Friedman's 31 thoughts - Nov 21

[Duffalufagus]

Originally Posted by troutman

A hockey game in Regina, where the fans all wear their Rider gear? No thanks.

This. And what are the odds of it being any warmer than -25?

Hard pass.

[Scorch]

Originally Posted by troutman

A hockey game in Regina, where the fans all wear their Rider gear? No thanks.

It’s bad enough seeing the one guy who attends flames games in a Riders Jersey

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by TheMagicMan

Maybe it's a blessing in disguise that Benny didn't turn out to be a top notch scorer. Otherwise, imagine having to sign both Chucky and Benny with top dollar. The role he plays now fits the team well.

Originally Posted by Table 5

Let's not get silly now. It's not a blessing, it's just plan B. It's always better to have too many great players, than not enough, especially when those players were selected at the top of the Draft. If you have too many, you trade them for high end picks or prospects.

I imagine that if Bennett was a high scoring centre by this point in his career, then the Carolina trade would have looked quite different. Instead of "offensive-driver Bennett," the Flames got "offensive-driver Lindholm."

[Macindoc]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I imagine it went along the lines of;

"It wasn't me that traded Hall and Eberle for a hill of beans. It wasn't me that signed Lucic to a contract that forced us to play him. Good luck to the next guy that is tasked with winning with this steaming pile of dung you provided for a roster".

McLellan may not be anything more than an average NHL head coach but he was by far the most competent person in that entire organization and he takes the fall.

Or something along the lines of "You just said publicly that the Oilers should be a playoff contender with their current personnel, when you know that you have the blueline and depth of an average AHL team. Instead of taking responsibility for the mess you have created, you threw me under the bus after 5 other coaches in the past 8 years did no better. Outside of playing McDavid 40 minutes per game at centre and another 20 minutes per game as our #1 defenseman, Scotty Bowman himself couldn't coach this steaming pile of poo to a winning record".

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I imagine it went along the lines of;

"It wasn't me that traded Hall and Eberle for a hill of beans. It wasn't me that signed Lucic to a contract that forced us to play him. Good luck to the next guy that is tasked with winning with this steaming pile of dung you provided for a roster".

McLellan may not be anything more than an average NHL head coach but he was by far the most competent person in that entire organization and he takes the fall.

Todd McLellan - "The first thing I want to be done is to toss out all of this Oilers crap. I'm not just going to toss it out, I'm going to burn it, because I proved, son, without a shadow of a doubt, that you ain't got what it takes to build an NHL team anymore.

"You sit there, and you thump your lineup card, and you say this team is good enough, and it didn't get you anywhere. Talk about your Lucic, talk about Draisaitl being great, you can talk about your possession numbers - But TMac's advanced stats analysis says I'm about to whip your a$$
.
"All you've got to do is buy your dumb a$$ a xbox and NHL 2018 and you can pretend that you're smart enough to be an NHL GM


"As happy former Oilers coach, I'm servin' notice to every one of the 'members of the good old boys club' I don't give a damn who they are, they're all on the list, and that's TMac's list, and I'm fixin' to start runnin' through all of them.



"As far as this team you built is considered, son, I don't give a damn if it's Talbot, or Nurse, or McDavid. TMac's time has come, and when I coach another team and bring them to Edmonton, you're lookin' at me planting a 10 spot on their sorry a$$es, and that's the bottom line because TMac said so."

[Robbob]

Originally Posted by Scorch

It’s bad enough seeing the one guy who attends flames games in a Riders Jersey

Could always have it in March and make a green Flames jersey for St Patties. That way we could make some money off the flat landers.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Robbob

Could always have it in March and make a green Flames jersey for St Patties. That way we could make some money off the flat landers.

Damn it. That just reminded me that I have not seen my Flames St. Patties jersey for months...

...I sure hope I still have it.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Scorch

It’s bad enough seeing the one guy who attends flames games in a Riders Jersey

I went to a Flames/Coyotes game in Glendale last year and there were dozens of Riders jerseys. It had something to do originally a few years ago with Ryan Getzlaf, and his brother Chris, and Regina, when the Ducks played the Yotes.

Anyway, gross. I'm glad the Flames handed the Yotes their ass in that game.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I imagine that if Bennett was a high scoring centre by this point in his career, then the Carolina trade would have looked quite different. Instead of "offensive-driver Bennett," the Flames got "offensive-driver Lindholm."

Yeah, was gonna say that. Other possibility is no James Neal, which I suppose would please some folks.

But if he emerges now, we get everything.

[Calgary4LIfe]

I have been thinking about who Bennett might compare to from the old Flames' teams, and I am starting to think Gary Roberts, though he would need to work on his shot more. His ability to fight is really reminiscent of Gary who also punched above his weight class often.


At any rate, Bennett has been a positive contributor in most games this season. I bet he eventually starts getting a bit more confident and things start going in for him as well offensively. Flames should just hold onto him seeing as he does impact the games positively even when he doesn't show up on the scoreboard. It is (and should be) easy to remain patient with him.

[Table 5]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I imagine that if Bennett was a high scoring centre by this point in his career, then the Carolina trade would have looked quite different.

Possibly, but that trade was all about shipping out Hamilton, which would have been an issue regardless of how Sam developed. If Bennett worked out as planned, he'd be the #2 Center on this team right now, and Lindholm could've still slotted in nicely on the wing.

[SaskUke]

As a resident of Regina, but also someone who grew up in NW Calgary and can't stand the green mania, I'm certain that an outdoor game in YQR will mean plenty of green in the stands. That being said, there is a large contingent of Flames fans here, and slightly more Oilers fans.

[topfiverecords]

I lived in Regina for 20 years. Never met a Flames fan there. It was 60% Oilers, 20% Leafs, 20% Habs. As far as support for Canadian teams.

Edmonton-Winnipeg would make the most sense. Get the old Sask Oiler crowd still pining for the Gretzky days, the young Regina McDavid wannabes and the visiting Jets fans.

Going to have a drink after stirring up memory of those days.

[DeluxeMoustache]

I’ve got a buddy from Sask who grew up as an Oilers fan.

He is a pretty good guy otherwise.

[redforever]

Grew up in Saskatchewan, can confirm most are Oiler fans.

[Prufrock]

Originally Posted by Tyler

Pass. It was a nightmare last time from a fan perspective.

Agreed.

Sure, it was cold, but the biggest thing for me was the bathrooms. Brutally long lineups. I missed nearly an entire period trying to navigate the crowded concourse and standing in a hot, piss reeking bathroom.

I truly enjoyed the game and the outdoor hockey atmosphere for what it was, but if given the opportunity to go to another one, I'd pass.

[keratosis]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Let's not get silly now. It's not a blessing, it's just plan B. It's always better to have too many great players, than not enough, especially when those players were selected at the top of the Draft. If you have too many, you trade them for high end picks or prospects.

Yup, you can never have too many Giordanos.

[doctajones428]

My toes hurt thinking about that game. What a nightmare that was

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Table 5

Possibly, but that trade was all about shipping out Hamilton, which would have been an issue regardless of how Sam developed. If Bennett worked out as planned, he'd be the #2 Center on this team right now, and Lindholm could've still slotted in nicely on the wing.

Well, yeah. But that is precisely why I said the trade would look different, and not that it would not have happened.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

Well, yeah. But that is precisely why I said the trade would look different, and not that it would not have happened.

Bennett's still a left shot forward. Even if he were a 70pt guy it wouldn't change our gaping hole in terms of RHS. We would still have gone after Lindholm. And even with Lindholm we should still be going after the likes of Nylander and Sprong and Toffoli.