GDT: Flambes vs the, uh, Reds! Its uh, in Calgary, at 7 on today.

[Gritty]

I think we're going to get on a big winning streak now... 4 games against non-playoff teams at home. 4 in a row for the good guys!

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

Have to disagree here. I know Gio's already in his prime, and has about 3 or so peak years left, but I just can't see this team winning without him as our captain. He is the epitome of what the new culture has been built upon, and I can think of way more reasons to keep him than not, regardless of what kind of massive haul he'd return. He'll already go down in team history as one of our best captains, but I feel he is the special kind of player that will lead the Flames to the promised land. You just don't trade a perennial Norris candidate for futures when the team is actually closer to winning that you might think. We're set down the middle, have some incredible heart and talent on the wings, and roughly half an excellent d-corps; imo, we are really only one stud dman away from seriously contending, especially in a year or two when guys like Klimmer and Smith come into the fold. Just as an example:

Gaudreau - Monahan - Hudler ("A")
Klimchuk - Bennett - Poirier
Bouma - Backlund - Colborne
Jooris - Stajan ("A") - Smith

Gio ("C") - Brodie
Russel - Wideman
Kanzig - (Wotherspoon?)

The more and more I watch Colborne, the more I think it's a poor move to keep him on the right wing. He just seems way more dynamic on the left side where he can pass AND drive the net

I'm also not sold on Klimchuk yet. Either he or Granlund could be a LW sniper but I wouldn't put my eggs in that basket.

I'm hoping we can very soon get to a point where it's

Hudler-Monahan-Shore (three cerebral players who can pass, shoot, handle, and Shore can dig pucks out of the boards)
Gaudreau-Bennett- Poirier (Keeps Johnny protected with two fiesty bodies who can skate with him)
Bouma - Backlund - Jooris
Colborne Stajan Arnold
Byron
Wolf

Giordano-Brodie
Wideman-Wotherspoon
Kanzig-Russell

Now I don't know if that's a contending lineup but my gut tells me it's a lot closer to that point where you can start making key trades.

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

The more and more I watch Colborne, the more I think it's a poor move to keep him on the right wing. He just seems way more dynamic on the left side where he can pass AND drive the net

I'm also not sold on Klimchuk yet. Either he or Granlund could be a LW sniper but I wouldn't put my eggs in that basket.

I'm hoping we can very soon get to a point where it's

Hudler-Monahan-Shore (three cerebral players who can pass, shoot, handle, and Shore can dig pucks out of the boards)
Gaudreau-Bennett- Poirier (Keeps Johnny protected with two fiesty bodies who can skate with him)
Bouma - Backlund - Jooris
Colborne Stajan Arnold
Byron
Wolf

Giordano-Brodie
Wideman-Wotherspoon
Kanzig-Russell

Now I don't know if that's a contending lineup but my gut tells me it's a lot closer to that point where you can start making key trades.

The nice thing about who the Flames have to work with moving forward, is that there is so much flexibility virtually everywhere in the lineup, except maybe on D. Gaudreau-Bennett-Poirier, though.. could you imagine?? Dear God, lol. Edit: I thought this would make an awesome PP unit, but I would actually really love to see Bennett and Poirier together on the PK..

Intersting choice to put Shore up top; I know he's skilled, but I haven't seen enough of him yet to know where he best fits. I personally prefer Hudler on the right, as that's where he seems to make it happen.. which frees up a top-six LW for either Klimmer or Granlund. I don't know what I'd do with Colborne, the guy has size and tons of talent, but it's like he still has to settle into a role somewhere. I can see him finding regular duty with Stajan on either side.

As much as I love Byron's game, he definitely seems to be the odd man out, and I can't imagine he's all too satisfied sitting permanently on the fringe. You never mentioned Hunter Smith, and though I know he's still a few years away, he's the kind of guy I can see anchoring a bottom-six RW spot for years to come. Guy is big, he can score, and is nasty as all hell. Hudler/Poirier/Jooris/Smith down the right side would be a decent blend of speed, scoring, and physicality. But yeah, factor in guys like Wolf, Arnold, Reinhart, Agostino, Ferland, etc. and it doesn't seem like we'll have too much to worry about up front for a good long while.

I actually prefer what you did there bumping Russell down with Kanzig, but would still keep Wideman on the right side, where he seems to thrive. I'm becoming less and less sold on Wotherspoon, and would actually rather have a big, shutdown guy who can skate to round out the top-four. Or Kylington. Edit: glad you agree on Kanzig, guys is gonna be a beast for us.. and I'm certain AF called it from the day he was drafted

 

[bWo*]

Can anyone provide a recap? I had night school so I couldn't watch

 

[InfinityIggy]

Can anyone provide a recap? I had night school so I couldn't watch

Flames had some chances that maybe would of been goals on other nights. Score made it look worse than it really was but the Blues were clearly the better team, and that's why they won.

