The trials and tribulations of Glen Gulutzan

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Go back and look at the exit interviews from last year and specifically Versteeg.

Coaching staff has made hockey fun again.
This is like Chicago where players have a voice and an opinion.

I heard a Versteeg interview on 960 after the opening night stinker that kind of worried me actually. He said something to the effect that players don't realize how good they have it because Gulutzan lets them get away with a lot that other coaches wouldn't. Maybe that's a problem in itself as it's a job and work isn't supposed to be fun all the time. Maybe there's a reason most coaches are stringent with players.

[GullFoss]

Originally Posted by Gaskal

That's the complete opposite impression to the one I have of his systems methodology.

He said in an interview that he tries to have systems in place merely as a guideline, but he wants his players to use their own creativity and game sense. That, however, is really contingent on the players themselves and they're not confident or are clutching their sticks too hard, and the results are suffering from it.

If this team is playing 30-40 games a year where a large number of players are playing "too tight"/"clutching their sticks too hard"/ etc - what is going on?!?!?!?

I understand that can happen at points in a season for a few games here and there - but with Gully's calgary flames, its an issue that comes up extremely often vs all the other coaches in recent memory, and from the way other teams look when playing the flames.

I honestly believe that - in addition to the issues laid on in the OP - the coaching is a huge factor behind this for two reasons: system constraints and team identity.

First, the adherence to the system seemingly limits the flames ability to get their feet moving, or create in the offensive or defensive zone pressure. And as a result, the flames lacks game rythem and intensity - passes are bad because skates aren't moving, the other team easily gets into position to defend because the team plays slow, the forcheck is often uncoordinated, there is no cycle time in the offensive zone (outside of the 3M line), defensive zone coverage is too passive lead to long periods of being hemmed in. Its only in the final minutes of the game when the system constraints are loosened that the team looks good.

Second, the team lacks an identity, which slows its ability to fall back in sync when things start to go bad.

• Sutter teams: big hits, work hard, strong down low, get your feet moving. When? to start every game, after every bad goal, every time something went wrong.
• Gully teams: I honestly have no idea, but it looks like there no is no bite back after any of the goals they've allowed this year.

[tsquared1967]

Originally Posted by Snuffleupagus

I would trade Brouwer or Stajan for Iginla in a heartbeat, even without Iggy's intangibles he out scored both of these bums last year. My belief is Iginla doesn't have a contract because he won't play for cheap not because he's useless

I was being sarcastic. I would rather have Iginla over Brouwer anyday. GG should:

1. Strip Brouwer of the A on his jersey. His leadership is lacking and his play drags this team down.

2. Stop the experiment of Bennett at center.

3, Stop looking down at the tablet when scored upon. Rally the team instead of looking like you are hanging your head.

What bothers me is where is the captain in all of this. Has GG lost Gio in all of this?

[monkeyman]

I agree with Gaskal. if you watch, it seems like the players have no idea what to do or where to be in specific situations. There is no system.
There's honestly way too many things I don't like about GG's approach to handling this team to list here, without coming off like a total nut case so I won't, but lets just say, he should spend less time on his hair and murals of Mount Everest and more time on his game plan.

[TheScorpion]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

If you can't take snark, Bingo, don't dish snark.

Beyond that, it's rather amusing that, in a thread all about piling on coaching and management, you used one of the few posts that said nothing about the failures of coaching or management to get all defensive about it.

I mean, if you want to get all pissy about people attacking the coach, at least respond to the people attacking the coach. I'm not sure what you thought getting all passive aggressive on Dion's post was meant to accomplish.

You're completely in the wrong here. Bingo's comments to Dion were questioning his opinion -- AKA the entire point of a discussion. Your response to those comments was insulting and just uncalled for.

[Resolute 14]

I'm sure there actually is a system. The fact that nobody other than Gulutzan seems to know what it is from day to day is one of the central issues here. Same as it was an issue early last year. Of course, why they seemingly have to re-learn Gulutzan's system again is a bit puzzling. Also puzzling is his need to attach anchors to this team. We're not going to succeed with Bartkowski as a regular, or with Brouwer-Stajan-Glass getting third line minutes. Or with Bennett at centre. Or with Brouwer on the power play. Or with Stone out on the ice in the last minute down by one with three superior offensive defencemen sitting on the bench.

[tsquared1967]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

I'm sure there actually is a system. The fact that nobody other than Gulutzan seems to know what it is from day to day is one of the central issues here. Same as it was an issue early last year. Of course, why they seemingly have to re-learn Gulutzan's system again is a bit puzzling. Also puzzling is his need to attach anchors to this team. We're not going to succeed with Bartkowski as a regular, or with Brouwer-Stajan-Glass getting third line minutes. Or with Bennett at centre. Or with Brouwer on the power play. Or with Stone out on the ice in the last minute down by one with three superior offensive defencemen sitting on the bench.

GG doesn't think he can win without Brouwer, Stajan, Glass and Bartkowski. He doesn't want Jankowski and Bennett playing late in a close game because he is afraid of them giving up the next goal. Guess he would rather lose a game 2-1 instead of 3-1.

