[PGT] Flames 4 Caps 1

[bax]

Originally Posted by Backlunds_socks

the point is the flames finished in a playoff spot, which ended up meaning jack ####.



So we should give GG all the benefit for this season and no doubt for last?



Is he your cousin or something?

I don’t know why you feel the need to be so arrogant all of the time

[calgaryblood]

Originally Posted by FBI

sooooo... I think it's a pretty good sign that the flames players are photo bombing again.

Or it means Gulutzan doesn't have control of the room....

It's kind of funny reading posts that can never give Gututzan credit. Yesterday after the early goal people were saying Gulutzan couldn't get the team ready to play even though the goal was squarely on Brodie sleep walking.

After the Flames came back and dominated the Caps the rest of the way it must have been only the players who caused the turn around.

Gulutzan isn't perfect and has made me wonder what he was doing a few times but I think for the most part everything he does is with a purpose and he is a good coach.

I just think a big issue for him is we have a few d men who are prone to big errors and sometimes lose their man and that's not the fault of the coach. He can't play those guys 10 minutes a night.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by Backlunds_socks

the point is the flames finished in a playoff spot, which ended up meaning jack ####.

So we should give GG all the benefit for this season and no doubt for last?

Is he your cousin or something?

Terrible goaltending cost us the series.

[Calgary4LIfe]

I don't think either side should get too firmly attached to their position. Open up a little, and wait and see how this season unfolds.

Last season was a very up and down season, and Gulutzan was worthy of both praise and criticism.

Let's just see what happens this season before we dig into our trenches and declare war at one another on these forums.

One thing about Gulutzan that everyone should keep in mind is that he is a relatively inexperienced NHL head coach. There are going to be ups and downs, and he is going to run into those very experienced coaches that are godly in how they manage their benches, mach-ups and in-game tactics. Gulutzan is bound to get better with experience as well. Let's look at his body of work with an open mind this season.

Almost every team hits a slump or two in a season, goes on a nice winning streak or two in a season, and they make their fanbases bi-polar. It is the 20 game mark, Flames are in a nice playoff spot with Vegas and LA as the only divisional teams ahead of them. Vegas is bound to slip-up this season as they are more than likely over-achieving, and I think LA is over-achieving as well. Flames are in a really nice spot, though one could also argue this is the easiest division, with a bunch of bad teams (Vancouver, Arizona and Vegas), some poor teams in Edmonton (yes, they are a poor team that I think is playing to their expectations) and LA (they aren't that powerhouse they looked like at the beginning of the season, and I didn't think they would make the playoffs this year), with only San Jose and Anaheim being decent. San Jose is weaker this season than last, and Anaheim is an incredibly hurt team this year.

I think Gulutzan has done good things and bad things so far. However, I am not going to say he is an excellent coach, nor will I say he is a bad one. What I do think right now is that after 20 games, this team finds itself comfortably in a playoff spot, and will probably be overtaking the division lead in a week. You don't fire a coach that put a team at that spot. You don't fire a coach that has helped you get wins against some of the best teams in the league up until this point.

Lose again to Edmonton, however, and it may sway my decision! haha

Just enjoy the win. Be patient and let this play out. There are few coaches that enter the coaching fraternity in the NHL and are successful right off the bat. Some enter it, experience some rather instant success, and then become total flops too. Enjoy the wins and lighten up.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by neo45

I think it is a little bit ridiculous how people assume a single criticism of the coaching staff means you want them all fired, instead of them just making adjustments to stuff that clearly isn't working. We have a dead last penalty kill despite getting Vezina quality goaltending. Who is the blame for that besides the coaching staff?

Totally valid criticism. In that game against the Capitals, they employed a strategy that was mostly quite effective. That power play was red hot coming in as well.

On the whole, the PK does need to be more consistent. They were really good to start the year, then it went into the tank hard...I mean really hard. It was almost an automatic goal against for a while. They look to be righting the ship a little now, but obviously work still needs to be done to make sure it stays that way.

[ThePrince]

Originally Posted by Backlunds_socks

the point is the flames finished in a playoff spot, which ended up meaning jack ####.

So we should give GG all the benefit for this season and no doubt for last?

Is he your cousin or something?

Well only one team wins the Stanley Cup. In GG's first season (with his two star players missing training camp and some atrocious goaltending) he had a 17 point improvement over Hartley's last season, with positive possession numbers. So yes, he should get some benefit especially considering we're off to a decent start. Does that mean everything's rosy and perfect and there should be no criticism? No, but people are way too extreme about this particular topic.

Did he kick your dog or something?

[Robbob]

Originally Posted by Backlunds_socks

the point is the flames finished in a playoff spot, which ended up meaning jack ####.

So we should give GG all the benefit for this season and no doubt for last?

Is he your cousin or something?

My last comment on it as I don't think there can be anything said or done to change your point of view.

Yes, the coaches job is to get the team he has been given by the GM to the playoffs. That is the entire point of the regular season. Yes the results were disappointing in the playoffs versus Anaheim. A lot of unfortunate things happened during the games that didn't go the Flames way. That is hockey and why we play the game. You pick yourself up and try again the next season. I still think this team is better than and will be more successful then that team last year. Life is more enjoyable when you look at the good things and build off them.

[AustinL_NHL]

Edit: Wrong thread

[Kovaz]

I think people really underestimate how much inconsistency all teams experience. Echoing some earlier posts: there's so much parity in the league. To illustrate, I took a look at the reddit power rankings from yesterday, where each team has a fan do a write up of their team's recent play. Some examples:

The third line still can't score, and our defense admittedly falls apart sometimes ... The Blues need to fix these problems, though.

