Building The 2018/19 Flames Roster

[GioforPM]

This whole thing demonstrates how devastating the Bennett issue has been for Calgary's planning.

[Mattman]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

If the Flames get more RW depth, they should use it to make the 2nd and 3rd lines scoring threats, rather than incrementally improve what is already one of the most productive lines in the NHL.

If I could build on this point, while I do agree with this statement that they should spread the depth and scoring threats to the 2nd and 3rd lines, they shouldn't be going out to get 2nd and 3rd line players.

For example Pittsburgh had Crosby, Malkin and Kessel on three different lines at one point. All 1st line players clearly, but as one poster mentioned you can't have your 3 best players all on one line.

I think people put too much emphasis on 1st 2nd 3rd and 4th lines as a label that sticks to that player. And in the case of Michael Ferland, no he is not a 1st line player, but he is a complementary peice that has proven he can play on a line with Mony and Johnny which so happens to get alot of ice time.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

You could see a guy like Dube perhaps fitting with Backlund in another year or so, hoping Frolik doesn't continue to decline next season.

Find offensive center to play with Tkachuk. Someone who also makes the PP work.

Now maybe you have something.

And Foo

I was pretty unimpressed with his preseason, but the version we saw late (and don't worry I'm well aware they were meaningful games, I remember the Cogliano/Nilsson/??? line from the Edmonton rebuild 1.0) was a very different player.

He seems to have that mix of size, speed, and getting into those holes where the puck ends up on his stick.

[TheScorpion]

Frolik looked so different after his injury, I think he lost a lot of his tenacity. I have a good feeling that he'll be much better next season.

[GioforPM]

So we are agreed - a really good C or RW but the latter not to play on the top line. I'm down with that.

The other thing is that either one of those players helps the PP a lot.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by Bingo

And Foo

I was pretty unimpressed with his preseason, but the version we saw late (and don't worry I'm well aware they were meaningful games, I remember the Cogliano/Nilsson/??? line from the Edmonton rebuild 1.0) was a very different player.

He seems to have that mix of size, speed, and getting into those holes where the puck ends up on his stick.

Agree with you on Foo. I mean you need options, as none of these guys will be exactly who you think they will be. And Foo is quite a bit older so he is a guy that if he's going to make it, really should be in the NHL next year. Not necessarily true of Dube.

Monahan/Gaudreau
unknown center/Tkachuk
Backlund/Frolik

Ferland, Foo and Bennett could be wingers on these lines.

Back up plan could be to find a winger to play on Tkachuk line and look at Jankowski as the C. I am not as thrilled with that option.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

Depth is great and all, can't win without it, but both teams in the final had at least 3 players score 65+ points and the flames had 1 ( honourable mention Monahan with 64).

Both teams finished top 10 in scoring and all 4 conference finals teams were top 10 in scoring.

This is a goal scoring league now and the flames are built reminiscent of the top heavy defensive years under Brent.

There is more than one way to win, and one year does not define the league.

Last year, only 1 of the 4 final teams were top 10 in scoring, and the year before, 2 of the 4 were.

So unless the league completely redefined itself this year, your sample size is a tad small.

[Groot]

I think priority number one is to find suitable linemates for Tkachuk so you can have him anchoring the second line. Priority number 2 is finding a suitable top line RW for Johnny and Mony. Priority 3 is getting Andersson and possibly Valimaki space to play on the team.

For 1 and 2 that can come from internal sources or via FA/trade. For 3 I would think you have to move out a defenseman, it doesn't have to be a Brody as I can see Peters moving him back to right side where hes played so much better, but a trade can address 1 or 2 priority.

Gaudreau - Monahan - ??
Tkachuk - ?? - ??
?? - Backlund - Frolik
?? - ?? - ??

Seems like a lot of question marks but with Ferland, Bennett, Janko, Lazar, Foo, Mangiapane, Dube able to fill most internally, one good trade or FA signing to fill out something on Tkachuks line leaves a lot of options open for the rest. Then we could ice two strong offensive lines, the shutdown line that contributes offensively, and a 4th energy line comprised of younger players or stable, cheap vets (like a Shore).

I don't know what they do on defense if they move Brodie to the right side again, but plenty of options that defense is least of my concerns going into next season.

[Sylvanfan]

Originally Posted by Bingo

And Foo

I was pretty unimpressed with his preseason, but the version we saw late (and don't worry I'm well aware they were meaningful games, I remember the Cogliano/Nilsson/??? line from the Edmonton rebuild 1.0) was a very different player.

He seems to have that mix of size, speed, and getting into those holes where the puck ends up on his stick.

Even his counting stats in the AHL seem to suggest that there was a real adjustment at the beginning of the season for Foo. But from December on, he seemed to start producing a lot more. When he was up at the end of the season I thought he also showed some skill that may indicate that he could at least be a good third line player and perhaps more.

Hopefully having seen pro hockey for a year, the Summer training he does this year better prepare's him for camp.

There was a Brian Burke interview that I heard last week where he mentioned the one thing teams need to learn from Vegas is to know what you have in your players, and ensure that they had the opportunity to show what they can do. Who know's maybe Foo is a guy with some opportunity could become more than just a fringe roster piece. Systematically he fills a void of a right handed shooting forward with some speed and skill. Just needs to figure out how to fit in.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Groot

...For 1 and 2 that can come from internal sources or via FA/trade. For 3 I would think you have to move out a defenseman, it doesn't have to be a Brody as I can see Peters moving him back to right side where hes played so much better, but a trade can address 1 or 2 priority.

