[Rumour] Flames recall Sam Bennett. UPD: Flames still deciding on AHL or NHL

[Wastedyouth]

I will put money on Bennett never seeing a minute of AHL action.


Edit: not pubes though, gross! Who would do that??

[topfiverecords]

Honest mistake. Someone says Bennett is heading to the AHL. Another says he's off to Edmonton.

[hockey.modern]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

Honest mistake. Someone says Bennett is heading to the AHL. Another says he's off to Edmonton.

Who said he was going to the AHL?

[Calgary4LIfe]

I don't think it is that rare for a kid in junior to 'graduate' into the NHL at the end of the season/playoffs. I would bet that the Flames assign him to Calgary and not Adirondack. If Calgary was out of it, and Adirondack was in, then I would guess Adirondack.

Bennett isn't coming in 'cold'. Sure, this stretch is hard for anyone to come into - it has been pretty much playoff hockey for a little while on at least most nights. However, it isn't like he is cold - he has been playing good minutes (but not 40!) against the toughest competition in junior. I can't think of a better scenario in which to acclimate Bennett into the NHL. He will be sheltered.

Defensively I don't think he will be atrocious. Bennett has 3 things going for him - really smart player, blazing speed and that beautiful non-stop motor. He will make mistakes out there, but at least you can bet that he will at least pressure the other team constantly when he is out there. That can spark a team.

Yes, the NHL is a totally different animal than Junior. However, there have been loads of players that make their pro debuts at the end of an NHL regular season, or even in the playoffs. It isn't that unheard of. Bennett definitely has the relative luxury of getting a good amount of playing time in without being all exhausted and battered after a long season as well.

[Fire of the Phoenix]

Sit Raymond and give his spot to Bennett. No way Sam would do less with those minutes. Maybe he makes a mistake or two but I truly believe Sam has is far more likely to make a difference down the stetch than Mr. October.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by Fire of the Phoenix

Sit Raymond and give his spot to Bennett. No way Sam would do less with those minutes. Maybe he makes a mistake or two but I truly believe Sam has is far more likely to make a difference down the stetch than Mr. October.

Hey come on now,

Mason was pointless in seven of ten October games too.

[AC]

@MarkEdwardsHP
Home from Kingston game, Fronts season is done but Sam Bennett is heading to Edmonton. Calgary is in there Saturday night. #Flames

[calumniate]

Great jooris fill in for now if you ask me

[Racki]

Originally Posted by AC

@MarkEdwardsHP
Home from Kingston game, Fronts season is done but Sam Bennett is heading to Edmonton. Calgary is in there Saturday night. #Flames

Practices tomorrow. Completely stands out and plays Saturday.

[Buff]

Two ways to look at why Bennett may not come directly to Calgary.

1. His ELC. I get them wanting to not burn a year on his ELC. Next year they have to resign Monahan. That will be a big contract. The year after that they'll have to re-sign Gaudreau. That will be another big contract. If they can somehow push Bennett back one year, then they won't have to worry about two big contracts in the same year. All three players are going to make big money, but Treliving is just trying to avoid the huge jump in salary going to two players in the same year.

2. Just want to play it safe. Send him to Adirondack, get him into one or two games to adjust to a higher pace. It is still late in the season and both teams are fighting for their playoff lives. Calgary's chances look more promising than Adirondacks's but both the NHL and AHL are quicker paced games than the OHL. Had Bennett been more productive in the OHL playoffs then it may have been an easier choice to just bring him to Calgary. However, maybe they want to take it slow since he's only played 16 games all year and sputtered offensively in his last 4, which were the biggest games he played. Would it hurt to go to Adirondack, adjust to one gear higher by playing a couple of games before making the jump to the highest gear in the NHL?

That said, playing against Edmonton and then Arizona would be the two best games to get his NHL career started if he is going to play in the NHL this year. Weaker teams that are not quite going full tilt since they have nothing to play for. The next two after that will be massively high pressure games.