- St. Louis (15-5-1)

league worst power play, offensive struggles, inconsistency at center, injures

- Columbus (12-7-1)

crashed down hard to earth this week with a four game losing streak ... struggled offensively ... nowhere near as dominant as they were the first few weeks of the year

- Los Angeles (12-7-2)

gameplan of "build a 3 goal lead and then turtle hard" finally bit them in the ass this week

- Nashville (11-6-2)

Not every week can be a winner ... defense that can be a liability ...
cracks have begun to show ... my optimism wanes as the rest of the division nips at our heels

- New Jersey (11-5-3)

These are all good teams that are competing for 1st in their divisions, and they are also full of flaws and inconsistencies. You don't get 100 points by being exactly at an 100 point pace all season long. You get there by playing at a 120 point pace sometimes and an 80 point pace sometimes. Even the best teams in the league get blown out sometimes. By the standard some of us seem to expect out of the Flames, every coach in the league not named Jon Cooper should be on the hot seat.

[-TC-]

Originally Posted by Puppet Guy

quoting because the thread needs more Mel's Rock Pile

[Red]

Many puzzling issues (to some) or roster decisions have been brought up to illustrate Gulutzans "short commings".

What decisions specifically show that he is a good coach?

Outside of just general wins and losses. Because at times good coaches loose and bad ones win.

Team scoring well?
Team defending well?
Good PP? Good PK?
Identity?
Discovered untapped potential in player x or y?
Players playing better than under other coaches?

What contributions can we tie to him directly?

[Ashasx]

Wes Gilbertson‏ @WesGilbertson
#Flames D Brett Kulak skated a lot longer than any other blue-liner today. I'm guessing D Matt Bartkowski draws in tomorrow against Blue Jackets.

ok gulutzan, #### like this pisses me off

[stone hands]

how about the fact that this team plays a structured game that focuses heavily on puck posession, cycling and controlling the pace of the game, and when they execute that strategy they walk all over any team put in front of them(see: all of last year after december, last night)

compare this to the absolutely atrocious non-system of bob hartley which overly relied on shot blocking and stretch passes

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Wes Gilbertson‏ @WesGilbertson
#Flames D Brett Kulak skated a lot longer than any other blue-liner today. I'm guessing D Matt Bartkowski draws in tomorrow against Blue Jackets.

ok gulutzan, #### like this pisses me off

And just to be ironic, I don't have a problem with this. Even your 13th forward, 7th defenceman and 2nd goalie need to play the odd game. Practice only goes so far. As long as this is a one-off to get Bartkowski some game action, that's fine. If it's not a one-off, well....

Putting Bartkowski in one of the back-to-backs would have been preferable however.

[Red]

Originally Posted by stone hands

how about the fact that this team plays a structured game that focuses heavily on puck posession, cycling and controlling the pace of the game, and when they execute that strategy they walk all over any team put in front of them(see: all of last year after december, last night)

compare this to the absolutely atrocious non-system of bob hartley which overly relied on shot blocking and stretch passes

Their D coverage is hardly structured

But yes the advanced stats are better. Just like Eakin's oiler were

[Soccergirl1987]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Wes Gilbertson‏ @WesGilbertson
#Flames D Brett Kulak skated a lot longer than any other blue-liner today. I'm guessing D Matt Bartkowski draws in tomorrow against Blue Jackets.

ok gulutzan, #### like this pisses me off

Wtf. Kulak has been really good and Bartkowski has been god-awful in every game he's played in. Why make that change? Just let him sit.

[Zevo]

Originally Posted by Red

Many puzzling issues (to some) or roster decisions have been brought up to illustrate Gulutzans "short commings".

What decisions specifically show that he is a good coach?

Outside of just general wins and losses. Because at times good coaches loose and bad ones win.

Team scoring well?
Team defending well?
Good PP? Good PK?
Identity?
Discovered untapped potential in player x or y?
Players playing better than under other coaches?

What contributions can we tie to him directly?

How about our top players playing like our top players. A few of them playing like the leagues best players. As much as some people don't like to give the coach credit for good players playing well, it seems just as valid as him getting the blame for the bottom six making mistakes.

Kulak and Jankowski are playing great. I think that could very likely be due to how they have been brought along.

As others have mentioned, From Dec. on last year they played great hockey, including special teams(I think?). Why doesn't he get credit for that?

[Red]

Originally Posted by Zevo

How about our top players playing like our top players. A few of them playing like the leagues best players. As much as some people don't like to give the coach credit for good players playing well, it seems just as valid as him getting the blame for the bottom six making mistakes.

Kulak and Jankowski are playing great. I think that could very likely be due to how they have been brought along.

As others have mentioned, From Dec. on last year they played great hockey, including special teams(I think?). Why doesn't he get credit for that?

But they were playing great before GG. Thats the point of me asking. I see players taking a step back with GG at the helm but can't pinpoint any that have improved from previous play.
Maybe a coincidence. But still, when can we say wow, GG made this happen?

So far we have advanced stats. They are clearly better.
But the actual hockey results are underwhelming. Poor special teams, players playing poorly, terrible GF vs GA results. To me those are the true indicators of well coached teams.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

And just to be ironic, I don't have a problem with this. Even your 13th forward, 7th defenceman and 2nd goalie need to play the odd game. Practice only goes so far. As long as this is a one-off to get Bartkowski some game action, that's fine. If it's not a one-off, well....

Putting Bartkowski in one of the back-to-backs would have been preferable however.

Except if anyone deserves to sit it's Brodie, not Kulak

[Love]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Wes Gilbertson‏ @WesGilbertson
#Flames D Brett Kulak skated a lot longer than any other blue-liner today. I'm guessing D Matt Bartkowski draws in tomorrow against Blue Jackets.

ok gulutzan, #### like this pisses me off

lol lol lol