Agree with the Zadorov comments. This guy is a thousand times better than he was at the start of the season. Skating like crazy now, not making stupid ass passes anymore and showing a little bit of offensive instinct?
Here is something I never thought I'd say at the beginning of the season:
I like Nikita Zadorov.
Zadorov looked solid last night. His defensive play really stood out, in addition to his opportunities in the O-Zone. If that is what we get semi-regularly, our d-core is solid and we don't really necessarily need to tinker with it, by getting a minute muncher as is rumoured.
Give him a chance on the power play too. He definitely has a great shot.
Zadorov looked solid last night. His defensive play really stood out, in addition to his opportunities in the O-Zone. If that is what we get semi-regularly, our d-core is solid and we don't really necessarily need to tinker with it, by getting a minute muncher as is rumoured.
Give him a chance on the power play too. He definitely has a great shot.
I have found that Zadorov has improved with more exposure to Sutter. I think he brings a lot of pieces we lack on the back end, he's physical, he's got a great shot, and he's defensive minded for the most part. As he starts to cut down on the mind gaffs more and more I think he's a really intriguing player.
Hot take but I think he and Gudbranson are just as good as our other pairings.
I'd be interested in seeing Zadorov-Andersson, Hanifin-Gudbranson sometime too though.
I'll be damned if we didn't desperately need this man behind the bench. I don't think I've ever seen a coach remain more objective when looking at games. Sees the GAME, not the result.
I believe that this Flames team has been mentally weak for years - and while Gio was a great leader in terms of example, I don't think he provided direction. This Flames team works more than any I have seen since, well, Sutter was here last time. That level of effort with the talent that is here has made us competitive when many of us (including myself) were ready to blow this thing up without a major shakeup.
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to slcrocket For This Useful Post:
Was at the game last night and it was as one sided as the score suggested. The Blues were completely flat and even after the timeout, it did absolutely nothing, the Flames still peppered Binnington with shots and gave up nothing until the 3rd when the Blues started trying a little bit more.
The Flames honestly could’ve had more than 10 with some of the glorious chances they had last night. It was kind of funny watching some of the snake bitten players like Mangiapane and Dube trying desperately to get off the schneid. I think they knew if there was an easy night to finally snap their streaks, that yesterday was it.
Big win against a damn good team. But the Blues don’t play another opponent until the Flames again and I suspect they’ll be colossally pissed off and will throw everything at the Flames on Thursday. So hopefully the boys expect a much stiffer test in St Louis.
Also, was it that the hits were bigger or the boards/glass need an adjustment? A few of the hits thrown (Gudbranson in particular) looked like they were going to knock the panes off the boards.
I'll be damned if we didn't desperately need this man behind the bench. I don't think I've ever seen a coach remain more objective when looking at games. Sees the GAME, not the result.
I believe that this Flames team has been mentally weak for years - and while Gio was a great leader in terms of example, I don't think he provided direction. This Flames team works more than any I have seen since, well, Sutter was here last time. That level of effort with the talent that is here has made us competitive when many of us (including myself) were ready to blow this thing up without a major shakeup.
Is it even fair to pin that on Gio? The turnaround of this team didn’t even start this season, it started last season in my opinion. The final 16 games of last season was when the tide turned and Gio was one of the 2 main components driving that change. I actually thought he was the single best individual player in that stretch and the stats prove it. He was an absolute machine and I guarantee Darryl would love to have Gio back in the fold.
Darryl’s not the kind of coach who just gives minutes away easily, you have to earn it and he was playing Gio 26-27 minutes a night. He had 6 dmen to choose from and yet he was playing Gio for basically half the game. I think Gio will be back at some point in the near future, there’s too much synergy between the coach and the player and Gio’s agent pretty much admitted that to be the case on the radio a few weeks ago.
"Darryl’s not the kind of coach who just gives minutes away easily, you have to earn it and he was playing Gio 26-27 minutes a night. He had 6 dmen to choose from and yet he was playing Gio for basically half the game. I think Gio will be back at some point in the near future, there’s too much synergy between the coach and the player and Gio’s agent pretty much admitted that to be the case on the radio a few weeks ago."
DO you have a link for this? Thats's something I would like to read/listen to
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by stang
Best moves the Oilers can make. Draft players. Ship them off. Re-sign when developed.
"Darryl’s not the kind of coach who just gives minutes away easily, you have to earn it and he was playing Gio 26-27 minutes a night. He had 6 dmen to choose from and yet he was playing Gio for basically half the game. I think Gio will be back at some point in the near future, there’s too much synergy between the coach and the player and Gio’s agent pretty much admitted that to be the case on the radio a few weeks ago."
DO you have a link for this? Thats's something I would like to read/listen to
Gio moved on and the team forged its own identity without their former captain. Bringing him back, not in that same role and either giving him minutes already earned by other D like Kylington or asking him to play a lesser role yet still being a bit of a shadow hanging over the room is a big mistake. Might seem like the perfect fit but its not. It would end up being a distraction that no one would admit as being one out of respect.
Gio would help this team. I know he’s 38 and people think he’s physically done, but Gio was an absolute force under Darryl and Sutter loves Gio. Ritch Winter pretty much confirms that there’s mutual admiration between both sides and the usage speaks louder than words.
In Darryl’s system, Gio can thrive because it hides his biggest fault as a hockey player. The way Ward had the team checking, it was not ideal for the way this team is built. Maybe for a roster like Vegas, but not the slow as molasses Flames. Under Sutter though, the D have so much more back support and they can step up and make plays which really leverages Gio’s decision making and instincts more which is still at an extremely high level.
Did people not see the Seattle games this season? Gio can still play. He practically willed the Kraken to victory on his own. You don’t think Darryl saw that and said “I could use that guy.”
