James Neal Buyout

[calumniate]

"You're gonna love it - I ended my career there!"

[Strange Brew]

Neal has always been about swagger and bravado. The shtick with him was that he carried himself like he was Michael Jordan. Up until he joined Calgary, he was also able to put the puck in the net on a fairly regular basis.

Treliving thought the team needed goal scoring and an attitude adjustment. He thought Neal could bring both. Well his play totally dried up and he found out that bringing in a jerk doesn't by default help you play better in tough games.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by JackIsBack

1) Pittsburgh doesn't protect him in the expansion draft - why?
2) Las Vegas doesn't re-sign him before free agency - why? (although there is talk that he wanted more and Calgary out-bid them).
3) Calgary benches him during an elimination game in the playoffs.
4) Calgary dumps/swaps his contract for another bad contract just one year in - we know why.
5) Edmonton benches him during the playoffs and gets swept.

6) Edmonton buys him out after 2 years there



We still don't know what the issues are with Neal in the room and with his team mates. I still go back to the podcast with him, McDavid, Leon, and Nurse - the Edmonton good old boys, where they are the "team" and the future of Edmonton - it was a brag fest, and that leaves credence to my opinion that Neal is the all talk and not the real deal on the ice, and he doesn't pull his weight... and the team doesn't like him for that - but I don't know.

Nashville didn't protect him, not Pittsburgh.

Doesn't change your list point though.

[GioforPM]

I think Neal has always had a couple buddies on various teams, which had more to do with palling around off ice. Player dynamics in the room are sometimes odd. A lot don’t like the rah rah guys, and they often dislike young guys who are not deferential to vets.

Even Kane supposedly has Timo Meier as a buddy.

[powderjunkie]

No doubt Neal became a mess of a player, but I've always found the "he was toxic to the room" sentiment a bit funny. The Flames room hasn't demonstrated anything resembling a winning culture. While his previous teams never went to any trouble to keep Neal, he didn't stop any of them from winning.


Dougie "misfit" Hamilton showed up on a Carolina team that had missed the playoffs 9 straight years, and has now won 3 real series in 3 years...which is exactly 3 more than Calgary.

[Burning Beard]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

No doubt Neal became a mess of a player, but I've always found the "he was toxic to the room" sentiment a bit funny. The Flames room hasn't demonstrated anything resembling a winning culture. While his previous teams never went to any trouble to keep Neal, he didn't stop any of them from winning.


Dougie "misfit" Hamilton showed up on a Carolina team that had missed the playoffs 9 straight years, and has now won 3 real series in 3 years...which is exactly 3 more than Calgary.

Yeah boy if there is one flame in history who you can tell really gave it his all it was James Neal. Every shift he gave it 110%. Especially in the playoffs after his room building scream at the coach on the ice at practice for more ice time move.

I'm sure all the other players in the room appreciated his immense effort on the ice while demanding more ice time. Real room building exercise Hahaha

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by Burning Beard

Yeah boy if there is one flame in history who you can tell really gave it his all it was James Neal. Every shift he gave it 110%. Especially in the playoffs after his room building scream at the coach on the ice at practice for more ice time move.

I'm sure all the other players in the room appreciated his immense effort on the ice while demanding more ice time. Real room building exercise Hahaha

Not at all what I said, but okay. The Flames sure proved that Neal and Smith were the real problems in the subsequent seasons...

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Not at all what I said, but okay. The Flames sure proved that Neal and Smith were the real problems in the subsequent seasons...

Exactly. The Flames have had more playoff success since they left than the Oilers have had since acquiring them.

[Red_Baron]

Flames should give him a PTO just so they can cut him after the first practice.

[JackIsBack]

Originally Posted by Bingo

Nashville didn't protect him, not Pittsburgh.

Doesn't change your list point though.

Thanks for correcting that - I knew that, but didn't type it for some reason.

[JackIsBack]

I get all your points (powderjunkie, Burning Beard) and I think they all can be right.

I've worked with people who didn't pull their weight before and I resented them for that especially when it costed me some success (winning is good)... but I still liked them as a person - you can have it both ways at the same time.

[JackIsBack]

St. Louis signs Neal to PTO.

[ComixZone]

…friggin’ worst Flames jersey purchase of my life, that’s for sure.

I even bought it in like November where I was neck-deep in the fandom of that season and thinking “buying a Neal jersey will be good juju and he’ll finally start scoring!”

[MrMike]

Originally Posted by ComixZone

…friggin’ worst Flames jersey purchase of my life, that’s for sure.

I even bought it in like November where I was neck-deep in the fandom of that season and thinking “buying a Neal jersey will be good juju and he’ll finally start scoring!”

Every single game I thought was going to be his break out. Even in the playoffs i believed every. Single. Game.

I have trust issues now.

[alan21]

Originally Posted by ComixZone

…friggin’ worst Flames jersey purchase of my life, that’s for sure.

I even bought it in like November where I was neck-deep in the fandom of that season and thinking “buying a Neal jersey will be good juju and he’ll finally start scoring!”

They were being cleared out for $40 after he left.
Still a waste of $40.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by alan21

They were being cleared out for $40 after he left.
Still a waste of $40.

If you take the lettering off and rearrange it, you can get LENA, LEAN, NELA, NALE, LANE, ELAN, LEN, LAN, NEA, ALE, and ALEN jersies.

Also ANEL and ENAL but uh...

[JackIsBack]

I agree.... I was hoping for more when he was here.

I might considering signing him for anything under 1.1 million, so they can bury it, he may be a good pick up for St. Louis or any other team, unless he's poison to a team to just have around (that verdict is still out imo).

Here is my reasoning - He always starts strong, and a win at the beginning is worth exactly the same as a win at the end.... if he get's cold, you bench him, if he poisons your team or if he whines about minutes, you send him down and bury the contract - if your team struggles, bring him back up on a very short leash. Just my thoughts.

[Bingo]

With any free agent signing you assume you're going to get what he's done recently ... but with age it will peter out.

Neal though was an issue from the get go.

I remember watching those exhibition games from Japan (China?) against the Bruins ... think he may have only played in the first one and thinking uh oh ... out of shape? lost a step? normal off season and he'll be fine?

[tvp2003]

^^ yup. Gaudreau-Monahan-Neal lasted one preseason game in China before they switched it up because of how bad Neal was (especially compared to Lindholm, who replaced him at RW).

Neal is just not a good enough hockey player anymore, and doesn’t do enough to warrant a 4th line role let alone middle six or PP minutes. I wouldn’t bother on the off-chance that he might start hot (coming into a new team with something to prove), only to have to bench him for the rest of the season.

Is there still a requirement to dress a certain number of vets during the preseason? I wonder if Neal is just a camp body at this point…

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by JackIsBack

I might considering signing him for anything under 1.1 million, so they can bury it, he may be a good pick up for St. Louis or any other team...

Here is my reasoning - He always starts strong...

"Always"? He started strong his year in VGK, and in 2019 when he first played in Edmonton. But then he was awful from the start in Calgary, and was no good to begin last year either.

So, in his last four years he had "started strong" twice. I would say that is pretty hit-and-miss, and being another year older I would guess chances are even lower that this could happen again.


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