Iginla Destination Discussion

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by GreenLantern2814

Iginla was a 0.29 PPG player with the Avalanche last year. He was a 0.47 PPG player with the Kings.

Yes, he was.
By season average he produced a bit less per minute of PP time than Alex Chiasson did.

It is what it is.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by Bingo

I never know what to think of these things.

I certainly can't confirm it, and anyone can make up a rumour and then email me and tell me where it comes from. Doesn't make it any more true, but to some degree I do think it speaks to the intentions of the poster to pass on information that looks like it could have legs.

We will see ...

I like it because ...

its a great way for Iginla to come back and close a chapter
its a great story
he could still help the powerplay
he plays a physical brand of hockey

I don't like it because ...

I think it could be a distraction
it might muck up the dressing room dynamic
there could be a lot of bitching and moaning about linemates
he may push a more deserving player down the roster

but would be an interesting ride!~

I think I'd be mainly worried about whether he still had enough in the tank to meaningfully contribute.

I am less worried about the locker room dynamic for a couple of reasons. I have to believe he is enough of a pro to know his place. And its not like there is some incredible championship dynamic currently. I really don't know what the locker room is like but its just as possible that a HOFer like Iginla knowing his role would be enough to improve cohesion.

Wishful thinking maybe.

[Gaskal]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

You can write off Iginla's numbers as a product of the Avs if you want, but he wasn't better with the Kings.

Yes he was.

Come on, gotta look at the facts. Even if you don't look at his improved offensive production, the guy fought Maroon and Engelland one week apart and won both fights. Engelland!

[Igottago]

Originally Posted by GreenLantern2814

Iginla was a 0.29 PPG player with the Avalanche last year. He was a 0.47 PPG player with the Kings.

What's the point of having the 3M line, all those defensemen, a goalie who can headman the puck like Smith etc if it doesn't allow you to sign offensive specialists?

Jarome is a winger. I don't care how bad he is defensively. Shelter him. Give him nights off. He wouldn't be here to win a Selke (last time a winger won this award was 2002 - Jere Lehtinen), he's here for his 20 years of experience, toughness, leadership, instincts, and his ability to finish.

Is he going to play 20 minutes a night with the top line? Of course not.

Can he pot 15 working the left point on the #1PP unit? Tell me why not.

I think the key to this working out for all involved would be to keep expectations in check. This is not the Iginla of old. He probably knows that as well. He would be a contributor in certain areas and potentially wouldn't be beyond being a healthy scratch at times. If he's struggling both the team and him would have to realistically recognize that.

I think a good parallel to this would be Lanny in his last year with the Flames. The question is did he deliver some value in a much more limited role. Could Jarome do something similar?

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by Gaskal

Yes he was.

Come on, gotta look at the facts. Even if you don't look at his improved offensive production, the guy fought Maroon and Engelland one week apart and won both fights. Engelland!

Not disputing that at all.
The facts also include being on the ice for a ridiculously high amount of even strength goals against while playing with the Kings.

[Fighting Banana Slug]

I still don't see much point in bringing him back, from a hockey perspective. He is basically Chaisson, but who can fight and who has a better back story.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by Fighting Banana Slug

I still don't see much point in bringing him back, from a hockey perspective. He is basically Chaisson, but who can fight and who has a better back story.

I never saw Chaisson bury any power play one-timers from Gaudreau.

[FanIn80]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

Not sure if serious?

I'm quite serious, and I thought topfiverecords was too.

You know why most people hate stats? People generally don't hate critical thinking, nor do they hate having as much information as possible. What they actually hate is feeling stupid.

If the stats-crowd ever gets tired of people rolling their eyes whenever they post a chart or comment on something, they should feel free to not use obscure titles and abbreviations that mean absolutely nothing to everyone else.

One of my favourite TV/movie lines of all time was from Don Keefer on The Newsroom:

"You're a financial news reporter who gets to spend an hour a day on one subject, and I'm at least an average consumer of news, and you have failed to get me to understand what you've called the most important story of the last ten years."

Here's another quote:

The messengers are the ones who hold the responsibility of understanding.

I just wrote that one myself just now.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

I never saw Chaisson bury any power play one-timers from Gaudreau.

He caused a fair number of goals with net front presence. Which could very well be a more useful role than an outside shooter in today's power plays.

I see Iggy as replacing Versteeg on the PP, which isn't that great a move. I suppose Iggy could play point, but with his mediocre skating, that could be dangerous.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by GreenLantern2814

Iginla was a 0.29 PPG player with the Avalanche last year. He was a 0.47 PPG player with the Kings.

What's the point of having the 3M line, all those defensemen, a goalie who can headman the puck like Smith etc if it doesn't allow you to sign offensive specialists?

Other than Brodie our entire first PP1 is "specialists". Brouwer. Versteeg. Gaudreau. Monahan. None of these are strong defensive players. One of them isn't even a good offensive player outside of the PP.

More offense wouldn't hurt this team, but it can't be coming from "specialists". It needs to come in the flow of the game at even strength. A guy who can skate/cycle with Versteeg-Bennett withouot dragging them down, and still be able to win a race and battle along the walls defensively. I don't see Iginla as being able to do that. We need more Froliks and Ferlands, not less.

Jarome is a winger. I don't care how bad he is defensively. Shelter him.

