Flames' franchise greats impressed by current crew

[Dion]

First Lanny.....

“You wouldn’t believe how often … ” howled Calgary Flames franchise icon Lanny McDonald during an interview last month, “I get asked about Sam Bennett’s moustache. All the time.”

“You can tell they’re all having so much fun, and winning helps that a tremendous amount,” McDonald said. “I mean, just look at them spraying the Gatorade for each other when they get back to the bench after goals.”

Then Pepper.......

“I was concerned at the start of the year because I know the distraction and challenges that a trip to China can have on a team, particularly when you are undergoing a lot of changes,” said Jim Peplinski, a co-captain — along with McDonald and alternate Tim Hunter — for the 1989 Stanley Cup champs and now vice-president of business development for the Flames’ organization. “So for them to have come out of the gates so well and so organized, it’s a credit to the coaching staff and it’s a credit to the players for getting on board with a different approach.

“The first thing I noticed is just how organized they seem to be and how quickly they move the puck and how they attacked with speed and were equally diligent on the defensive side of the game. But most importantly, what I’ve seen is the resilience. Even when the team is behind, they continue to play with focus and discipline and patience, and those were the three things that made a difference for us, particularly in the year that we won the Stanley Cup.”

Of course Patterson...…..

“I’m a fan now, so I love to see them win,” said former Flames forward Colin Patterson, another alum of that banner-raising bunch from 1988-89. “The great thing about this team is they’re never out of it. You could be at a game and you’re going, ‘Oh, looks like they’re going to lose,’ and all of a sudden they come back in amazing fashion. Which is fantastic.

“If you’re watching on TV, you can never turn it out or change channels because you never know what’s going to happen.”

“What I think they have is good chemistry,” Patterson praised. ”I think they have good chemistry in all aspects of the game, from their defensive pairings to their forward lines.

“You look at that first line, they read off each other so well and they know where each other are. I think people would have said at the start of the year, ‘Well, you’re going to need some strength on that first line, some toughness, somebody on that (right) wing who can crash and bang.’ Lindholm has fit in perfectly, and he’s not a crash-and-banger but he is always in the right spot. Johnny knows where he is, and he knows where Monahan is, and Monahan knows where Lindholm is and vice versa.

“The second line has had good chemistry for a couple of years. Just a solid, hard-working line. And on the third and fourth line, guys are finding a way and you just see that those guys can jump in to that second or first line if guys get injured or you can mix and match guys. And that’s a key if you want to go far in the playoffs.”

Finally Looob…..

“Being a part of the organization, you always want to be positive, but I see good things,” he continued. “You think you play your worst game, and you’re still winning it. And this team has the attitude and I would say the structure on the team that you’re down 2-0 or 3-1 or whatever and you can make a change and all of a sudden, things happen … I think that’s a sign of a team that you can guess is going to have success.”

https://calgarysun.com/sports/hockey...y-current-crew

[landshark]

As a sharks fan I'm more worried about the future. This team is for real and is pretty damned good right now, but what really worries me is that there is LOTS of room for improvement. I think CGY will be better in the next couple of year than they are now.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by landshark

As a sharks fan I'm more worried about the future. This team is for real and is pretty damned good right now, but what really worries me is that there is LOTS of room for improvement. I think CGY will be better in the next couple of year than they are now.

I agree. Other than Giordano, most of the core is just entering their prime and just learning how good they are.