M is the new 9M, IMO!

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

He gives a solid interview. As fans, we eat that up.

I guess I have a different idea about what a captain does. I’m a fan of the grizzled vet captain. I grew up with Henri Richard and Cournoyer captains of the Habs, and Dave Keon captaining the Leafs.

[Scroopy Noopers]

Originally Posted by New Era

Would you pay him $9M for what he brings to the table?

Cap disaster.

[powderjunkie]

10P in 13gp...what a disaster...

[djsFlames]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

10P in 13gp...what a disaster...

Identical stats to Sidney Crosby.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Gio is the consummate captain. Hardest working guy (fittest player year after year following Iggy's footsteps) plus he's a skilled offensive player. Undrafted he had to earn everything so he appeals to the grinders and the stars. Community work is award winning too.

Gio is also emotional on the ice and you see him getting after refs but he's never been had a reputation of a rat or dirty.

The media is an important part of the equation. They can drive narrative and media types decide who gets into the HOF etc. You have to be well spoken especially after tough moments. The media doesn't want to be looked down on despite the sometimes dumb questions. Lots of public interaction to the team is through media and media types. Gio is absolutely fantastic in media interactions.

Look at Rasmus here (I really like Rasmus and think he's really thoughtful and good at breaking down games). To me he can barely keep his contempt over the dumbness of some questions:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1360385701687160833

Could Rasmus be captain or wear a letter? Sure but he's got to be able to hide what he thinks about media questions (I might be wrong about his disdain)

So back to Tkachuk: why could he be captain? He's a smart, confident, skilled player who gets into the tough areas. He's articulate and drags his teammates into 'the battle' but he may have been a little to immature with some comments early in his career. At an already young age he wears a letter. His hockey family has exposed him to NHL life and that gives him an understanding of all aspects of being a professional hockey player (being a good team mate). I think he leads by example (sticks up for teammates on ice and off) and is vocal plus good with media.

[Major Major]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Let me be clear - I like Chucky a lot. He brings certain elements that no one else does and he’s very talented. When he’s on he’s a game changer. But I also hear from some insiders that he’s not exactly respected around the league (whereas Gio is). And he certainly doesn’t have officials’ ear, which is part of being captain.

All that said, I’ve always been of the view that the players should choose captains (subject to a veto by the coaching staff which should be cautiously exercised). So the question is whether the team thinks he’s a leader or not. So that’s why I ask the question. What demonstrates that he’s a leader on the team? Aside from, say, Backlund, or if you want to go younger, Monahan or Rasmus?

I'm sorry, just to clarify, when you say insider, you are talking about Drew Doughty right? I don't give a flying #### what the league respects or doesn't. At the end of the day, everyone respects winning. It is after all, how I can muster some respect for someone of Drew's character.

EDIT: Reread your post, and I completely agree with your larger point. Just getting fired up over here! haha

[heep223]

^think you’re reading way too much into this. Seems like he’s laughing at himself more than anything, giving a cliche answer that they feel better after winning 3 in a row

Edit: 2 posts above

[Murph]

Originally Posted by Jeff Lebowski

Gio is the consummate captain. Hardest working guy (fittest player year after year following Iggy's footsteps) plus he's a skilled offensive player. Undrafted he had to earn everything so he appeals to the grinders and the stars. Community work is award winning too.

Gio is also emotional on the ice and you see him getting after refs but he's never been had a reputation of a rat or dirty.

The media is an important part of the equation. They can drive narrative and media types decide who gets into the HOF etc. You have to be well spoken especially after tough moments. The media doesn't want to be looked down on despite the sometimes dumb questions. Lots of public interaction to the team is through media and media types. Gio is absolutely fantastic in media interactions.

Look at Rasmus here (I really like Rasmus and think he's really thoughtful and good at breaking down games). To me he can barely keep his contempt over the dumbness of some questions:

https://twitter.com/user/status/1360385701687160833

Could Rasmus be captain or wear a letter? Sure but he's got to be able to hide what he thinks about media questions (I might be wrong about his disdain)

So back to Tkachuk: why could he be captain? He's a smart, confident, skilled player who gets into the tough areas. He's articulate and drags his teammates into 'the battle' but he may have been a little to immature with some comments early in his career. At an already young age he wears a letter. His hockey family has exposed him to NHL life and that gives him an understanding of all aspects of being a professional hockey player.

