STH Fan Forum

[Cheerio]

Hey Everyone,

Just saw the Flames post a bunch of stuff on social media about a season ticket holder fan forum tonight at Flames Central. Were any CPers on hand that could inform us non-STHs about anything interesting said tonight by Burke, Treliving, Conroy or Pascal? Thanks in advance!

[getbak]

Pascall wasn't there. It was hosted by Rob Kerr. Conroy, Treliving, and Burke spoke.

Ken King got up at the beginning and did his usual, thanks for supporting us, you're going to love the new building, but don't ask any questions about it, speech to start, to nip that in the bud. After that, he left. It sounded like he was headed to the Dome to catch the Hitmen game.


Before the questions, they each gave a brief rundown of things in their areas.

Conroy talked about Adirondack. He said they're playing hard, fighting for a playoff spot. They're a young team, mostly first and second year pros, and they've lost a lot of players either due to their own injuries (like Culkin and Ortio), or for call-ups to Calgary. He had good things to say about Wolf, Reinhart, and Agostino. He also spoke glowingly about Garnet Hathaway.

On Hathaway, Conroy talked about signing him last year, and how they were offering just an AHL contract. His agent told Conroy that he had a few NHL contract offers, but Burke told Conroy he didn't believe the agent had any NHL offers, and he eventually accepted the AHL deal they were offering. Treliving also said that he was trying to sign Hathaway to an AHL deal in Phoenix, and also was given the "other NHL offers" story by the agent. He said that Hathaway called him personally to apologize after he signed with the Flames. Treliving said that once he was hired by Calgary, Hathaway was the first person he called and said since Hathaway wouldn't join him in Phoenix, he had to join Hathaway with the Flames.

They also talked about Hathaway wanting to prove that he can play truculent hockey, and told them he can fight. They were surprised because he went to an Ivy League school, which aren't known for their violent styles of play. When he first went to the AHL, he picked a couple of fights with the toughest guys on the other teams, and got pretty badly beaten, but they said he's gotten better at picking his fights.

I expect we'll hear about Hathaway getting an NHL deal for next season.


Conroy also talked about Bennett. He doesn't think he's ready to be into games quite yet. He said that they sat together at the game on Saturday and Conroy would quiz Sam on what to do in certain situations. One time, he asked what to do if you lose a draw in your own zone, and Sam said he'd attack the defence, but Conroy told him to drop back and cover his man and let the winger take care of the defence. On another play, the Oilers were cycling in the Flames' zone and Conroy asked Sam what he'd do if he was Monahan, and Sam said to swarm the puck carrier. Conroy said "I don't know what they do in Kingston, but in Calgary, we don't swarm."

They also said that Sam is excited to be back in Calgary, and if they asked him to, he'd break through the wall to get to play. They don't want to rush him in if he's not ready. One thing they don't want to do is put him in a couple of games, have him play badly, then spend all summer thinking about that.

Conroy also talked about him needing to rein in his energy. He talked about going to see him play in Kingston, and Sam was hitting everything that moved. After the game, Conroy told him it was okay to occasionally not hit everyone on the ice, and Sam said he wanted to show them that his shoulder was 100%.


I don't remember all of Treliving's remarks, but it included high praise for Hartley. He said that often people expect a new GM to bring in "his guy", but Treliving saw no value in that. He said that usually you've crossed paths with guys over the years working in hockey, but until he was hired by the Flames, he had never said a word to Hartley. Prior to training camp, Burke warned him that he was about to see the most intense training camp that he had ever seen, and it certainly was. It didn't take long for Treliving to know that Hartley was the man he wanted coaching his team, so he was glad to get the extension done.


Treliving also talked a bit about Gaudreau. He said that they fully expected him to spend most of the year in Adirondack just getting used to the pace of the game. When Hartley sat him for that game in Columbus, they were preparing for the next step of sending him down. Then, he got into the game in Winnipeg and got two points, and hasn't slowed down since.


Treliving also spoke briefly about the trade deadline. Nothing really new about the Glencross or Baertschi trades. The draft picks are going to be valuable assets. He repeated that the pick from Vancouver was "by far" the best offer for Sven. He also mentioned that they had a deal for a defenceman in the works, but the other GM either ran out of time or backed out at the last minute. Getting Schlemko on waivers helped reduce the urgency of getting another d-man, and he wasn't willing to pay the price of a first round pick or a young prospect to get a d-man.