...I don't know what they do on defense if they move Brodie to the right side again, but plenty of options that defense is least of my concerns going into next season.

I don't see how this is likely. The reason Brodie was originally playing on the right-side had more to do with the Flames's overall depth on defense than it did on his own performance from one side to the other:

In 2013–14, the Flames defence comprised of Giordano, Russell, and Butler on the left side, and Brodie, Wideman and Smid on the right. Brodie was playing on the right in large part because of his mobility and the incredibly poor collection of RHD.

In 2017–18, the Flames defence comprised of Giordano, Brodie, Kulak on the left side, and Hamilton, Hamonic and Stone on the right.

There has been a strong infusion of RHD over the course of the last four years which shows up also in how the Flames have drafted: two of their top-three defense prospects also play the right side. In other words, even in the event that the Flames trade a current RHD, moving Brodie over to the right side still contributes to a roster imbalance that leaves no room for progression.

Moreover, in at least one of Peters's interviews when he was introduced he was asked specifically about this, and responded by saying that EVERY player plays best on his natural side. When asked explicitly about Brodie he conceded that he plays both sides very well, but that he is sceptical about his off-side being stronger.

I think that unless he is traded Brodie stays with Hamonic. A new coach may help him to recover whatever it is that he lost in his lack-lustre performance over the past two years, but I am dubious that sliding him back over to his off-side will prove to be the magical elixir that some have suggested.

[PugnaciousIntern]

Gaudreau - Monahan - Tkachuk
Bennett - Backlund - Ferland
Frolik - Jankowski - Brouwer
Mangiapane - Lazar - Foo

I'm sure we'll see one or two minor FA signings or PTOs slide into the 4th line.

Not happy with the look of the top 9, but I think there's a bit of everything on each line.

[RoughRiderRowdy]

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

[Kipper_3434]

Originally Posted by RoughRiderRowdy

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

Our team has several excellent players. Everything went wrong last season and the coach lost his job because of the way our talent was utilized. We were in the playoff hunt for 3/4 of the season but unfortunately some major injuries helped send us into a spiral. Shtuff happens. I still believe this team is on the cusp of being a perennial top 10 team. And it's not like we need someone like Tavares to drag us into the playoffs. Heck adding someone like Paul Byron to the bottom 6 and subtracting Stajan is probably enough to get us into the dance with some solid goaltending. Look at some of the teams that missed out last year and made the playoffs this season. Winnipeg and San Jose didn't make any really major changes. Things will be better this year if we keep most of the core. My ¥2

[GoJetsGo]

Originally Posted by RoughRiderRowdy

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

The Jets and Avs both missed the playoffs last season and made them this year.

What does one season's individual finish have to do with the amount of young emerging talent on a team?

You've got a lot of nerve laughing at anyone with your negative, outlandish posting history.

[Oling_Roachinen]

Maybe external players like Kulikov weren't the hugest of moves. But rookie Kyle Connor puts up nearly 60 points. 19 year old Laine improves to 44 goals. And Hellebuyck breaks out in his sophomore season. There's not exactly the same expectations for any Flame prospects or youngsters.

If the Flames had a top prospect with the expectation to score 30+ goals on the top line, as Connor did, then we could compare them to the Jets.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by RoughRiderRowdy

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

Made the POs the year before with almost the same core, and most of the same entire team, except for worse goalies and Engelland instead of Hamonic.

Tell me, are the following excellent players or not: Gaudreau, Monahan, Gio, Hamilton, Backlund, Tkachuk. And IMO Smith, Ferland and Hamonic are above average and Brodie can be as well. Is Jankowski a decent rookie? Has Bennett shown he is capable of more than what he did last year? Has Frolik? Are Andersson, Valimaki, Dube, Kylington, Parsons and Fox good prospects?

This team is close.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by RoughRiderRowdy

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

And I am sure I am not alone in getting a laugh out of reading yours

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by Bingo

He doesn't tell a group of fans at a season ticket holder meeting who he's thinking of trading so he has to go?

OK ...

That is not what was said. The poster said that BT said that Brodie was a "core piece" of the team. That would indicate he has zero intentions of trading him right?

[GoJetsGo]

Originally Posted by Oling_Roachinen

Maybe external players like Kulikov weren't the hugest of moves. But rookie Kyle Connor puts up nearly 60 points. 19 year old Laine improves to 44 goals. And Hellebuyck breaks out in his sophomore season. There's not exactly the same expectations for any Flame prospects or youngsters.

This isn't the point at all. We don't need to compare to that team directly.

The point is point to a team full of young players missing the playoffs in a particular year isn't an indictment on the individual emerging talent.

The league is full of parity, development isn't linear, and teams constantly miss and make the playoffs when full of young players.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by RoughRiderRowdy

We missed the playoffs last year and apparently our team is loaded with excellent outstanding players. I get such a laugh reading these posts

Jets, & Lightning missed the playoffs last year. Vegas didn't exist.

Plus people thought this was the worst Washington team in at least 5 years after losing Shattenkirk, Johansson, Williams, Schmidt, & Alzner in the offseason.

Then this year they end up being your NHL Final 4.

The margin of success is that slim in the NHL right now. You can go from being out of the playoffs to contender in a heartbeat.