17. Smith’s arrival in Calgary meant a departure for Elliott. Flames GM Brad Treliving phoned him with the news before the trade was final.
“I was disappointed for sure,†Elliott said Sunday night. “You put your heart and soul into a new team and city, knowing there’s a chance it’s only for the one year. You create relationships and friendships… fit in well, mesh well, to say goodbyes for now is kind of hard. I prepared myself for it, but it still feels like a kick in the gut when I got the call. They are going to be good, do great things. I wish them all well and wanted to be a part of that. Now I look for other opportunities out there.â€
Elliott, a long shot as the 291st pick in the 2003 draft, is always at his best when challenged.
“I’m excited for this. I thrive on that type of atmosphere: if you tell me I can’t do it, I’ll be the first guy to tell you I can, and show you how I can. That’s how you get better. You have to battle your self-doubts and prove everyone wrong. I’m not going to shy away from a new city, a new team. The NHL provides you a unique ride. You can’t be mad at moving around, at the end of the day, it gives you another jersey to put on the wall.â€
He and wife Amanda have an eight-month-old son, Owen, and are unafraid of moving around. Elliott added that the last time he was a free agent (2011), he had to sign a two-way contract in St. Louis. That was far more stressful.
18. Elliott had some interesting things to say about his year in Calgary and how he played. He thinks his early struggles came because he knew exactly how the St. Louis defencemen would make certain plays, and needed time to adjust to the Flames.
“Wherever I go next, I’m going to focus a lot right away on communication so I can hit the ground running. Jay Bouwmeester, Alex Pietrangelo, Kevin Shattenkirk, whether they would slide on a two-on-one, take away the back door or focus on the slot, I’d been with them so long I knew what they’d do. I knew when I could cheat a little more, or should do it less. It took a lot of video work with (Calgary goalie coach) Jordan Sigalet, but finally I felt better and could be more aggressive. It was a reminder that players aren’t going to change their tendencies in front of you, so you have to learn how to read a different team.â€
I did ask Elliott about his final game for the Flames, Game 4 of the first-round series against Anaheim. The Ducks swept Calgary as he was pulled six minutes after puck drop.
“I felt good, made a couple of good saves right away. I set up to face that shot in that same situation 100 times before. This time, it went in. The nature of goaltending is that some times you don’t have the chance to redeem yourself. It’s not the successes you learn from, it’s your failures.â€