In Burke's opening remarks, he said that the Flames' success this year is because of four men: Treliving, Hartley, Giordano, and Feaster. He said that too often teams fire a coach or GM and pretend that they never worked there (he made a joke that it's nearly impossible to get anyone in Vancouver or Toronto to even acknowledge he was ever employed by either team), so he gave credit to Feaster for bringing in Hartley and a lot of other guys on the team.


Burke also talked about the importance of the draft and the value of the picks Treliving got at the deadline. He said he doesn't think the odds are very good of being able to trade up in the first round. He said teams are afraid that Treliving is being guided by Burke who pulled off two of the biggest trade floor deals, getting the Sedins in 1999, and Pronger in 1994.



This post is getting kind of long, so I'll post some of the Q&A in another post...

[SHOGUN]

Awesome summary. Thanks!

[getbak]

Question about the College kids, especially those in the Frozen Four...


Treliving gave a rundown of the four kids in the Frozen Four. Burke threw his hands in the air when Providence was mentioned, then Treliving made a joke about Providence being a good school despite being easy to get in to (a jab at Burke).

A lot of praise for Gillies. He said that he can't comment on any potential contract offers while the season is still underway, but they'll be talking to Jon once the Frozen Four is over.

Based on other questions, I'd say it sounds like Gillies is almost certainly going to be signed this year (when talking about the goalie injuries, he mentioned that they'll have some options available to them either Thursday or Saturday).

Treliving said he spoke to Jankowski's family advisor (which is basically his agent, but the NCAA doesn't let them call themselves agents) this week, and they'll speak again after the Frozen Four. He said that he thinks Mark will benefit from playing his senior year at college, but they'll have the discussion, and see if it makes sense to offer him a contract this year (he didn't say anything about Gillies playing his senior year).

He didn't speak about Gilmour much at all beyond saying his name.

He had good things to say about Hickey, and thinks he'll end up being a very good NHL player. It didn't sound like a contract is even in their thoughts yet with Hickey (who's just at the end of his freshman year).



There was also a question about the goalie situation...

Treliving said he had a unique Easter Sunday, talking to every available goalie in North America. Thiessen has been recalled from Adirondack and will be backing up Hiller on Tuesday, but they've also been exploring other options.

Ortio has started skating, but is still likely a couple more weeks away. He'll be coming to Calgary to get looked at by the Flames' doctors. Mason McDonald is also in Calgary getting looked at by the doctors. Ramo will be getting evaluated on Tuesday by the doctors. So, there's a bit of an injured goalie logjam in Calgary right now.

Treliving is still looking at the available options, but it's tough to sign anyone who played in Europe because even though their seasons may be over, their contracts are still valid through the end of April. Plus, any player who played pro hockey in Europe this season needs to clear waivers to join your team, which takes 24 hours.

This is when he mentioned that what happens in the Frozen Four on Thursday may change their available options by the weekend.

[C-ero]

Originally Posted by getbak

They also said that Sam is excited to be back in Calgary, and if they asked him to, he'd break through the wall to get to play. They don't want to rush him in if he's not ready. One thing they don't want to do is put him in a couple of games, have him play badly, then spend all summer thinking about that.

I like this part.

[getbak]

Questions about the defence...


Regarding Gio. When they saw him down in the corner, and then go right to the room, they knew something bad had happened because Gio basically needs to lose a limb to react like that.

Treliving said when he saw him in the room after the game, when Gio flexed his arm, his bicep was in his shoulder (which made everyone groan). They tried to see if he could play through it, but there was no way.

Gio is a warrior. The day after his surgery, he was back in the gym riding the bike. Treliving expects his recovery to go faster than the 3 or 4 months that was announced because Gio is a genetic freak (Treliving's words).

They also had high praise for Russell and Wideman stepping up in Gio's absence, and especially Engelland. A lot of people didn't like that contract on July 1, but they're glad they did it now.



Someone asked about the defence prospects, and whether there will be a priority on defence in the draft...


With regards to the draft, they will still focus on picking the best player. Even if they've drafted 4 centres, if the best player when they go to make pick #5 is another centre, they'll pick the centre. You can worry about making moves to get rid of positional logjams in the future.

