Unpopular Opinions about Flames

[Aarongavey]

Originally Posted by BigBrodieFan

Ironically, pro NCAA sports writers often use Johnny Hockey as their prime example as to why D1/NCAA hockey is supposedly just as good as AHL/OHL..

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Or Jack Eichel who is a pretty good player. Joel Otto managed to avoid being soft despite his NCAA background.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by ricardodw

Find another small skilled player left as unprotected as Gaudreau.

After Gaudreau worked out the Flames filled the roster with small skilled players like Gaudreau..... Czarnik, Mangiapane, Rieder Ryan...Pelltier Phillips.


If Gaudreau gets traded to a non-soft team that he can have other players backing up his smack talk he will again be a top 10 player in the league.

If Patrick Kane moved from the Hawks to the Flames for Gaudreau Gaudreau would improve and Kane would fall off.

Pelletier and Phillips are on the roster? Who knew. Oh, and you’ve conveniently left off guys who were bigger and supposedly skilled, as well as big guys who were just going to be tough. Brouwer, Bennett, Neal, Smith, Kharnoukhov, Poirier, Kanzig, Tuulola, Joey, Stewart, Gadzik, Engelland...

[Camronius]

Trade backlund, get picks. He's expendable and not the answer this team needs. (No problem with the player, I like him)

[Itse]

My unpopular opinion is that the problems are vastly exaggerated. Essentially the same roster was really good last season, and while that was likely a bit anomalous, this is just as anomalous. This is a solid playoff threat roster playing well below their level. This too shall pass. Knee-jerk reactions won't help anything.

We should splurge on a genuine top coach though. Not because this is a "tough team to coach", but because all Canadian cities are extremely difficult places to coach. So much attention, so much pressure.

[Yamer]

Originally Posted by Inglewood Jack

I can’t tell the difference between this thread and the other dozen active ones about the flames anymore. We’ve pretty much reached consensus that there are a multitude of problems with the team and they’re not just one tweak away from being back in contention.

Or does anyone out there have a true unpopular opinion, e.g. that the flames are on the verge of turning things around, and will surprise us all with a first round victory?

How about...

There is no media bias against the Calgary Flames. Any criticism against the Flames is not bias, it's analysis. Fawning over star players like McDavid is bias, but not against the Flames. Manufacturing narratives around the excitement or trends generated by other teams is bias, but not against the Flames.

The current stories in other markets either are or have the potential to be more interesting than the ongoing mediocrity in Calgary and will get more attention. I don't need the media or the play-by-play team to constantly validate my team, so I don't understand why it is so painstakingly important to others, so much that they flood GTs with such complaints.

Of course, I also don't quite understand why it bothers me so much, either.

[bubbsy]

Unpopular opinion?

Flames, oilers, canucks all have been trying to get out of the rebuild here.

Flames came out of their bottoming out period with the least amount of elite talent compared to out biggest rivals.

Flames don't really have anything at the McDavid, draisatl, pettersson, Hughes, level. Not to mention, prospects still coming.

[united]

Originally Posted by united

Thought it was interesting that after their much-publicized struggles earlier in the season, lately the Tampa Bay Lightning have shifted Steven Stamkos back to winger duty, alongside Brayden Point and opposite Nikita Kucherov (Stamkos remains on faceoff duty but they switch as soon as safely possible afterward). Stamkos now has points in 9 of his last 10 games (14 total) and the Bolts are rolling with 15 points over that span.

I still would like to see Lindholm trialed between Gaudreau and Monahan for a few games at minimum, and preferably 10+, as he has become the best defensive forward on the team but is still able to keep up with them offensively - a terrific two-way centre.

Unfortunately Stamkos is now out for a couple months, but I updated this post in the Flames-Lightning game thread.

Spoiler!

https://forum.calgarypuck.com/showpo...5&postcount=43

Since moving Stamkos back to wing 16 games ago (16 he's played - he's missed some due to injury), Stamkos has exploded for 22 points with points in 15 of the 16, and 19 of those points having come at even strength where that line has been rolling opponents (54% CF, 58% xGF, 71% GF). The Lightning as a team accumulated 21 points during those games.

While I haven't watched any Flyers games recently (probably should given how they're rolling) so didn't identify this, the most recent "16 Stats" article at The Athletic drew my attention to the Flyers shifting a struggling Claude Giroux over to wing alongside the superior two-way centre in the under-rated Sean Couturier.

Aside from that, the big difference is that Giroux has been on the wing rather than at center, and that’s where he really excels at this stage of his career. This season Giroux has an average Game Score of 0.70 when playing center scoring at a 49-point pace with a 50.7 percent expected goals rate. At wing, his average Game Score improves to 0.91 thanks to a 67-point pace and a 55.8 percent expected goals rate.

Further to the author's observations, in the 13 games since the move, Claude Giroux has 16 points with points in 10 of the 13 games with and with 12 coming at even-strength. The line over that period is rolling at 58% CF, 56% xGF, 53% GF, and the team has accumulated 22 points.

[Flamenspiel]

Originally Posted by bubbsy

Unpopular opinion?

