[PGT] Canes 6 Flames 3 - Road Trip Mercifully Over

[djsFlames]

When you don't have 20-25 million in bloated/poor value contracts I guess you can afford to have the depth of those top teams. Successful drafting and developing helps too.

Monahan 6.3 million, Backlund 5.3 million, Coleman 4.9 million, Lucic 5.25 million, Zadorov 3.75 million.

All overpaid.

Coleman and Lucic I can live with for now, but the rest are getting tough to look at.

[N-E-B]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

When you don't have 20-25 million in bloated/poor value contracts I guess you can afford to have the depth of those top teams. Successful drafting and developing helps too.

Monahan 6.3 million, Backlund 5.3 million, Coleman 4.9 million, Lucic 5.25 million, Zadorov 3.75 million.

All overpaid.

Coleman and Lucic I can live with for now, but the rest are getting tough to look at.

Of all those guys you mentioned I think Backlund has escaped some warranted criticism this year. He needs to be better on the offensive side of the puck. Plain and simple. Coleman has started to come around these last few games, they need Backlund to as well. He’s paid to at least provide some solid secondary scoring and he wears an A on this team, so he’s obviously a leader. Time to start producing like one.

[djsFlames]

I'd hate for Backs to become public enemy number one after the long tenure he's had here too.

He really needs to dig in and find that beast mode that he seems to bring down the stretch most seasons. Or anything close to that.

For his cap hit, he won't escape the shots much longer.

And now that Coleman is bringing his game up a notch people will be looking for the next biggest target.

[Classic_Sniper]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Backlund deciding not to care anymore is a huge issue. Holding back whoever else pairs up with him, such as Coleman although he had a couple good games this trip and scored a couple.

Just blown away at Backlund. Have some pride, yikes.

Thought Backlund was really good on this trip. Had a couple points, won a lot of faceoffs and drove his line the last couple games. The guy just has no finishing capabilities. He needs a finisher(s) on his line to maximize his skillset. The redeeming aspect of his game this season is he hasn’t been on the ice for a lot of goals against despite tough matchups, so at least he’s even most nights.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by getoverit

Blood bath road trip. Done it’s over. Month of January teams remaining to play looks ugly. We need to turnaround playing our conference strong for any hope.

3 losses and now they might not have hope? they have the 2nd best point percentage in the division and have played 11 home games

[blender]

It has been said here already plenty, but I'll say it again.

The possible effects of the Covid itself (that we know nothing about) and the layoff are being way understated.
Combined with the 3 in 4 and the level of competition, and it is a bit much to see the comments about people leaving their consciousness on a beach or whatever.
Anyone else here finding this pandemic a drag?
Seeing any effect on your job?

I don't mind the talk about the events of the game, but the ripping the players is too much for me. If Sutter says the effort is ok, it's good enough for me.
Hopefully lots more games to come.

[Huntingwhale]

Rough road trip. Flames slowly moving down the standings to bubble territory. I get that for a while they hadn't played as much as some other teams around them, but games in hand mean SFA if you lose them. Need to right the ship quickly to keep pace.

Toss that road trip aside and never think about it again. Ugliest stretch of the season for sure and it showed.

[Flamesfan05]

No worries, Sutter can get the Flames to beat up on the bottom dwellers to chase a playoff spot.

Unfortunately with a low ceiling team, they have almost zero chance in the playoffs against real contenders. Unless of course the goalies go beast mode which is also unlikely

[Barnet Flame]

Three games in four nights against the best teams in the League was about the unluckiest scheduling you could ask for a team to endure.

With the exception of the Tampa game, there were positives in the games which provide a good indication of the potential we have in competing with the best and a lesson for management on what they need to do to equip this team for the next level.

Against Florida and Carolina, the Flames came out of the gate just how you would love them to do. They were dominant with lots of zone time and created a lot of high scoring chances but didn’t have the goods to put them away.

The inability to put the chances away creates insecurity and if not checked, can get players in the mindset where the inability snowball, they snatch at shots and it gets worse. It also gives elite teams confidence for when they inevitably push back (as elite teams do) that when they are back in the game, they can do damage. And that has to affect the Flames players, and you can see that it does - like last night when one Canes goal led to another.

Fortunately, we have a coach that can coach this team and who commands the respect needed to ensure the effort that has put them in this position where the team is good enough to win consistently against 80% of the League. However, Sutter now needs Treliving to step up and support him with the tools needed to take us to the level where we need to be to make our hard work count and earn the results the team deserves when it dominates.

We are a good team. Sutter has us playing the right way. The players work hard, they respond to him and thats all we can ask of our coach and our players.

Now is the time for Treliving to prove his worth.

[DazzlinDino]

Originally Posted by Flamesfan05

No worries, Sutter can get the Flames to beat up on the bottom dwellers to chase a playoff spot.

Unfortunately with a low ceiling team, they have almost zero chance in the playoffs against real contenders. Unless of course the goalies go beast mode which is also unlikely

You sure are optimistic for a team thats playing quite well. What's your take on the Oilers?