Treliving also said that this is a deep draft and they believe that there will still be 5 or 6 players available when they pick in the first who they'll be happy to get. They won't get McDavid or Eichel, but they'd rather be in the playoffs.

With regards to the defence in the system. Treliving mentioned that they like what they've seen from Culkin and Kulak (Culkin's injury is healing nicely and he might be back in a couple of weeks) in Adirondack. Hickey has impressed them at Boston University, and they still really like Kanzig.


Someone asked specifically about Sieloff. They said he's still getting his game back after missing all of last season, and a good chunk of the year before.

They worry that Sieloff's size won't allow him to play his style of game in the NHL, which is why Burke thought they should give him a try on the wing. They like what they've seen of him on the wing, but Conroy told Burke not to pat himself on the back too soon. In one of the games Conroy attended in Adirondack, Sieloff was playing forward and got into a 3-on-0 with Reinhart and another winger, and he got so excited, he mishandled the puck and it went harmlessly into the corner.

[getbak]

Another thing that Treliving said about Bennett: In order to get him into the lineup, someone else is going to have to come out. He doesn't think it's a coincidence that Granlund had one of his best games of the year on Saturday. That's the power of competition.


Someone asked about Burke's under-35 policy for player numbers, especially regarding Jooris. Conroy said that Hartley said he could take a lower number around Christmas time, but Jooris had just bought about 20 jerseys for all his family for Christmas. Plus, there weren't many low numbers available at the time (unless they wanted to give him #12, which Conroy didn't think would go over too well), so they said he could keep 86 for the rest of the season.

Conroy wants to allow up to #44, but Burke doesn't like that idea.


There was the usual question about Corsi and the idea that the Flames are defying the advanced stats and set for a crash.

Of course, this prompted Burke to repeat his line about drunks and lamp posts. He also said that he thinks the biggest proponents of advanced stats are guys who are angling to get hired by NHL teams as advanced stats guys.

This did lead to a pretty good discussion about analytics and their value.

Treliving said that they used a lot of analytics in Phoenix, and he continues to use them still today. He said that Chris Snow (the Flames analytics guy) is one of the best and most-thorough in the league.

It's important to remember that analytics is just one tool available, and nothing can take the place of watching the games. Corsi won't tell you how a guy reacts when his coach tears a strip off him on the bench, for example.

Kerr asked how much value teams put into things like Corsi and Fenwick, and Treliving said that most teams are very secretive and protective of what processes they follow for collecting and analyzing stats, but Corsi and Fenwick don't really get used much at all.


They talked about the Flames not being a strong possession team. Hartley has developed a strategy that uses the strengths of the players on the team. The Flames are still a small team, but they're young and fast, so Hartley has focused a lot on scoring on the rush and getting fast breaks. If they can't gain the zone on the rush, they can be prone to dumping the puck in and turning it over. Their lack of size also leads to them getting pinned in the zone more than they'd like. These are all factors that the team needs to address going forward. When the team gets bigger, they'll be able to play a stronger zone game, and their possession stats will improve.

[getbak]

Last one...

There was a question about the third period comebacks and the team's overall conditioning.


Treliving talked about the intensity of Hartley's practices. When Schlemko first arrived, he said he'd be ready to go after the morning skate. Treliving warned him that he's never taken a Bob Hartley morning skate. He said you could have lit a fire off the top of Schlemko's head as he came off the ice, his face was so red.


Burke said he keeps telling the guys that he hates to see the third period comebacks. Being happy about them is like bragging about how much hard work you put in shovelling dirt into a hole that you never should have dug in the first place.

They'll all be much happier if they don't have to have so many third period comebacks in the future.

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by getbak

Kerr asked how much value teams put into things like Corsi and Fenwick, and Treliving said that most teams are very secretive and protective of what processes they follow for collecting and analyzing stats, but Corsi and Fenwick don't really get used much at all.

Wait... what?
So the be all and end all of 'advanced stats' aren't really even used by NHL teams?
Shocking!

[Drury18]

Originally Posted by getbak

With regards to the defence in the system. Treliving mentioned that they like what they've seen from Culkin and Kulak (Culkin's injury is healing nicely and he might be back in a couple of weeks) in Adirondack. Hickey has impressed them at Boston University, and they still really like Kanzig.

If Gio's a genetic freak, I'd love to hear what Culkin is classified as.