Flames, oilers, canucks all have been trying to get out of the rebuild here.

Flames came out of their bottoming out period with the least amount of elite talent compared to out biggest rivals.

Flames don't really have anything at the McDavid, draisatl, pettersson, Hughes, level. Not to mention, prospects still coming.

Those are not the same levels. Petterson is good but he is not in contention for the Hart trophy. Not even in the top 20. Hughes is good, but the Flames drafted a better player who they traded to get Lindholm and Hanifin. Fox is close in points while he is a +20, Hughes is a -20.

[TheRealPepman]

Part of me thinks the most recent first round exit isn't as bad as last year's.

Stars were men playing against boys (Flames). I mean look at the personnel of both teams with consistent/significant playoff experience.

Flames
Geoff Ward
Milan Lucic
Cam Talbot

Stars
Rick Bowness
Tyler Seguin
Jamie Benn
John Klingberg
Corey Perry
Joe Pavelski
Ben Bishop

That's a loooot of playoff hockey experience right there.

Part of me is still hurting over the loss LOL.

[Jiri Hrdina]

I don't think this year's was as bad - but it was still really bad.
The Stars are better than I thought - even when I've watched them during the last 2 rounds I don't get why they win. Except they are indeed "battle tested" to trout out a cliche. And they have a dynamic young blueliner that can take over a game.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

I don't think this year's was as bad - but it was still really bad.
The Stars are better than I thought - even when I've watched them during the last 2 rounds I don't get why they win. Except they are indeed "battle tested" to trout out a cliche. And they have a dynamic young blueliner that can take over a game.

Flames just don't have that player on their roster. They have a collection of talent that can beat any team if they are all on their games playing as a team but that's difficult to achieve in the NHL on a nightly basis in this league where there's a lot of parity.

[Philly06Cup]

Originally Posted by TheRealPepman

Stars were men playing against boys (Flames). I mean look at the personnel of both teams with consistent/significant playoff experience.

This year's playoffs proved that playoff experience doesn't mean that much. Lots of players with playoff experience have been struggling, while lots of rookies looked exceptional.

Struggling vets:
Crosby/Malkin, Giroux/Couturier. Bergeron, Gaudreau/Monahan, Seguin, etc

Awesome young players:
Heiskanen/Theodore/Hughes/Makar. Aho, Montreal guys, Van guys, NYI guys, etc

[Ped]

Originally Posted by Flamenspiel

Hughes is good, but the Flames drafted a better player who they traded to get Lindholm and Hanifin. Fox is close in points while he is a +20, Hughes is a -20.

That aged well.

[Corral]

Originally Posted by TheRealPepman

Part of me thinks the most recent first round exit isn't as bad as last year's.

Stars were men playing against boys (Flames). I mean look at the personnel of both teams with consistent/significant playoff experience.

Flames
Geoff Ward
Milan Lucic
Cam Talbot

Stars
Rick Bowness
Tyler Seguin
Jamie Benn
John Klingberg
Corey Perry
Joe Pavelski
Ben Bishop

That's a loooot of playoff hockey experience right there.

Part of me is still hurting over the loss LOL.

The stars are big and play mean. The flames are small and timid, with a couple exceptions.

Thats why we lost.

[Hackey]

Originally Posted by Itse

My unpopular opinion is that the problems are vastly exaggerated. Essentially the same roster was really good last season, and while that was likely a bit anomalous, this is just as anomalous. This is a solid playoff threat roster playing well below their level. This too shall pass. Knee-jerk reactions won't help anything.

We should splurge on a genuine top coach though. Not because this is a "tough team to coach", but because all Canadian cities are extremely difficult places to coach. So much attention, so much pressure.

They were good the first half of last season. They've been average ever since. I think the team is closer to what we've seen the last half of last year, last playoffs, this year, this playoffs. I think they can do better but they are not a Stanley Cup team unless some guys really break out.

[timbit]

Originally Posted by Hackey

They were good the first half of last season. They've been average ever since. I think the team is closer to what we've seen the last half of last year, last playoffs, this year, this playoffs. I think they can do better but they are not a Stanley Cup team unless some guys really break out.

Correct. Johnny, primarily, and other key players have not been been what should have been in the last 100-115 games.

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

The Stars are better than I thought - even when I've watched them during the last 2 rounds I don't get why they win. Except they are indeed "battle tested" to trout out a cliche. And they have a dynamic young blueliner that can take over a game.

The Stars have a mobile and underrated defence (not just Heiskanen - Klingberg and Lindell are really good too) and decent depth up front (outside the big three they have Gurianov, Pavelski, Hintz, Faksa).

But yeah, they do seem to be getting by with smoke a mirrors. Of the four remaining teams they have the worst GF/GP (3.0) and by far the worst GA/GP (3.28).

[GreenLantern2814]

Every unthanked post on this forum is an unpopular opinion about the Flames.

[heep223]

Flames are one play-driving forward away from being a true contender.

Fight me

[GreenLantern2814]

Originally Posted by heep223

Flames are one play-driving forward away from being a true contender.

Fight me

Not even if that one forward was MacKinnon.