 

[Lunatik]

Can anyone provide a recap? I had night school so I couldn't watch

Flames scored fewer goals, thus they lost.

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

Intersting choice to put Shore up top; I know he's skilled, but I haven't seen enough of him yet to know where he best fits.

I'm not saying Shore is a Bonafide 1st liner, at least not right now, but Monahan and Hudler can keep him afloat, and he brings a lot of intangibles to balance that line out that I feel Gaudreau doesn't. He's a right shot too, and actually pretty deadly with it which we'll start to see soon.

I personally prefer Hudler on the right, as that's where he seems to make it happen..

The thing about Hudler on the left is that it lets him use his forehand and hit from more of a distance. He's brilliant on the right but it also forces him to score from the slot or up close. Great for shooting percentages, but when teams clog up the slot like last night it's pretty ineffective. I'm pretty sure he played the left side when the Red Wings won the championship

I don't know what I'd do with Colborne, the guy has size and tons of talent, but it's like he still has to settle into a role somewhere. I can see him finding regular duty with Stajan on either side.

I like that Colborne can play up and down the lineup, and I see him as a 3rd liner playing 4th line minutes while getting PP time

As much as I love Byron's game, he definitely seems to be the odd man out, and I can't imagine he's all too satisfied sitting permanently on the fringe.

Well, I'd put him over Arnold right now anyways, but I just wanted to squeeze Arnold in there because he's really good. The odd man out I see is actually Stajan, as once we've got Backlund/Bennett/Monahan we really don't need to pay 3 mil to a 4th line center, especially when Arnold is pretty much a better player and a right hand shot.

I wouldn't ever underestimate Paul Byron... he's the kind of player that can revive a team down from a 0-3 playoff deficit.

You never mentioned Hunter Smith, and though I know he's still a few years away, he's the kind of guy I can see anchoring a bottom-six RW spot for years to come. Guy is big, he can score, and is nasty as all hell.

We'll see. He, as well as Garnet Hathaway could both be NHLers for us. I wouldn't even make too big a deal out of who the bottom 6 wingers really are - as long as you've got Backlund and Arnold anchoring those lines the wings don't really matter, other than Bouma only because he's pretty much assistant captain material.

I actually prefer what you did there bumping Russell down with Kanzig, but would still keep Wideman on the right side, where he seems to thrive.

Well, yeah. It wouldn't make any sense for both Wotherspoon and Wideman to both play their weak side together.

I'm becoming less and less sold on Wotherspoon, and would actually rather have a big, shutdown guy who can skate to round out the top-four.

Wotherspoon is 6'2 + 210lbs + Can Skate

He's a point producer these days but look at his old draft scouting reports and he was brought in as a stay at home guy. I know he's not an aggressive physical player, but he's very much like a Sean Monahan in that he'll be a rock for this team going forward, which is very important from your blueline.

That said, I see Hickey and Kulak as having a higher ceiling than TSpoon so it doesn't have to be him that works out.

Kulak is going to surprise people in my opinion... great skater, great offensive instincts, good defensive instincts, great shot, good size.

Hickey is the one I really see being our #3 defenseman going forward but he's still only a wiry 18 years old and needs to improve his reads a bit. Here's a guy, a big body, with incredible skating, a rocket shot with a quick release, very physical and never lets guys get inside position, and he's a puck mover. Basically he has more Norris Trophy upside than even a Giordano or a Brodie, which is obviously just a ceiling and I'm not saying he necessarily gets near there. He bases his game on guys like Kieth and McDonagh which is a pretty crazy combination to imagine even as a poor man's version.

Then there's also Culkin, who got off to an awesome start as a rookie PP specialist.

The biggest Wildcard though has to be Rafikov. He's still 19 with a huge frame to grow into. Has every tool necessary except when he was drafted he wasn't the best skater, but that's progressing well too. A good puckmoving two-way defenseman crossed much more of a physical presence than a TSpoon.

So yes, no need to be mated to Wotherspoon, but he's definitely the closest to knocking a Diaz off the roster and helping the team.

Glad you agree on Kanzig, guys is gonna be a beast for us..

Well, he's still a ways away. His improvement in his skating versus last season is significant but not enough to make the show until he makes similar strides this year. I just think he's an upgrade over Engelland and I'll take that ASAP But man, can anyone help but visualize him as the next Regehr? That kind of impact would make a huge difference for a guy like Russell. He's not the only big body who could be the future though. Don't underestimate Adam Ollas Mattson. At 6'4 215lbs he's not as massive as Kanzig but he's still a massive 18 year old already

All these guys have to compete with each other for roster spots, so hopefully the four best defensemen make it under Brodie and Gio and the rest are still good enough to flip via trade into assets

That is why we can't get too far ahead of ourselves. Right now the Flames are built to build. And they're competing reasonably with teams built to contend.