Are the Flames Overrated? (Warning: Post 75 & OP)

[PumpkinBombX]

Last year 25% of total points (goals and assists) were by their D.

The best way to get a bottom 6 going is when the D generate offence.

This year their D are still generating some good percentage of offence, but the team is taking too many dumb penalties, and their PK is fairly middle of the pack.

watching the games, Talbot played fine, but letting in a goal on the 1st shot is never fun
Everyone blamed Bennett for a goal against with the kings game but that was all on Lucic.

 

[thaman8765678]

To be clear I think the Flames have a great top 5 players and defense is average. But if you have no secondary scoring and have Lucic/Jankowski/Reider in your top 12.... are you really a good team?

 

[CraigsList]

I think it's unfair to judge a team until you have a bigger sample size... The sample size is big enough when we're around American Thanksgiving/beginning of December. That's when you can somewhat see the direction of the team and how the other teams are doing in the standings, especially those in your division.

 

[blankall]

To be clear I think the Flames have a great top 5 players and defense is average. But if you have no secondary scoring and have Lucic/Jankowski/Reider in your top 12.... are you really a good team?

Top 12? LOL. Why not just say on your team.

Jankowski had 32 points last year and has averaged 15 goals a season over his only 2 NHL seasons so far. That's more than adequate for a bottom 6 player.

Lucic looks perfectly fine as a bottom 6 face puncher so far.

Reider as a 12th/13th forward is fine.

The Flames have excellent depth, with 4 near PPG players. They also had Frolik, Ryan, and Backlund at .5PPG.

People do realize that .5 ppg for a bottom 6 is a considered well above average right? Even the 32 points Jankowski put up is considered very good?

The issue this year is just team play. They also went on a road trip to California, which always gives them trouble. They also played Vegas away, and Vegas is the best home team in the league.

If the Flames are still below .500 15-20 games in, then it might mean something.

 

[Bounces R Way]

They are when you are having a season like Dallas or NJ. The flames will be fine, but falling behind way behind early can be extremely difficult to come back from - given that teams ahead of you are getting ~10 OT/SO losses per year. Only takes 95ish points to make the playoffs in the Pacific, if a team gets only 2/12 points in a stretch of games, they've have to look for 12/16 to get back to 0.500.

See it all the time in baseball too. People think the season is long because you get 162 games, but when you're 12 games back by May, start looking to next year. Oilers always had this problem, start slow and the season just vanishes.

The reigning Stanley Cup Winner was dead last halfway through the season last year. I do see your point and a great start is better than a mediocre one, but the Flames are still in the Wildcard, there's no huge ditch they need to dig themselves out of. The Pacific did improve a little bit over the offseason but I'd still expect 5 teams from the Central in.

 

[Muffin]

The reigning Stanley Cup Winner was dead last halfway through the season last year. I do see your point and a great start is better than a mediocre one, but the Flames are still in the Wildcard, there's no huge ditch they need to dig themselves out of. The Pacific did improve a little bit over the offseason but I'd still expect 5 teams from the Central in.

The Blues were more the exception than the norm. Statistically a team outside the playoffs by American Thanksgiving don't make the playoffs very often.

 

[kylbaz]

Posted this a week ago in the predictions thread. They won't make the playoffs.

 

[RegDunlop]

If you actually read my post, I referring to his play in Calgary. But congrats on promoting illiteracy

Illiteracy?

OOO K
Coming from 'I referring to his play...'

Right. Carry on.

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

If the Flames want to be contenders, they need to pony up for a #1 goalie. This circus of garbage starters on try out over the past decade since Kipper retired has got them missed playoffs and first round exits.

It's too bad MAF didn't want to waive his NTC to go to Calgary, having MAF on this club would take them to the next level.

 

[JPeeper]

If the Flames want to be contenders, they need to pony up for a #1 goalie. This circus of garbage starters on try out over the past decade since Kipper retired has got them missed playoffs and first round exits.

It's too bad MAF didn't want to waive his NTC to go to Calgary, having MAF on this club would take them to the next level.

Rittich is a number 1 goalie. 1 bad game in his past 30 is completely acceptable.

 

[blankall]

If the Flames want to be contenders, they need to pony up for a #1 goalie. This circus of garbage starters on try out over the past decade since Kipper retired has got them missed playoffs and first round exits.

It's too bad MAF didn't want to waive his NTC to go to Calgary, having MAF on this club would take them to the next level.