[CFO]

End of the day the Flames biggest weakness is not having a legit #1D.

No team for most part has a consistent lethal PP without a top D. Flames were firing on all cylinders at start of season with help of kylington playing above where he really was.

[PeteMoss]

Thought the flames played ok. Vlader wasn't good. Even on his saves he looked uncomfortable.

PP was god awful. Thought Mangipane struggled with the puck.

[ComixZone]

Originally Posted by CFO

End of the day the Flames biggest weakness is not having a legit #1D.

No team for most part has a consistent lethal PP without a top D. Flames were firing on all cylinders at start of season with help of kylington playing above where he really was.

It's definitely tough. The Flames also don't have a #1D in the system/on the way.

We also don't have a #2 centre - if you view Lindholm as being good enough as a #1 centre, otherwise we don't have a #1 centre.

The roster is a mish mash of things slapped together with no real hope (for the top of the roster) in the system.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by Flamesfan05

No worries, Sutter can get the Flames to beat up on the bottom dwellers to chase a playoff spot.

Unfortunately with a low ceiling team, they have almost zero chance in the playoffs against real contenders. Unless of course the goalies go beast mode which is also unlikely

Do you understand how negative that is? Man to be you ....

bottom dwellers
low ceiling team
zero chance
unless beast mode
unlikely

You fit all that sunshine into two sentences!

[Moneyhands23]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Do you understand how negative that is? Man to be you ....

bottom dwellers
low ceiling team
zero chance
unless beast mode
unlikely

You fit all that sunshine into two sentences!

Don't act ike your not impressed!! Lol

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

When you don't have 20-25 million in bloated/poor value contracts I guess you can afford to have the depth of those top teams. Successful drafting and developing helps too.

Monahan 6.3 million, Backlund 5.3 million, Coleman 4.9 million, Lucic 5.25 million, Zadorov 3.75 million.

All overpaid.

Coleman and Lucic I can live with for now, but the rest are getting tough to look at.

Combine his junk contracts with Gaudreau and Tkachuk each with one foot out the door and the outlook is as bleak as it's been for a long time. It's why I haven't been posting a lot about the Flames as Treliving has ruined the Flames for me. I'm happy to follow them from afar this season and hope they get into the playoffs but the future for this organization is as bleak as it's ever been especially when you factor in the arena situation. Brad's the first GM that's ever managed to put a dent in my fandom. If Gaudreau walks for nothing that may be the breaking point for me. There's a minute chance he's got some super duper plan that's going to blow us away but outside of that fantasy I find it really hard to get excited about the direction of the team.

[TheChief]

Some thoughts the night after...



I think Mangiapane is in a bit of a slump after the NHL announced they were not going to be sending NHLers to China. I think he was really trying to be the under dog as he has been his whole career when he got the phone call that he was on the long list.



I still am holding out hope that Backlund will turn his game around drastically as he usually always does in the second half of the season.



Is it just me or does the team look slower since coming off of the covid break...Johnny hasn't missed much of a beat though, but I can see the defence is starting to show some fractures.



Like Sutter said in his post game presser the team has played 22 Road games and 11 Home games. I think you have to cut them a break a bit, lets see how they play the rest of the way on home ice...


These games where they are having a hard time to score and break through against "contenders" really puts it into perspective how much a Eichel would have helped. Egg on Brads face. There's only the tenure of Sutter basically to realistically challenge for something with this group...

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by Huntingwhale

Rough road trip. Flames slowly moving down the standings to bubble territory. I get that for a while they hadn't played as much as some other teams around them, but games in hand mean SFA if you lose them. Need to right the ship quickly to keep pace.

Toss that road trip aside and never think about it again. Ugliest stretch of the season for sure and it showed.

Fewest home games, most travel, entire team had covid.

2nd points percentage in the division. It's really not that bad. Vegas is the only team legitimately ahead of the Flames.

[Otto-matic]

Originally Posted by TheChief

Like Sutter said in his post game presser the team has played 22 Road games and 11 Home games. I think you have to cut them a break a bit, lets see how they play the rest of the way on home ice...

I also thing being off for practically half a month with little practice really threw some concrete in their skates

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Combine his junk contracts with Gaudreau and Tkachuk each with one foot out the door and the outlook is as bleak as it's been for a long time. It's why I haven't been posting a lot about the Flames as Treliving has ruined the Flames for me. I'm happy to follow them from afar this season and hope they get into the playoffs but the future for this organization is as bleak as it's ever been especially when you factor in the arena situation. Brad's the first GM that's ever managed to put a dent in my fandom. If Gaudreau walks for nothing that may be the breaking point for me. There's a minute chance he's got some super duper plan that's going to blow us away but outside of that fantasy I find it really hard to get excited about the direction of the team.

How is the Gaudreau contract junk? It’s been great value
Yes it will be failure if he walks for nothing but that was a good contract no?