To Calgary | By Johnny Gaudreau

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by PuckSlap

Actually, it is pretty ####. You can tell by the stats. Crime and murder rate alone. Poverty, homelessness and hate crimes.

Population isn’t the problem, we’re sitting around the same as we were over the past 20 years.

Can you?

[Johnny Makarov]

Seriously. that was his gift to Calgary fans? An email he wrote in 20 mins?

Get bent Goodrow!

[timun]

Originally Posted by PuckSlap

Actually, it is pretty ####. You can tell by the stats. Crime and murder rate alone. Poverty, homelessness and hate crimes.

Population isn’t the problem, we’re sitting around the same as we were over the past 20 years.

Well, first of all the population is up about 50% in the last 20 years; about 120% in the last 40.

As for the crime and murder rates, well, lemme just tabulate that and...



Thanks for proving my point, you goof.

Guess what? Calendar year 2007, the acme of your 2002-2007 "glory days", had the highest homicide rate since 1992.

[Icon]

Originally Posted by Johnny Makarov

Seriously. that was his gift to Calgary fans? An email he wrote in 20 mins?

Get bent Goodrow!

Maybe the Edible Arrangements bouquet is still on the way

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

Honestly a framing of his Flames jersey/milestone pucks in his parents home with some loving sentiments to the city from the Gaudreaus is what I was imagining when he said "doing something" for the city/fans.

The other example given was a player (sorry I don't recall which one, not Subban) who donated to the local Children's Hospital on the way out recently as his parting gift to the city.

[AC]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

The other example given was a player (sorry I don't recall which one, not Subban) who donated to the local Children's Hospital on the way out recently as his parting gift to the city.

Trocheck just did after 2 seasons in Carolina.

[Johnny Makarov]

Originally Posted by Icon

Maybe the Edible Arrangements bouquet is still on the way

Too much fruit. not enough skittles.

[Icon]

Originally Posted by Johnny Makarov

Too much fruit. not enough skittles.

Well it isn't for him, he's not going to share his skittles

[#-3]

While I'm not going to boo either of them or throw jerseys away. I am going to continue to harbour some hard feelings towards Gaudreau and Tkachuk alike. I actually think the Tkachuk thing irks me a bit more, even if he can be seen as giving the team the chance to recoup assets.

Not that I'm saying he shouldn't have the family obligations that Gaudreau has, but he grew up in the pro-sports culture, with probably much less deep familial roots in whatever places he called home Stl or Phx either way. But even beyond that, he had the opportunity to step up and hold what the Flames had built together in spite of loosing their top offensive talent, and he choose to turn tail immediately.

I don't like it from either of them, but at least with Gaudreau it was always out there, that he was a mamas boy, and he would run home the first chance he got. With Tkachuk his parents and brother are subject to the same whims of the professional sports world as he is, and he can't really expect family stability weather he moves home or not, so it all just feels like him rubbing salt in a fresh wound.

[PepsiFree]

Tkachuk handled it better but his attitude towards the decision is more insulting.

[SuperMatt18]

I’m not even sure Tkachuk handled it that much better.

Gaudreau gave us 8 strong years, went to UFA, and even then it was tough decision that in the end just went the wrong way. Could have been handled better at the very end, but he earned that right to do what he thinks is best for his family.

As mentioned the Tkachuk one actually annoys me a little more - he could have re-signed, been given the C, and tried to win a cup here. To me his feels like turning the back on the team more than Gaudreau’s does.

He’s playing ball to help us get a return but I think that’s mostly because he knows a long term contract after a 104 point season is probably in his own best interest too if they can make it work.

He has a 65 point year in Calgary this year if he took his qualifying offer and maybe he’s not getting any $10M offers next year.

[Flamesfan05]

Tkachuk told the Flames he is going UFA as soon as he signed his last contract

Treliving chooses to ignore it , so here we are.
Hopefully it works out but Tkachuk holds all the power now. Have merci.