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by tsquared1967

GG doesn't think he can win without Brouwer, Stajan, Glass and Bartkowski. He doesn't want Jankowski and Bennett playing late in a close game because he is afraid of them giving up the next goal. Guess he would rather lose a game 2-1 instead of 3-1.

Which says a great deal about his mentality given we are drowning when Glass and Brouwer are on the ice. They neither add offence nor provide defence at 5 on 5. Bennett has been no better, of course, but we really don't know at this point how much is because Gulutzan kept playing him out of position until Jagr got hurt and his hand was forced for a few days.

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by GullFoss

If this team is playing 30-40 games a year where a large number of players are playing "too tight"/"clutching their sticks too hard"/ etc - what is going on?!?!?!?

It turned out to be an execution issue last year and it will be this year as well.


This team looked great with decent goaltending and downright unstoppable with hot goaltending. Everything sucks right now, yeah, but I think a lot of posters forget this in their woes.

[Resolute 14]

Except we've had hot goaltending, and we still look like garbage. God help us if Smith had merely been decent.

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

Except we've had hot goaltending, and we still look like garbage. God help us if Smith had merely been decent.

Yes, except what I'm seeing is a team that is playing scared and tentative, not a team that has no idea what the heck it's doing. That is the observation I'm contending - that it is an execution issue, not a systems issue. It's not likely that a roster and coaching lineup that had very little turnover in the offseason completely forgot where the Xs and Os are supposed to go, which is the impression that some people have been left with after viewing the games.

This team has looked absolutely dominant at even strength at times even throughout this cold blah streak. But no one wants to shoot, and it's clear that they're overdoing it. We're seeing shots go wide, over the net, into Brouwer's ass... Scorp mentioned us having the 2nd worst shooting% in the league. This is telling me that everyone's just playing like they'll magically fall into a pit of spikes the moment something goes wrong in the o-zone.

[activeStick]

This is the same staff that led the team to that run last season, playing a great overall game in the second half of the year. PP and PK in the top half or maybe even top third of the league over that stretch.

That's a big enough sample size to think what's happening now isn't due to the same coaching staff in place.

Chiasson, Wideman and Engelland are not roster subtractions that lead to the results we're seeing now.

I think it comes down again to the players not executing, which happens, but is annoying nonetheless given they should have figured it out by now.

I prefer keeping the coach for stability reasons. Not a fan of Sutter for this roster as his style does not suit the players that are here. He'd be ideal for a roster like the Jets.

Problem is you can't fire all the players, so I think everyone will be forced to work through this. Hope they figure it out sooner, rather than later...

[Flash Walken]

Chiasson not in the lineup is probably a bigger issue than fans want to admit.

He scored 1 less goal than Bennett did last year, and finished the season with one less point than Brouwer.

Losing Alex Chiasson shouldn't be a problem for an NHL lineup, but here we are.

[Tron_fdc]

The coaching staff had nothing to do with our run last year. Chad Johnson went god mode and covered up all the warts to get us into a playoff position, then Elliott did the same. By the time playoffs hit we were back to mediocre goaltending and general play, had some bad luck here and there and then got swept when Elliott went beer league on us.

I've lost all faith in Gulutzan. I don't think he has what it takes to steer this ship of personalities and talent.

[Tron_fdc]

Dp

[activeStick]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

Chiasson not in the lineup is probably a bigger issue than fans want to admit.

He scored 1 less goal than Bennett did last year, and finished the season with one less point than Brouwer.

Losing Alex Chiasson shouldn't be a problem for an NHL lineup, but here we are.

So losing a 12 goal, 24 point guy is a bigger issue than fans want to admit?

I don't buy it. He's a replacement level player and his loss has a negligible impact to the roster and team.

[browna]

As a season ticket holder for 15 years I’ve seen worse starts to seasons that have turned out much better than anticipated.

A whole big meh from me. We’ve got the goaltending and defence and the team needs confidence scoring.

That will happen, Jagr’s role in making that happen is more important because it does provide some stability; he got hurt just as he started to fit in comfortably on the top line and then GG had to experiment again the last 3 games on the top line (which trickled down to all lines) with options that didn’t really work in camp, preseason, and even into the large part of last year, which is why they went out and got Jagr in when they did.

[Manhattanboy]

Except for Smith the Flames might be the most overrated team in the NHL. Do other teams fear the Flames? Do opposing coaches have the Flames circled on their calendars? Do opposing players worry about the size, strength and toughness of the Flames?

I suspect Hitch was rather relieved to see Calgary on the second night of a back to back.

[tsquared1967]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

Chiasson not in the lineup is probably a bigger issue than fans want to admit.

He scored 1 less goal than Bennett did last year, and finished the season with one less point than Brouwer.

Losing Alex Chiasson shouldn't be a problem for an NHL lineup, but here we are.

Chaisson got his points for being on the ice with Gaudreau and Monahan even though he dragged the whole line down. When GG realized that the line wasn't working he moved Chaisson down to the 3rd and 4th line. Chaisson got past in points pretty quickly by Brouwsr, Bennett, Ferland and Brodie.

Time to trade Jankowski for Chaisson.

[Manhattanboy]

Time to lock this thread. It's clear GG is not a good head coach.