I'll preface this by admitting that this is based on a conversation between Rhett Warrener and Ryan Pinder this morning on The Fan 960. I don't have the recording of it, and I'd have no idea how to like it even if I did!!
The basis of the conversation was that there is a "divide" in the room. Now, anyone that has followed the Flames over the last, well, forever, knows that there always have been rumors of a divide in the locker room. Hell, even Rhett mentioned a rift between him and Iggy back in the day. It was over how they were going to play as a team. Iggy wanted to play run and gun and let Kipper bail them out. While Rhett wanted the team to play a more defensive style.
Anyway, the rumored rift is again about playing style, but with a twist. Apparently, Tkachuk, and his following, want to play a hard-nosed brand of hockey. 100% effort every shift, no nights, or shifts, off. The problem is that apparently, a member of the senior core isn't into that type of play. Likes the perimeter, high-skill game and has told Chucky to cool his jets on the ice because he's making certain look bad. If this is the case, then this team is going nowhere fast, not that they were going anywhere anyway.
The Flame's biggest issue has always been putting in a consistent effort and goaltending. Well, this year they are getting excellent goaltending, without Markstrom they would be dead last. The problem is playing with maximum effort game in and game out.
It would be easy to assume it is Johnny making the demands, but they didn't think that was the case. They threw out Backlund as a name, but I find that hard to believe as well. Rhett's solution was to basically give the player away that is causing the friction, lose the trade, make it known that if you don't want to play here, the way the game is meant to be played, you're gone.
But, is this a credible approach? Does anyone really care if they are traded away? Isn't this actually helping out the player? Do you flush the core? It was rumored that Tree tried doing that this summer but had no takers. The current core has had years to make it work, they haven't done so. No, their one great season doesn't change this, as they still crashed and burned in the first round, which is the norm for them.
So, what do they do? I support trading away Johnny, Mony, and Gio. It's not like that group has done anything anyway, and they aren't getting better. Monahan is not a #1 center, Johnny gets beat to shit in the playoffs, and Gio has taken a pretty big step back the last two years. Build around the young D and Chucky.
The basis of the conversation was that there is a "divide" in the room. Now, anyone that has followed the Flames over the last, well, forever, knows that there always have been rumors of a divide in the locker room. Hell, even Rhett mentioned a rift between him and Iggy back in the day. It was over how they were going to play as a team. Iggy wanted to play run and gun and let Kipper bail them out. While Rhett wanted the team to play a more defensive style.
Anyway, the rumored rift is again about playing style, but with a twist. Apparently, Tkachuk, and his following, want to play a hard-nosed brand of hockey. 100% effort every shift, no nights, or shifts, off. The problem is that apparently, a member of the senior core isn't into that type of play. Likes the perimeter, high-skill game and has told Chucky to cool his jets on the ice because he's making certain look bad. If this is the case, then this team is going nowhere fast, not that they were going anywhere anyway.
The Flame's biggest issue has always been putting in a consistent effort and goaltending. Well, this year they are getting excellent goaltending, without Markstrom they would be dead last. The problem is playing with maximum effort game in and game out.
It would be easy to assume it is Johnny making the demands, but they didn't think that was the case. They threw out Backlund as a name, but I find that hard to believe as well. Rhett's solution was to basically give the player away that is causing the friction, lose the trade, make it known that if you don't want to play here, the way the game is meant to be played, you're gone.
But, is this a credible approach? Does anyone really care if they are traded away? Isn't this actually helping out the player? Do you flush the core? It was rumored that Tree tried doing that this summer but had no takers. The current core has had years to make it work, they haven't done so. No, their one great season doesn't change this, as they still crashed and burned in the first round, which is the norm for them.
So, what do they do? I support trading away Johnny, Mony, and Gio. It's not like that group has done anything anyway, and they aren't getting better. Monahan is not a #1 center, Johnny gets beat to shit in the playoffs, and Gio has taken a pretty big step back the last two years. Build around the young D and Chucky.
