[News] Flames development camp - Week of July 4th

[AcGold]

Originally Posted by GreenLantern2814

I just mean a big skilled impact centre who protects the puck well, sees the ice well and can generate offense for his line.

I think we all hoped Colborne could do that. Jankowski looks like he could in not too long.

I didn't hope for that from Colborne. He demonstrated a very limited skillset immediately. He never gave any indication that he had anything other than good hands. Size really doesn't mean that much with such a small skillset. It's not like Colborne chose to not use his size he just never developed properly.

It was pretty obvious when he got here he didn't have much more to give than a good shootout deke. Colborne was similar to Ales Kotalik from my perspective.

[robaur]

It's very hard to judge goalies in development camp. this is my 6th and I still don't find it any easier.

As far as Hunter Smith and Kanzig are concerned, it's pretty clear neither will make the NHL.

[Freeway]

Really, all dev camp tells you is who's in shape and/or who is super-talented. Only saw a bit of the last two days because of doing interviews and prepping for a vacation (Vegas! Woo!), but Hickey, Fox, Burke, Jankowski, Dube, Ollas-Mattsson, Tkachuk, Tuulola and Kylington stood out to me.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by TheScorpion

Janko is the real deal, Feaster was right. We'll for sure see him next year.

He's probably ready, but I think you see him in the AHL for at least the first half of the season. He could still use a bunch of 1st line experience in the AHL instead of playing center on the 4th line in the NHL. Unless they move Bennett to the wing and make Jankowski his center, but I doubt they do that.

Disappointed to see Andersson still having conditioning problems. They need to keep[ him in Calgary next off-season for training or have him train with Gio in Toronto.

[Demetric]

Originally Posted by Fire

He's probably ready, but I think you see him in the AHL for at least the first half of the season. He could still use a bunch of 1st line experience in the AHL instead of playing center on the 4th line in the NHL. Unless they move Bennett to the wing and make Jankowski his center, but I doubt they do that.

Disappointed to see Andersson still having conditioning problems. They need to keep[ him in Calgary next off-season for training or have him train with Gio in Toronto.

or this off season and a year in Stockton will do wonders as well I think

[JohnnyTitan]

Originally Posted by Fire

Disappointed to see Andersson still having conditioning problems. They need to keep[ him in Calgary next off-season for training or have him train with Gio in Toronto.

Seeing all these comments and hearing Treliving (and Conroy) on the FAN 960 yesterday talking about "Learning to be a pro"...it sounds like Andersson needs to be in the AHL.

Treliving flat out said that Junior guys play hockey and then have their own personal time...especially in the summer. When you get paid to play hockey, you get paid for 52-weeks a year and you are always training and watching your diet.

With that, I'm not counting Rasmus out yet. Maybe he needs to get away from Billets and part-time hockey players. He needs to be in an environment where everyone is fighting for a job and off-ice is as important as on-ice. Skill alone won't let you succeed.

Work hard over the next 12-months Rasmus!! We all want to pencil you in for AT LEAST a 5-6 guy in a couple years!

[Anduril]

Originally Posted by GreenLantern2814

Dare I say it, Jankowski might just be the player we all wished Colborne was.

Does that mean Jankowski is a better Colborne or worse at being Colborne?

[PeteMoss]

Originally Posted by JohnnyTitan

Seeing all these comments and hearing Treliving (and Conroy) on the FAN 960 yesterday talking about "Learning to be a pro"...it sounds like Andersson needs to be in the AHL.

Treliving flat out said that Junior guys play hockey and then have their own personal time...especially in the summer. When you get paid to play hockey, you get paid for 52-weeks a year and you are always training and watching your diet.

With that, I'm not counting Rasmus out yet. Maybe he needs to get away from Billets and part-time hockey players. He needs to be in an environment where everyone is fighting for a job and off-ice is as important as on-ice. Skill alone won't let you succeed.

Work hard over the next 12-months Rasmus!! We all want to pencil you in for AT LEAST a 5-6 guy in a couple years!

This is true, but I'd probably expect the guy to eat better with billets and his family making his food rather than him making (or more likely buying) his own stuff.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Thanks for all the comments from everyone that took in the sessions. I do want to remind everyone that this is a development camp and it is ridiculous to be writing off any player because of what you see in this camp. Positions are not won or lost here, this is an education opportunity for these guys. Training camp is a different story, but that is a couple months away.

A comment on Andersson, it has long been understood that he would have to go to the AHL and learn to be a pro. I wouldn't get excited about his development as he'll have a couple years in the minors to learn to be a pro. He should likely get that opportunity this fall as I think he is eligible for the AHL and it doesn't make sense for him to spend another year in junior. He obviously needs some hand-holding and the Flames have the right guys to get him there. He'll be fine.

