I dont know if vanisle knows that even great players have not so great seasons. I'd wager that most of the 100 players ahead of him probably didn't miss 4 weeks of play either..
I think the sophomore slump may have come a little late for him but I think that if he's the same kid we got to know in college and the first two years in the NHL who was crazy about the game and about winning and took every level of competition by storm then hopefully he'll work on his game and make some necessary adjustments to evolve and keep pushing his limits.
The first 15 games back from injury when he was absolutely lighting teams up was a good sample of what we know he's capable of. It's still there I think he's honestly letting frustration get to him and that's a composure thing, which he should improve on with growth and maturity. He's had to learn the hard way this year that getting riled up over not getting any special treatment on the ice won't help him make a difference at the end of the day. Now he has to buck up and make the necessary adjustments. The game against Philly was a step in the right direction.
I just hope we get to see the dominant Johnny again before the end of the season.
Okay... please... let me know when Johnny is 6th in the league in scoring again. I will be waiting... and growing old, and eventually dying. But hey... you know what also happened IN THE PAST?
Okay... please... if Johnny doesn't get his finger broken and misses 14 games his current pace would give 43 points through 58 games - good for 40th in the league (60 spot jump from your over a hundred players are better then him this year crap - the majority of the players from 39th to 1st have played within 2-3 games of 58 give or take - just five have played 5-8 games less than 58, guys like Malkin, Crosby, Kucherov,) his current pace gives him just a shade under 60 points in an 82 game season... 4 less than his rookie year. He's regressed this year but every single player in the league has a step back year early on in their career, especially star players - this is a NORMAL thing - how some are acting about Johnny right now is completely bizarre.
I think too that someone mentioned how Monahan is going now so there are no excuses for Johnny -- he has 1 more point the Johnny with 14 more games played... Take some perspective on all this talk around Gaudreau and just chill out - I admit that at the end of the day these are all just numbers and yes he hasn't been the Johnny of the last two years but when you consider the big pressure contract he signed of which he's just 2 thirds into the first season, the broken finger, the new coach, Chiasson as his right winger along with 3 or 4 other guys... perspective guys.
Garbage media speculation like this in Canada, and the response from some fans ("Johnny has a drinking problem"), is the exact reason that so many players negotiate what are essentially 'No-Trade-To-Canada' clauses into their contracts.
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American media make the same kinds of speculation about pro athletes in other sports. It's just that the NHL isn't popular enough in most American markets for anyone to care about hockey players.
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Originally Posted by fotze
If this day gets you riled up, you obviously aren't numb to the disappointment yet to be a real fan.
If it was someone other than Spector writing this article we could take it a bit more seriously. He wasn't disciplined by the coach and his family was in town. There are so many unknowns that it would be wrong to jump to any conclusions. For all we know, he may have had permission to come to practice on his own. Non story.
Johnny is going to be fine. It's clear that this year has been a struggle. I would worry more about his production if he played with a talented winger. Brouwer and Chiasson are not close to Hudler in talent or smarts. The Flames need a top line winger who can think the game at a Hudler level.
So do people think that young NHLers don't sometimes get into bad off-ice lifestyles that can affect their careers? Or that it happens, just not to guys who put on a Flames uniform?
Of course NHLers (being human beings and all) get into bad off-ice lifestyles sometimes.
And of course Flames players are equally human.
But that doesn't justify a witch hunt over a baseless, devoid of evidence, non-story like this.
I can understand some of the 20-somethings around here not having the wisdom to control their speculation. But you're in your 50s I believe, and have demonstrated some reasonable levels of intelligence and capabilities with logic in other threads. To see posters like you and CSW jumping on this story, with nothing more to justify your opinions than 'hey, it happens sometimes' is astounding and, frankly, asinine.
This thread is appalling, and is illustrating the disgusting underbelly of the internet, and what happens when people can state opinions anonymously and without accountability.
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Players who are "good" in a season get checked harder the following season. If they respond to that increased level of scrutiny, and produce at an even higher rate, they get elevated to the level of "great". If, instead, they respond by falling back, they get relegated to the level of "flash-in-the-pan". Guess which ones are paid ground-breaking money and guess which ones are paid like 'end-of-their-career' has-beens. Johnny is 'good' but he is not 'great'. The Flames are currently hoping like crazy that Monahan picks it up, that Sammy is not the player we have seen all year, and that Tkachuk is as good as his dad; because betting the farm on Johnny isn't going to pay off.
The 'Powers That Be' of this team (ownership) signed off on the belief that this team was actually good. Now they are finding out that the best they can hope for is to scrape into the playoffs... Just like every other year. The players that they banked on are not as good as the players that other 'rebuilding' teams (Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa) banked on. As a result, all they can hope for is to blow it up again and hope for better draft picks. This team, as it is currently constructed can only hope to squeak into the playoffs based on the injuries of other (better) teams. Such is being a fan of the Flames. But hey, keep filling the 'Dome.
I imagine this was the logic of Hawks fans with Kane in 2011/2012. Probably the logic of Kings fans with Kopitar in 08/09. Those two definitely turned out to be duds.
Isn't Spector the Oiler guy? Correct me if I'm wrong, is this not the guy that said Russel was the most overrated defenceman in the league last year when there was rumour of Russel going to islanders as part of a package for Hamonic (speculation among some at the time at least), when Edmonton desperately needed a defenceman and thought they would get Hamonic? I recently heard him singing Russel's praises in one of their broadcasts. Guys a hack in my mind. I don't pay much attention to his stuff. Has he wrote a good piece on the Flames?
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Can you imagine if you showed up to work drunk and your boss sent you home, missed a bus to a team event , and had your production drop majorly, all while being to highest paid employee!
By creating more smoke, do you ensure there's a fire?
His play is concerning but in my opinion, mostly due to the fact that its happening under a new coach at the same time that most of the star talent on this team is struggling. I have a very big hunch that if you put Johnny on a different team with a coach that builds a better system around the players he has vs. putting square pegs in holes that are not square, he would be the same Johnny we saw a month before training camp at the World Cup. I bet if he goes to the world championships this year he will dominate like the Gaudreau of yesteryear.
In regards to these rumors, its now the coaches job to squash them so that the players can focus on their games and not this tmz BS. If he doesn't address them today I'll yet again be disappointed by Gulutzan.
I'm sure Johnny and other players do party hard, Ive heard plenty of first hand stories but there's been one, ONE incident of him being late for practice in his career. That to me does not sound like a problem. Hell, like others have said, there are other legitimate excuses for players to be late for a bus. For all Spector the buffoon knows, the team called the cab for him cause they knew he would miss the bus for a legitimate reason.
This thread should be locked and we shouldn't be giving Spector the buffoon any more clicks and feeding into his bs game.
There's plenty to discuss about Gaudreau and his struggles this season but arriving to practice on time via another means of transportation is not one of them.