Why should Rasmus have to hide his disdain in order to wear a letter? I (and I imagine his teammates) would rather he didn’t. This isn’t a political/politically correct endeavour. The job of the captain is to pull the team together, and displaying impatience for idiotic journalists probably goes a long way building camaraderie in a room where most guys hate/despise dealing with the media.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Originally Posted by Murph

Why should Rasmus have to hide his disdain in order to wear a letter? I (and I imagine his teammates) would rather he didn’t. This isn’t a political/politically correct endeavour. The job of the captain is to pull the team together, and displaying impatience for idiotic journalists probably goes a long way building camaraderie in a room where most guys hate/despise dealing with the media.

Because it's more than just guys in the room. You have to be an ambassador for the team. IMO.

Yes it is a politically correct endeavour too. They represent a brand. In Canadian markets they are the crown jewel of the community/city. It's a big deal.

[flamesgod]

I like Tkachuk but I think he’s overrated. It’s not because he’s in a slump. I simply don’t view him as our best player, like so many on here do. I see our top 3 as Gaudreau, Lindholm then Tkachuk.

[flamesgod]

Originally Posted by Major Major

Meh, super fun opinion to have when he's slumping. Most people are able to look past that and see the whole body of work which shows pretty definitively that he is in fact a beast.

The statement of "if he's your best player, you're in trouble" is also meaningless without context. What if he's one of 4 players hovering around the ppg mark, all with different skill sets? What if beyond that you have one of the best third line centres in the league and another winger that is dominating the league in terms of play driving? What if your D is rock solid 1-6 and you currently are sporting one of the top defensive pairs in the league? What if your actual best player is your vezina candidate goalie? Are you in trouble? Nope

You’re stating what we have. I agree. I have him as our 3rd best player behind Gaudreau and Lindholm. I don’t agree with the posters that think he’s our best player. Just my opinion though.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

I guess I have a different idea about what a captain does. I’m a fan of the grizzled vet captain. I grew up with Henri Richard and Cournoyer captains of the Habs, and Dave Keon captaining the Leafs.

To be clear, I don’t really care how a player interviews. And i’d say it’s a relatively small part of the job of a captain.

But when fans talk about a player being “captain material” it usually just means the player is media savvy enough to give good interviews and that’s about all we ever see.

The Captain needs to have the respect of the players.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Want to add (and apologies for derailing thread) that I absolutely think Rasmus has captain potential. He's great and only going to get better.

[CGY12]

Originally Posted by flamesgod

Tkachuk is way overrated on these boards. I don’t see a top line player when I watch him. In fact, if he’s your best player you’re in trouble. I like Tkachuk, however he’s not what he’s built up to be.

I agree with you, good player but overrated on these boards. He can't be your best forward to have major playoff success. His skating being the main reason why, its average at best. Relative to the league he is making probably close to what he should be, if his next contract is north of 8 million let alone 9, it will be a major problem.

Definitely happy he is on our team and agree with everyone saying 30 other teams would love to have him, but what your saying isn't wrong IMO.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by getoverit

His dad is his agent isn’t he. Have to say he did an awesome job negotiating his own deals to maximize max $ so I’m thinking tre will be challenged a bit on next contract

His uncle, Craig Oster, is his agent. He was also Keith's agent through his career (and is also Brady's).

Oster has one of the largest client lists in the NHL (Rittich and Stone are also his clients on the Flames), so he's not just doing the job because he's Matthew's mother's brother.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by getbak

His uncle, Craig Oster, is his agent. He was also Keith's agent through his career (and is also Brady's).

Oster has one of the largest client lists in the NHL (Rittich and Stone are also his clients on the Flames), so he's not just doing the job because he's Matthew's mother's brother.

https://puckpedia.com/agent/craig-oster

Petrovic and Kirkland as well.

That is quite the portfolio.

[browna]

Part of what made him good prior to last season is his ability to work his butt off and then draw penalties.

With some of the notoriety and antics he's entangled himself in, the refs have turned the tables. Not only are refs not wanting to be calling penalties committed on Tkachuk, feeling maybe duped from prior years, he's now getting zero leeway and penalties like the one against the Oilers are getting called.

That has to be in his head, and affecting the way he's used to approaching and playing the game since he got to the NHL. Mix in his short fuse and in addition to the refs "figuring him out" the other teams seem to have too, to get him off his game.