Throw Down who is the worst Flames GM of all time

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by CaptainYooh

The thread title should have been “who’s the 2nd worst GM”, because there is really no contest for THE worst.

For that, I think Jay Feaster: in his short 3-drafts time here, was awful. Trading Iginla and Boumeester was handled badly, was not needed and not called for (both players wanted to stay here). Drafting Baertshi, Jankowski, Poirier and Klimchuk in the three first rounds was absolutely atrocious. Yes, he lucked out with Johnny and, arguably, with Monahan (although, there were much better players drawn after Monahan - Ristolainen, Morissey, Horvat, Theodore). Just hate Feaster’s tenure here.

Risotlainen is certainly not better than Monahan.

And before he destroyed his body trying to win for the Flames he was better than Horvat and Morrissey too.

Theodore was a late first rounder who wasn't even in the conversation for a top 10 pick so that's purely benefit of hindsight.

[Paulie Walnuts]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Risotlainen is certainly not better than Monahan.

And before he destroyed his body trying to win for the Flames he was better than Horvat and Morrissey too.

Theodore was a late first rounder who wasn't even in the conversation for a top 10 pick so that's purely benefit of hindsight.

Now that is body is back he is back to being better than Horvat.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by Paulie Walnuts

Now that is body is back he is back to being better than Horvat.

Yeah for the first 8 years after that draft (2013-2014 to 2019-2020) nobody was taking Horvat, Morrissey, or anybody else taken after Monahan before him in that draft.

His career being derailed by injuries doesn't make it a bad pick - especially since he was already UFA age by then and Flames already had gotten a ton of value out of him.

Even somebody like Morrissey didn't really turn elite until 22-23 season, which was unexpected TBH. He was a 35 point dman that looked like a 2nd pairing d-man, then he turns 27 and all of a sudden he's a 70+ point top pairing guy.

So lots of hindsight and recency bias in saying those guys are better than Monahan.

[Sainters7]

Originally Posted by InternationalVillager

If you see him semi-regulary....you know you could just approach him, strike up a conversation and ask him about it. have a nice and civil conversation. I've met him and he's an awesome human being. I do think though that he does look back at that time with regrets as he never got an opportunity as a GM again. He went on to have a successful career nonetheless.

Yeah that's true, and he seems like a good dude as a hockey TV personality. Every time I've seen him, he's going absolutely balls to the wall on the bike, I'm not interrupting that. I'm not really the approach a stranger / celeb in public to chat em up type either; I try to leave em alone. But I believe it that he's good to talk to.

When I see people like that, my only move is to simply text my friends "I just saw ______!!" haha

[Shazam]

Good on him, keeping fit at his age is really important.

[Jay Random]

I've mentioned this elsewhere, but even if you leave the Gilmour trade out, Risebrough was still an awful GM. The Gilmour trade turned a great team into an average one, which Dave King coached so well that it looked like a contender – until the playoffs rolled around and everyone else geared up. But Risebrough's last summer as GM, he turned that average team into a disaster area.

First, he fired Dave King and replaced him with the greatly inferior Pierre Page. Page had history with the organization; maybe he was the only available coach with NHL experience whose phone number Risebrough knew.

Then he, um… fixed centre ice. At the end of the '94-95 season, the Flames' top four centres were Joe Nieuwendyk, Robert Reichel, Joel Otto, and Kelly Kisio. Kisio was retiring; there was no getting around that. You'd think that would make Risebrough keen to keep the other three, but you would be wrong.

First, Joel Otto went to free agency, and Risebrough balked at the (IIRC) $700,000 cost to re-sign one of the best shut-down centres of his era. That was avoidable; that left two.

Nieuwendyk and Reichel, by this point, hated being on the team, and it's clear Dave King wasn't the problem, because firing him didn't appease them. Reichel took off for the Frankfurt Lions; Nieuwendyk ended up sitting out and demanding a trade.

In one summer, the Flames lost all four of their regular NHL centres. They went into the new season with stopgaps and converted wingers. Risebrough was fired less than a month into the season. What a pity he wasn't fired in the spring, instead of Dave King.

[Dan403]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

I've mentioned this elsewhere, but even if you leave the Gilmour trade out, Risebrough was still an awful GM. The Gilmour trade turned a great team into an average one, which Dave King coached so well that it looked like a contender – until the playoffs rolled around and everyone else geared up. But Risebrough's last summer as GM, he turned that average team into a disaster area.

First, he fired Dave King and replaced him with the greatly inferior Pierre Page. Page had history with the organization; maybe he was the only available coach with NHL experience whose phone number Risebrough knew.

Then he, um… fixed centre ice. At the end of the '94-95 season, the Flames' top four centres were Joe Nieuwendyk, Robert Reichel, Joel Otto, and Kelly Kisio. Kisio was retiring; there was no getting around that. You'd think that would make Risebrough keen to keep the other three, but you would be wrong.

First, Joel Otto went to free agency, and Risebrough balked at the (IIRC) $700,000 cost to re-sign one of the best shut-down centres of his era. That was avoidable; that left two.

Nieuwendyk and Reichel, by this point, hated being on the team, and it's clear Dave King wasn't the problem, because firing him didn't appease them. Reichel took off for the Frankfurt Lions; Nieuwendyk ended up sitting out and demanding a trade.

