Yeah strangely enough RBA seems to be a good coach. He has the kids playing run and gun like dogs on raw meat and its worked in the preaseason at least.
So how are Lindholm and Hanafin working out?
We like this Hamilton guy. Great shot.
Oh the run and gun thing is a breath of fresh air for sure. I read about the criticisms about Peters in Carolina, and it crazy to essentially conclude that though Canes fans feel his game is still unchanged and boring, Flames fans have quickly concluded it's a less restrictive style than what Gully had the roster playing in the previous season and a major upgrade and fit. RBA's style is highly entertaining hockey, but the question is always about sustainability in terms of a how long it takes to develop a play book against the team or injuries or tuning out the coach.
We are liking what we see of Lindholm and Hanifin so far. Many of our fans feel the criticisms levied against Lindholm and Hanifin aren't quite what we have seen so far, especially Hanifin. I wonder if it's because there's an extra skip in their step, or if the roster has allowed them to play in a way that's slightly different than Carolina (ie: Less defensive responsibilities as it's spread out over more players).
I think Hanifin has solidified his position in the top 4. Lindholm on the other hand there's still a ton of debate because our top 9 can easily be mixed in a blender, but I think in general, most of us are happy with him. He seems criticized a little more than Hanifin so far, but I think that's just purely because of the debate and criticisms of the line combos in the top 9 right now. Even Neal has been played as low as the 3rd line as Peters figures out combos and chemistry. Many of our fans have also taken a liking to Ryan so far. Good player reminiscent of Stajan when he was good.
It's great to hear that you guys are liking Hamilton. I heard good things about Ferland as well, even though he was benched for a few games. But it seemed more like Ferland was a lock for the NHL roster and RBA and management wanted to evaluate a handful of prospects for the NHL roster vs sending them down. To me, it sounds like a win win trade so far for both teams which is awesome.