I say get him in against Edmonton and Arizona right now, or let him finish up Adirondack's season. The game is much faster now than it was when Iginla stepped into the lineup in the playoffs. Playing his first game against LA, or Winnipeg, whom the Flames could very likely be fighting for a final playoff spot would be a hard decision for coaches to make. They want somebody who has battled hard with the team and is up to pace already, not somebody who may make a rookie mistake early on to cost them the game.

[T@T]

Originally Posted by Buff

Next year they have to resign Monahan. That will be a big contract. The year after that they'll have to re-sign Gaudreau. That will be another big contract.

Both are RFA's after next season, Gaudreau burnt a year of his ELC by playing one game last year. I can see two large identical contracts for 16/17.

[Buff]

Originally Posted by T@T

Both are RFA's after next season, Gaudreau burnt a year of his ELC by playing one game last year. I can see two large identical contracts for 16/17.

Totally forgot about that.

[Buster]

I bet Hartley has been on the phone with Brad every 5 minutes telling him to get Sam's butt here.

[renny]

Originally Posted by T@T

Both are RFA's after next season, Gaudreau burnt a year of his ELC by playing one game last year. I can see two large identical contracts for 16/17.

And herein lies the problem, you don't want to have three massive contracts hitting your cap at the same time. If Bennett burns a year off his ELC this is what would happen. It's not about how much money it's going to cost the owners, it's about managing your cap and your assets to ensure long term viability of the franchise.

I'd love to see Bennett as much as the next guy, but from a long-term perspective it just makes no sense to burn a year off his ELC.

[T@T]

Originally Posted by renny

And herein lies the problem, you don't want to have three massive contracts hitting your cap at the same time. If Bennett burns a year off his ELC this is what would happen. It's not about how much money it's going to cost the owners, it's about managing your cap and your assets to ensure long term viability of the franchise.

I'd love to see Bennett as much as the next guy, but from a long-term perspective it just makes no sense to burn a year off his ELC.

Bennett would be a year later but yeah it's still tough to swallow 5 possibly huge contracts coming up within a year of each other as Giordano and Russell need going to get paid in the same year as Mony and Johnny as well.

[JD]

Originally Posted by renny

I'd love to see Bennett as much as the next guy, but from a long-term perspective it just makes no sense to burn a year off his ELC.

It makes sense if he's contributing and helps the team make the playoffs and perhaps even advance. Isn't that what you pay your players to do?

[devo22]

Bennett would need to play 10 games in order to burn a year off his ELC, so why is this talked about as an issue here? We only have 4 RS games left. Even if the Flames make the playoffs, I don't think Bennett will play 10 Flames games this season.

[wingmaker]

I think people over inflate the cap danger. I get it, you have to be careful and this team has seen what it is to be in "cap jail". That said, next off-season Jones and Hiller come off the books (8.5 million), and the year after Wideman, Engelland, Smid, and Raymond come off the books (almost 15 mill), and we already have 15 million in space as it is. Of all those players, the only one you would consider re-signing is Wideman, and for significantly less money due to his age. The other spots will hopefully be filled by young players. The cap space will get used up quickly, for sure, but it is hardly a major issue if Bennett gets paid one year sooner or later.

[EldrickOnIce]

It's a bit silly a this point to talk about burning a year off Bennett's ELC.
I think if he was part of getting the Flames to game 6 or 7 of the first round of the playoffs, management would be ok with that.
Flames would also generate what? Maybe 10M from making it versus not? If management thinks he helps them get there, he is in.

Edit: devo already said it

[T@T]

Originally Posted by devo22

Bennett would need to play 10 games in order to burn a year off his ELC, so why is this talked about as an issue here? We only have 4 RS games left. Even if the Flames make the playoffs, I don't think Bennett will play 10 Flames games this season.

Are you guessing the flames will play the blues in the first round?