In one summer, the Flames lost all four of their regular NHL centres. They went into the new season with stopgaps and converted wingers. Risebrough was fired less than a month into the season. What a pity he wasn't fired in the spring, instead of Dave King.

Great. Now I'm having flashbacks.

[The Original FFIV]

Originally Posted by Dan403

Great. Now I'm having flashbacks.

Not to mention exposing Skrudland to protect all star Paul Kruse. Salvaged something of value out of the Leeman deal and managed to screw that up. But but but he shredded an oilers jersey in the penalty box so I guess that curried the favour of the Seaman brothers enough to allow him to drive the team into the ditch. What a clown. And I’ve heard what others have about him doing a d!ck to employees. “Good morning Mr Risebrough” was met with silence and non acknowledgement.

[Flamesfan05]

Originally Posted by Icantwhisper

Wasn't there a thread on how great Tre was when he was here and every trade was lauded as magic?
A lot of people on here that claim to know everything were chugging/pouring the Kool-Aid when the trades occurred.

He was the wizard

Until we all saw it was fake

[Finger Cookin]

Originally Posted by The Original FFIV

“Good morning Mr Risebrough” was met with silence and non acknowledgement.

[Reggie Dunlop]

The worst is yet to come.

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by Flamesfan05

He was the wizard

Until we all saw it was fake

You could have said “he was the wizard….until we all saw it was …..of Oz”

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by The Original FFIV

Not to mention exposing Skrudland to protect all star Paul Kruse. Salvaged something of value out of the Leeman deal and managed to screw that up. But but but he shredded an oilers jersey in the penalty box so I guess that curried the favour of the Seaman brothers enough to allow him to drive the team into the ditch. What a clown. And I’ve heard what others have about him doing a d!ck to employees. “Good morning Mr Risebrough” was met with silence and non acknowledgement.

That would get you cancelled so fast these days.

[Hackey]

Originally Posted by Flamesfan05

Yeah but he still managed not to #### up the team as badly as Risebrough and Button

And probably Treliving too the way he left the team

I think this is more due to circumstances. Feaster just rode the team into the ground until there was nothing left. Treliving was in an ideal spot to setup the team for a rebuild but was told to try and remain competitive.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by Hackey

I think this is more due to circumstances. Feaster just rode the team into the ground until there was nothing left. Treliving was in an ideal spot to setup the team for a rebuild but was told to try and remain competitive.

Hilariously Tre learned nothing from your purportedly having his hands tied here and has moved to trading first rounders for garbage and walking top UFAs to an exit without any asset recovery in Toronto

lol wizard

Sometimes if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by The Original FFIV

Not to mention exposing Skrudland to protect all star Paul Kruse.

One of the more bone-headed decisions made by management in Flames history.

Riseborough: Nobody would take a past-his-prime player like Skrudland in an expansion draft.

Panthers draft Skrudland, make him team captain, and he leads them to the Cup finals a year later.

[Rejean31]

Originally Posted by TheChief

1. Risebrough - Before my time but traded the 89 team away for not much. The one that on paper (not having been old enough to remember) is the Joe Mullen trade. He wins the cup in 89. Leads the flames in goals during the cup win. Has a bit of a off year the next (first time in a while under 40 goals) and the flames proceed to trade him at the draft for a 2nd round pick. I get he was 33 but look at these stats as a flame.
1985-86 Calgary Flames NHL 29 16 22 38 11 3 21 12 7 19 4 1986-87 Calgary Flames NHL 79 47 40 87 14 18 6 2 1 3 0 1987-88 Calgary Flames NHL 80 40 44 84 30 28 7 2 4 6 10 1988-89 Calgary Flames 🏆 NHL 79 51 59 110 16 51 21 16 8 24 4


2. Bradley


He sucks plain as day. For all the "truculence" he brought in a lot of soft players, really feels like a lost decade with him as GM. Signed the wrong guys to the wrong contracts. Lost our best player in franchise history for nothing. Got bounced in the first round multiple times and missed the playoffs countless times. His coaching hires were horrendous (as were his goalie signings). Always seemed like he thought he was the smartest guy in the room.





I think those two are the worst. The others were average given the time they managed. For me its clear cut.

It was Fletcher that traded Mullen. Not Risebrough.

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by Sainters7

Yeah that's true, and he seems like a good dude as a hockey TV personality. Every time I've seen him, he's going absolutely balls to the wall on the bike, I'm not interrupting that. I'm not really the approach a stranger / celeb in public to chat em up type either; I try to leave em alone. But I believe it that he's good to talk to.

When I see people like that, my only move is to simply text my friends "I just saw ______!!" haha

Maybe trying to make the nhl?

[TheChief]

You know thinking about it more and more...


Panthers look set to make to the finals.


The revolting oilers look set to brush dallas aside.



Maybe if the panthers win again I can take brad out of the top 2 worst flames GM. The work he did to build the panthers cant be understated...Infact it was selfless (this is only if the panthers meet the oilers in the finals and win again)

[Freeway]

Risebrough was a damn fine hockey player, a decent coach, a pretty solid scout, and a very bad GM.


It's not even close.