One last comment, don't discount the importance of those tree trunks with hockey sticks. Their limited roles and ice time can really help grind down the defensemen on the other team and create some room for our stars late in the game when the space is needed. Don't discount the value of those big guys with size, even if they aren't fleet of foot.

[robaur]

Spoiler!

Dave Cameron at Winsport.

[TheScorpion]

All right, here are my thoughts from this morning:

- Mark Jankowski was the best player out there, bar none. He was nearly unstoppable out there, making fantastic passes and exemplifying good Hockey IQ. If he doesn't make the Flames out of camp, he'll be a callup.
- The recipient of a lot of Jankowski's passes? Hunter Smith, who conversely had a tough morning. The play seemed to die on his stick every time he received a pass, and his skating really suffered. Caged Great (who I was sitting with) remarked that he was a lot better yesterday, however.
- Austin Carroll was the best player not wearing #77 on the ice. Very aggressive, very tenacious, and very quick. He's a good depth option who will be a fixture in the Flames bottom six in a couple of years.
- Jon Gillies was good in his limited time on the ice, swallowing rebounds and playing well, position-wise. However, he left the ice halfway through the session due to hip issues.
- Ollas-Mattsson was big, slow, and made the odd errant pass. Still a work in progress, for sure.
- Burke looked very quick and feisty, and occasionally displayed a burst of real ingenuity with his stick. Interesting to see if he's signed.
- Phillips may secretly be Johnny Gaudreau. He checks all of the boxes always seen in #13's game, and should be a very intriguing prospect to follow.
- According to Caged Great, Rittich looked "better than he did yesterday". However, his positioning was still questionable at times.
- Tim Harrison was all over the map. He only really stood out when he did something really wrong. He won't be back next year, I think.
- Pollock wasn't really all that noticeable. He had the odd moment, but nothing flashy in particular. He has a decent shot.
- Rasmus Andersson looked really bad out there. His positioning and speed were not up to par, for certain. Hopefully he looks better tomorrow.
- Hickey needs to work on his shot, but his defensive play was superb. He constantly gets his stick into the lanes. He looks like a T.J. Brodie type out there.
- Mason McDonald made all the right saves out there. Corralled rebounds nicely, and looked good positionally.
- Kanzig looked big. He seems to have improved his skating considerably. Doesn't have amazing puck-moving skills.
- Doucet kept missing the net on his shot. Could not hit the net. His skating was all right, didn't stand out.
- Dube was there

[robaur]

The first thing you notice about Matthew Tkachuk is that the guy has a NHL shot. just pure sniper.

[Five-hole]

Originally Posted by New Era

One last comment, don't discount the importance of those tree trunks with hockey sticks. Their limited roles and ice time can really help grind down the defensemen on the other team and create some room for our stars late in the game when the space is needed. Don't discount the value of those big guys with size, even if they aren't fleet of foot.

Well, unless the puck is in our zone and it's our own D getting ground down because they can't advance the play or keep it in the other end.

[josef]

Originally Posted by TheScorpion

All right, here are my thoughts from this morning:

-
- Jon Gillies was good in his limited time on the ice, swallowing rebounds and playing well, position-wise. However, he left the ice halfway through the session due to hip issues.

if this is correct, he might have some serious hip-problems, after being out with an hip-injury for a year.........don´t like it

[skudr248]

Gillies left with hip issues? Ughhhh

[CMPunk]

Originally Posted by josef

if this is correct, he might have some serious hip-problems, after being out with an hip-injury for a year.........don´t like it

How do we know it's hip issues? Speculation or was it announced?

[TheScorpion]

They're formally introducing Dave Cameron as asst. coach in a presser right now, just walked by it. Ran into Gulutzan, we had the following exchange:

Me: "Hey, coach."
GG: "Hey, you're a Flames fan."
Me: "Yeah"

Originally Posted by CMPunk

How do we know it's hip issues? Speculation or was it announced?

Someone here asked Gillies about his hip today after the session.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by five-hole

well, unless the puck is in our zone and it's our own d getting ground down because they can't advance the play or keep it in the other end.

leave.
Keegan.
Aloooooneee.

:d

[robaur]

Another note on Tkachuk, anyone who has come to watch him can agree that the criticism of his skating is way overblown.

[Flames_F.T.W]

I know it's only development camp, but it's good to hear that Jankowski is standing out. It would be something if after all these years he really turned into a good player. This year could be huge for him