[Game Takes] Wild 2 Flames 1 (SO)

[FBI]

re Comeau: Forget the 24 goals, how did he even score 5 last year? Waive waive waive please. waste of a roster spot. Horak >>>>> Comeau

[Red John]

A comment re: the shootout.

Alex Tanguay is a cerebral player but he over-thinks things in pressure situations - shooting last is not a good move for him. He thinks about things like what the previous shooters have done, etc. and ends up not going with his instinct. You could tell he was indecisive on his attempt and basically ran out of room.

He needs to shoot first so he can just go in and do his thing. Historically that's where he's been successful. That being said, fully understand Blair Jones going first. If you choose a guy like him you put him in the least pressure-filled situation possible. Like that Hartley tried something new, and Jones did score a nice one last year - perhaps he does well in practice in the shootout.

Didn't think the player choices or moves were all that bad. Nothing you can do when your goalie goes 0 for 2 at the other end - you won't win.

It is absolutely sickening that the team has only ever won 6 shootouts at home - since 2005. Yikes. They need to figure it out - Tanguay and Hudler need to be 1-2, still need to find a reliable third shooter. Perhaps Baertschi when he comes back? Would prefer a vet there but all the current vets seem to be anti-clutch.

Hopefully Malarchuk is working with Irving on the shootout in the meantime. 4 goals against on 6 career shots - Kipper worked on it over the years and has gotten way better. Irving can too.

0-3 shootouts - need to win the next three - in a coin flip situation you need to be around 50% on the season. And it seems this is the kind of team that is going to be in a lot of them.

[868904]

Originally Posted by moon

The current management hasn't done anything to put a succession plan in place either.



Feaster is management and seems to be in 100% with the win now at all costs and Iginla stays a Flame no matter what.

Sorry I meant ownership. Feaster can't do anything about Iggy without Murray Edwards giving him the okay. It's been suggested by many people in the know that Edwards has a big say in this particular hockey decision. Until Edwards gives Feaster the okay to trade Iggy, Feaster can't do anything but tow the company line.

[Psytic]

Eric Francis ‏@EricFrancis
Hmmmm RT @NHLFlames: "Blair Jones has been, by far, our best shooter (in practices)" Bob Hartley on the #Flames 1st shooter tonight #CGYMIN

oh and to add onto Parise (1st) Koivu (6th) Matt Cullen their 3rd shooter in line is 19th among active skaters for shootout goals so really Minny is just built to take you to the skills comp lol.

[moon]

Originally Posted by 868904

Sorry I meant ownership. Feaster can't do anything about Iggy without Murray Edwards giving him the okay. It's been suggested by many people in the know that Edwards has a big say in this particular hockey decision. Until Edwards gives Feaster the okay to trade Iggy, Feaster can't do anything but tow the company line.

If Feaster wants to move Iginla and doesn't because ownership won't let him that is taking a pretty big hit to your reputation as a GM to not say anything or object.

He may just be saying what ownership wants him to say but he has been very vocal about Iginla staying with the team and going for 8th no matter what.

[Zlars318]

We are nearing the quarter season marker and Iginla is far from the top of leauge in terms of scoring and points. I would give him some credit if he was playing awesome defensively but he isn't.

[Psytic]

Originally Posted by Red John

A comment re: the shootout.

Alex Tanguay is a cerebral player but he over-thinks things in pressure situations - shooting last is not a good move for him. He thinks about things like what the previous shooters have done, etc. and ends up not going with his instinct. You could tell he was indecisive on his attempt and basically ran out of room.

He needs to shoot first so he can just go in and do his thing. Historically that's where he's been successful. That being said, fully understand Blair Jones going first. If you choose a guy like him you put him in the least pressure-filled situation possible. Like that Hartley tried something new, and Jones did score a nice one last year - perhaps he does well in practice in the shootout.

Didn't think the player choices or moves were all that bad. Nothing you can do when your goalie goes 0 for 2 at the other end - you won't win.

It is absolutely sickening that the team has only ever won 6 shootouts at home - since 2005. Yikes. They need to figure it out - Tanguay and Hudler need to be 1-2, still need to find a reliable third shooter. Perhaps Baertschi when he comes back? Would prefer a vet there but all the current vets seem to be anti-clutch.

Hopefully Malarchuk is working with Irving on the shootout in the meantime. 4 goals against on 6 career shots - Kipper worked on it over the years and has gotten way better. Irving can too.

0-3 shootouts - need to win the next three - in a coin flip situation you need to be around 50% on the season. And it seems this is the kind of team that is going to be in a lot of them.

I don't know that Kipper has gotten better so much as just poke checking when players go for the deke.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by moon

If Feaster wants to move Iginla and doesn't because ownership won't let him that is taking a pretty big hit to your reputation as a GM to not say anything or object.

He may just be saying what ownership wants him to say but he has been very vocal about Iginla staying with the team and going for 8th no matter what.

Feaster objected to ownership in Tampa Bay...led to him not being looked at for a GM job for a couple seasons and being out of a job.

[moon]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Feaster objected to ownership in Tampa Bay...led to him not being looked at for a GM job for a couple seasons and being out of a job.

I think being the GM of a team that finished last in the league also may have played a role in him not getting a GM job but even if that is his thinking is holding on to old vets and missing the play-offs going to do a lot for his future as a GM in the league?

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by moon

The current management hasn't done anything to put a succession plan in place either.

Noy yet, no.

Considering the resources they had since taking over, I can see why though.

Tradable assets were held onto for too long or traded for magic beans.