Culkin had a tendon severed in his wrist and was in a immobilizing cast and shut down for the year and put on a lower body regimen to start him training for next year. He was injured early Feb and surgery about mid Feb.

Great news though if accurate. It could have been career ending and to hear he could be back 2 months later is great!

[Gaudfather]

Great comments Getbak for those of us who don't attend these events - thanks again!

[heep223]

Originally Posted by getbak

Last one...

There was a question about the third period comebacks and the team's overall conditioning.


Treliving talked about the intensity of Hartley's practices. When Schlemko first arrived, he said he'd be ready to go after the morning skate. Treliving warned him that he's never taken a Bob Hartley morning skate. He said you could have lit a fire off the top of Schlemko's head as he came off the ice, his face was so red.


Burke said he keeps telling the guys that he hates to see the third period comebacks. Being happy about them is like bragging about how much hard work you put in shovelling dirt into a hole that you never should have dug in the first place.

They'll all be much happier if they don't have to have so many third period comebacks in the future.

Are you a wizard?

[Camronius]

Originally Posted by getbak

In Burke's opening remarks, he said that the Flames' success this year is because of four men: Treliving, Hartley, Giordano, and Feaster. He said that too often teams fire a coach or GM and pretend that they never worked there (he made a joke that it's nearly impossible to get anyone in Vancouver or Toronto to even acknowledge he was ever employed by either team), so he gave credit to Feaster for bringing in Hartley and a lot of other guys on the team.

I really appreciate these comments. I think since Feaster had a few gaff's (almost disastrous with O'Reilly) he's been kind of swept him under the rug since his firing. While I do agree with the flames and Feaster parting ways, he might be the biggest reason we are where we are today.

[Flaming Choy]

Thanks for the summary. Happy with pretty much everything they said, except the Jersey number limit. I want to see a Bennett #39 jersey.

[cDnStealth]

Thanks that was a good read. A couple things come to mind. Gio's bicep going into his shoulder made me want to vomit. After reading that comment I couldn't imagine trying to play but that guy really is a warrior. Lucky to have him as our captain.

I was one of those that wanted Bennett into the lineup as soon as his team was eliminated. Conroy's comments make me rethink that stance. I am sure if you asked a lot of rookies what they'd do in a certain situation they'd give you the wrong answer. Rookies will make mistakes. That's neither surprising nor unexpected. What worries me is that he's obviously trying to do too much to make the team.

[btimbit]

Originally Posted by cDnStealth

Thanks that was a good read. A couple things come to mind. Gio's bicep going into his shoulder made me want to vomit. After reading that comment I couldn't imagine trying to play but that guy really is a warrior. Lucky to have him as our captain.

I was one of those that wanted Bennett into the lineup as soon as his team was eliminated. Conroy's comments make me rethink that stance. I am sure if you asked a lot of rookies what they'd do in a certain situation they'd give you the wrong answer. Rookies will make mistakes. That's neither surprising nor unexpected. What worries me is that he's obviously trying to do too much to make the team.

I'm not so sure that it worries but, but I agree with management that a late season playoff push might be the wrong time to have Bennett learn it on the ice

[Gaudfather]

They also said that Sam is excited to be back in Calgary, and if they asked him to, he'd break through the wall to get to play. They don't want to rush him in if he's not ready. One thing they don't want to do is put him in a couple of games, have him play badly, then spend all summer thinking about that.

I hope the Flames don't really coddle their young players like this. You are a professional hockey player - if you play well great - if you stink - suck it up, improve and get over it.

Since when did hockey players become tender young things? ugh!

[Southside]

Originally Posted by Gaudfather

I hope the Flames don't really coddle their young players like this. You are a professional hockey player - if you play well great - if you stink - suck it up, improve and get over it.

Since when did hockey players become tender young things? ugh!

He is just 18. I think the main message was that despite Sam wanting in, he just isn't ready yet. Conroy said he needs some time to watch and learn the system. If as a centre he is taking on LW duties then he is going to upset the entire balance on the ice.

[MrCallahan]

Thanks getbak, awesome summary!

[Thor]

Originally Posted by Gaudfather

I hope the Flames don't really coddle their young players like this. You are a professional hockey player - if you play well great - if you stink - suck it up, improve and get over it.

Since when did hockey players become tender young things? ugh!

You'd prefer the Oilers method of rushing them and ending up screwing them up for good?