[Mathgod]

Originally Posted by Philly06Cup

Can someone explain again how Johnny screwed over the Flames? Or how the Flames were harmed?

Say Johnny gave the team a week notice that he wanted to pursue free agency. What would the Flames have done differently? How would the Flames have improved their team with that extra knowledge?

"We could've maybe got a better deal for Tkachuk" is the only tangible argument that has been made, and even that is incredibly flimsy.

Johnny's indecision ultimately didn't hurt the Flames.
People want to hang onto the belief that Johnny committed this terrible sin to the team and city.
People want a reason to be angry because they feel hurt.
Feeling hurt sucks. Hope y'all can find the time to get over it, "forgive" Johnny, and get to a better place.

It's generally helpful not to have all your offseason operations put on hold for a month while one player's indecision holds everything up.

What your asking for is a specific example of a trade or a player signing that would have happened if Johnny's camp had made their final decision sooner. We fans don't have the info necessary to say for sure what would or would not have happened. It's an unreasonable burden of proof.

[SuperMatt18]

Flames are as much at fault of that as Johnny though.

Not like Flames gave Johnny their best offer on July 5th to try to get him to sign in advance of the draft. They played the negotiate down to the last second card too.

In reality nothing likely changes if Gaudreau announces on July 5th he’s going UFA or on July 12th like he did.

If anything it probably would have just been better for Gaudreau since Philly maybe has more time to try to make the room, and maybe by that same accord it’s good for the Flames if they can help a team by taking on some cap as part of a sign and trade.

But really both sides played this game, but just Gaudreau.

[powderjunkie]

It's easy to say now...and I can recall thinking it and maybe posting it months ago, but IMO the Hurricanes have this UFA stuff figured out:

"Here's our best offer. It's on the table indefinitely...if we have an opportunity to make our team better we are going to take it. Go ahead and talk to any other team. If there is a better opportunity for you and your family we understand and respect that. We would be open to facilitating a mutually beneficial deal, but of course we really hope you'll stay."


Unless you think the 8th year is such a valuable carrot to the player that it would supersede free-market curiosity, but if that were true then the player wouldn't have gone unsigned past the final TDL.

[Steve Bozek]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

...

Unless you think the 8th year is such a valuable carrot to the player that it would supersede free-market curiosity, but if that were true then the player wouldn't have gone unsigned past the final TDL.

In Gaudreau's case, the 8th year might have even made Calgary less attractive - even longer time away from New Jersey

[Jiggy]

Originally Posted by Flamesfan05

Tkachuk told the Flames he is going UFA as soon as he signed his last contract

Treliving chooses to ignore it , so here we are.
Hopefully it works out but Tkachuk holds all the power now. Have merci.

How do you know Tkachuk told the Flames that?

[Mathgod]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Flames are as much at fault of that as Johnny though.

Not like Flames gave Johnny their best offer on July 5th to try to get him to sign in advance of the draft. They played the negotiate down to the last second card too.

In reality nothing likely changes if Gaudreau announces on July 5th he’s going UFA or on July 12th like he did.

If anything it probably would have just been better for Gaudreau since Philly maybe has more time to try to make the room, and maybe by that same accord it’s good for the Flames if they can help a team by taking on some cap as part of a sign and trade.

But really both sides played this game, but just Gaudreau.

Touché. But money did not appear to be a key factor in the Gaudreaus' decision to leave.

[Flamesfan05]

Originally Posted by Jiggy

How do you know Tkachuk told the Flames that?

The contract was set up for this

Tkachuk was waiting for this day like a kid waiting for Christmas

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by Steve Bozek

In Gaudreau's case, the 8th year might have even made Calgary less attractive - even longer time away from New Jersey

Yup, and if a player plays a full season and through a TDL without an extension, it's probably safe to assume that the extra safety/security you get from the 8th year isn't their highest priority.