And what #1 goalies have been available that are better than Rittich and would have gone to Calgary?

Goalies were far from their problem last year. They have a young forward core that needs to develop grit and consistency.

 

[Gurglesons]

Yes. Peters has been terrible at coaching for years.

 

[Anglesmith]

If the Flames want to be contenders, they need to pony up for a #1 goalie. This circus of garbage starters on try out over the past decade since Kipper retired has got them missed playoffs and first round exits.

It's too bad MAF didn't want to waive his NTC to go to Calgary, having MAF on this club would take them to the next level.

Rittich looks like the answer. The Flames don't generally lose because of goaltending.

They literally couldn't have asked for better goaltending in the playoffs last year.

 

[qwerty]

This thread is ridiculous. It’s 7 games into the season dude. Are the Lightning overrated and ready to miss the playoffs with their slow start and loss to the Senators?

The Flames haven’t started strong out of the gate which isn’t out of the norm. But also, look at the competition, their regulation loses came on the road to the unbeaten Colorado Avalanche, an elite team in the Golden Knights and to the Sharks on Marleau’s home coming where they actually deserved the win.

This is not a surprising record based on their schedule. I actually expected worse because the Flames hadn’t beaten the Stars since the 16-17 season. So, calm down is what I would say. There’s 75 games left...

 

[madmike77]

Top 10 Corsi. Bottom 5 PDO. They should be fine over the long run.

 

[Svencouver]

Yeah the Flames just haven't had things go their way necessarily, but they're still a good enough team to make a relatively shaky Pacific. That said, I never really felt as if the Flames have the roster to be a true cup contender yet. They're just a little raw and unproven relative to how well they performed in the regular season last year. It's all kinda on shaky foundations and they could easily regress a little

 

[Todd from Leduc]

Top 12? LOL. Why not just say on your team.

Jankowski had 32 points last year and has averaged 15 goals a season over his only 2 NHL seasons so far. That's more than adequate for a bottom 6 player.

Lucic looks perfectly fine as a bottom 6 face puncher so far.

Reider as a 12th/13th forward is fine.

The Flames have excellent depth, with 4 near PPG players. They also had Frolik, Ryan, and Backlund at .5PPG.

People do realize that .5 ppg for a bottom 6 is a considered well above average right? Even the 32 points Jankowski put up is considered very good?

The issue this year is just team play. They also went on a road trip to California, which always gives them trouble. They also played Vegas away, and Vegas is the best home team in the league.

If the Flames are still below .500 15-20 games in, then it might mean something.

To be fair, Jankowski was gifted most of his points by playing with James "Steal Deal" Neal, he won't have Neal feeding him propping up his numbers this season.

 

[Tkachuk Norris]

1) we are terrible at the start of every year

2) thanks for the Jinx thread. Flames have looked like the team that dominates possession and control of the game the past two games

 

[blankall]

To be fair, Jankowski was gifted most of his points by playing with James "Steal Deal" Neal, he won't have Neal feeding him propping up his numbers this season.

What the hell is this?

If anything it was the opposite. Neal is a horrid playmaker and isn't capable of feeding anyone anything.

 

[Todd from Leduc]

What the hell is this?

If anything it was the opposite. Neal is a horrid playmaker and isn't capable of feeding anyone anything.

Neal has 8 goals, he’s leading the league right now.

 

[blankall]

Neal has 8 goals, he’s leading the league right now.

And how many assists does he have? Who does he set up exactly? He had 7 goals all last season. How good he set up Jankowski for points?

 

[HugginThePost]

What the hell is this?

If anything it was the opposite. Neal is a horrid playmaker and isn't capable of feeding anyone anything.

Buddy......come on. This is Todd we’re talking about. Just sit back and enjoy his satire. It’s really quite good. The fact he’s gone this long without breaking character is amazing.

He the Daniel Day Lewis of HFB.

I love the guy.......

 

[Spirits]

The Flames are going to be okay. Should dump that terrible Sam Bennet ASAP though. Guy is terrible at hockey and WAY overrated by Flames fans.

 

[Big guns]

last year they got at least 15 wins with last minute comebacks. They'd get a goal in the last minute that bounced off of four shoulders two legs and a stick laying on the ice to end up behind the goalie. They already did it once or twice this year. They were lucky last year, but that kind of luck cannot possibly continue. They take a step back this year without question.

Nonsense.

 

[DJJones]

My god, need a new goalie and Jankowski got bumped playing with Neal....

These are peoples takes?