[calumniate]

Originally Posted by FBI

re Comeau: Forget the 24 goals, how did he even score 5 last year? Waive waive waive please. waste of a roster spot. Horak >>>>> Comeau

To be fair I've liked him on the penalty kill.

[tvp2003]

In the 7+ years that the shootout has been around, have the Flames EVER won in less than 6 total shots? It seems like we've lost a number of times (where the opposition doesn't have to take their final shot), but don't ever remember winning one that way...

[flames_fan_down_under]

Thanks for the good write up.

I know that a lot of people have the same concerns as me, but building this team around Jarome Iginla has got to stop.

I'm sure by the time the season is over Iginla will have put up some respectable numbers, as even at 36 he can still be dangerous, but he should not be relied upon as heavily as he is at the moment. It puts Iginla in a position to fail as he just isn't capable of carrying this team anymore.

There needs to be a collective realization from the ownership down to coaching that we must move on from this plan. I am not saying trade him, just that the philosophy going forward cannot be "finding players to play with Iginla on the 1st line". We need younger, more dynamic players up front, and a legitimate first line centre would be great however those are rare. I like Feasters addition of Wideman and Hudler as I feel those are the types of players Calgary has been lacking for a while. Hudler is creative offensively and can finish, and Wideman plays simple hockey, getting a lot of success by just putting pucks on net.

I guess what I am trying to say is if it's two years from now and we are still building this team around Kipper and Jarome then I'll be a depressed Flames fan.

[Meers]

Ugh, what a boring tilt.

Ugher, the Flames continue to struggle in the skills competition.

Ughest, what a giveaway by Jerome to essentially cost the Flames the game.

I hate to say it, but given where the Flames are in the standings (and yes, I concede that with the two games in hand, Calgary could be sitting tied for 8th in the West as of the season's quarter mark), a game with an equally struggling divisional rival becomes something of a "statement game".

And the statement last night was not emphatic.

[Dr. Pepper]

The most troubling aspect for me after watching this game is the group took a step backwards in becoming a puck-possession team.

- They still seem to chip the puck off the glass into the neutral zone as an easy way out of the defensive zone - but the majority of the time that chip is going straight to the other team.
- I see no creativity getting the puck from defense to offense - no skating it out of the corners, no crisp passing. Puck being hurled at skates, or coming to a forward waist high seems to be the majority of what's going on
- Speed just isn't there. We are not scary at all. No speed in neutral zone, no speed in offensive zone. Just too slow.
- Defensive coverage makes it look like we are on a continuous PK. The other team is throwing the puck to each other on the cycle with impunity. We always seem surprised at where the puck is going. When we do come up with it, if we ring it around the other team is there, not a team-mate.
- Offensively, the same lack of overall sense of where your team-mates are leads to easy turnovers.
- It just seems we are regressing back to dump/chase because we have no confidence in either the individual carrying, or where we are going to find team-mates.

[malcolmk14]

I have agreed with 90% of what Erick Estrada has posted in the last week or so. I think I need a break from Flames hockey.

[Dr. Pepper]

First off - let me just say that my respect and admiration for Iggy are through the roof.

But...

He is clearly declining - in skill, speed, and jump on a night to night basis. He is at his best still a #1 line scoring winger - but his best is only showing up every 3rd game it seems.

It seems clear that he needs to be handled differently. Boil him down and get him angry. What I mean is - reduce his minutes via a 2nd line winger role and tell him he's not doing his job right unless he's being chippy and pissing the other team off. Not only will his reduced minutes get him more jump, but getting him to be chippier will hopefully piss him off.

We need Jarome to engage Hulk-Mode more often. But we certainly need to stop thinking of him like he used to be.

If we can't use him correctly, then trade him and let someone else, because heavens - that man deserves a cup.

[Itse]

Originally Posted by Dr. Pepper

The most troubling aspect for me after watching this game is the group took a step backwards in becoming a puck-possession team.

I don't think I could agree less.

- They still seem to chip the puck off the glass into the neutral zone as an easy way out of the defensive zone - but the majority of the time that chip is going straight to the other team.
- I see no creativity getting the puck from defense to offense - no skating it out of the corners, no crisp passing. Puck being hurled at skates, or coming to a forward waist high seems to be the majority of what's going on
- Speed just isn't there. We are not scary at all. No speed in neutral zone, no speed in offensive zone. Just too slow.

The Wild plays a suffocating game. It had an effect on how our team looked. However, when there was room the plays were the same. The results were not the same because we had worse players playing. Street and Jones are not Backlund and Cammalleri.

- Defensive coverage makes it look like we are on a continuous PK. The other team is throwing the puck to each other on the cycle with impunity. We always seem surprised at where the puck is going. When we do come up with it, if we ring it around the other team is there, not a team-mate.

This has little to do with dump&chase and just a result of having a lot of players that are just not very good at playing defense.

- Offensively, the same lack of overall sense of where your team-mates are leads to easy turnovers.

Did you check the lines? All the lines had been mixed up. There are some downsides to that.

- It just seems we are regressing back to dump/chase because we have no confidence in either the individual carrying, or where we are going to find team-mates.

While I agree with the lack of finding team-mates, I saw little dumping and chasing. Mostly we lost pucks due to a ton of bad/blind passes.

[FBI]

Originally Posted by calumniate

To be fair I've liked him on the penalty kill.

I guess so. He's helped us get to low 70s in percentage on the pk?

[Pierre "Monster" McGuire]

I'm starting to think re-signing Cervenka should be moved to the top of Feaster to-do list. The guy's been great and has so much damn skill. Despite his point totals you can sort of see what he's capable of. Give him a three year deal until the end of Hudler's contract.

Those two guys have been a bright spot in what is otherwise a pretty dismal season so far.