The only linemates that can reliably shelter Iginla are Backlund-Frolik. But then he won't be sheltered because the only line that takes on hard matchups are Backlund-Frolik. It's a catch-22. The Kings saw it first hand where they sheltered Iginla by putting him with Kopitar, but saw their overall 5v5 play fall off the map. Monahan, Jankowski and Bennett are not Anze Kopitar. They're all young and learning to drive the play at this level. They need wingers who do drive the play (Gaudreau, Ferland, Tkachuk, Frolik) and we already don't have enough of those to fill out six winger spots in the top nine. Iginla doesn't drive the play. He's not a top nine forward anymore. Versteeg doesn't drive the play much but does produce like a top nine winger, so the final winger spot has to be a guy who can play with Versteeg and Bennett and not give us that abomination of a third line that we saw for much of the year until Chiasson was added to it, and mind you Chiasson is not a top nine forward himself.

The only other option is the fourth line but we have enough fourth line RWs between Lazar, Brouwer, Hamilton, Hathaway. How many fourth line RWs do you need?

Can he pot 15 working the left point on the #1PP unit? Tell me why not.

Four point five million dollars for the next three years for Brouwer are why not. You'd be taking away the one thing he's in the lineup for.

If you know someone willing to take on that albatross of a contract I completely welcome Iginla back as our 4RW.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by EldrickOnIce

Not sure if serious? And it's a good chart actually, as far as charts go.
Michalek is almost the perfectly 'average' NHL player. Not good at anything, not bad at anything (in relation to the 'average' player).
You can write off Iginla's numbers as a product of the Avs if you want, but he wasn't better with the Kings.
Would be best not to pretend Iginla is something different than he actually is at this point.

I still think it is a terrible chart that doesn't really communicate anything especially meaningful. I will agree that it is a pretty chart, but that will only get you so far.

[Phaneufenstein]

Iggy at 80 years old would still increase our toughness so I'm on board if he were to sign with us at half that age.

[joejoe3]

iggy this, iggy that... but iggy doesn't want to come back.

[FanIn80]

Originally Posted by Phaneufenstein

Iggy at 80 years old would still increase our toughness so I'm on board if he were to sign with us at half that age.

That's essentially the way I'm looking at this. Even if he just plays on the PP and the rest of the time is relegated to 4th line checking/enforcing, we're still a better overall team with him in the lineup.

I think the impact of having a future Hall of Fame player go out there and beat the snot out of someone for slashing Gaudreau would be quite something to see.

Look at that final game against the Kings last year, when Iggy went out there and put an end to all the silliness around Tkachuk-Doughty. How did he do it? He didn't cheapshot someone, he didn't go after someone meaningless. He literally squared off against the toughest guy on our team and fought him toe-to-toe at center ice. It sent the message to the rest of his team that enough was enough. They were fighting for their playoff lives, and they had no business screwing around with anything else... then his team responded by putting their collective head down and winning that game.

That's what we need. His experience, his toughness and his straight-up willingness to still carry a team in whatever way they need him to.

[ComixZone]

To this point, Treliving mentioned that Engelland was the team's "sheriff" at one of the STH events this summer. Iginla, who won his fight with Engelland, would be a way to replace that sheriff role.

It's not about goon vs. goon fighting anymore, and Iggy did show a great willingness to protect his teammates on both LA and Colorado last year. That's a worthwhile trait, and something I think we could use.

[OmegaV4]

Originally Posted by joejoe3

iggy this, iggy that... but iggy doesn't want to come back.

This kinda sums it all up.

I'm on board for the Iggy train purely for the nostalgia factor, however, historically, it has been reported that there isn't really an appetite for him to come back(From both sides, I believe).

But I guess only time will tell with those 100% reliable rumors from Eklund and http://www.nhltraderumors.me...

Which by the way, the .ME domain name is for Montenegro. And that's the first thing that comes to peoples minds when they think of hockey.

[Inferno]

The thing to remember in regards to his interest in coming back is feelings change. Maybe he wasn't interested before the deadline but after seeing the changes made he changed his mind. Or maybe the teams he was hoping to get an offer from aren't interested and going back to where he started is his next most desirable option.

[868904]

I'd rather have Iginla in the line up than Gazdic. Iggy is not a pure enforcer, but he will make other teams think twice about taking liberties with the Flames stars. Who wants a beat down from a 40 year old?

Iggy's reputation is well known around the league. Doesn't matter who it is (tough guy or rat or joe blow), anyone who tries to rough up Gaudreau would have to drop the gloves with Iggy. You saw it last season, no hesitation from Iggy to take on one of the toughest guys in the league in Engelland after he roughed up Kopitar.

There is room for Iginla, it won't cost Lazar or Brouwer a spot. It'll come down to Iggy or Hathaway, F. Hamilton, Stajan, Gazdic. I think Iggy can still contribute more than those 4. It makes a lot of sense for the Flames.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by OmegaV4

This kinda sums it all up.

I'm on board for the Iggy train purely for the nostalgia factor, however, historically, it has been reported that there isn't really an appetite for him to come back(From both sides, I believe).

But I guess only time will tell with those 100% reliable rumors from Eklund and http://www.nhltraderumors.me...

Which by the way, the .ME domain name is for Montenegro. And that's the first thing that comes to peoples minds when they think of hockey.

The .me domain is also preferred by narcissist bloggers.

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by dustygoon

Didn't someone say at a STH event Burke said iginla isn't interested in coming back to yyc?

Yep, just like when Burke went on a tirade about the media "making things up" about the Flames being in on Dougie Hamilton, and as we all know Dougie never ended up in Calgary, so we can trust Brian at is word.