Flames 0 Islanders 4 - Tire Fire In Brooklyn

[TkachuckNotTkaczuk]

Hudler has been bad, super slow, slow reaction time etc. Time to split the line up, it is much to easy for the opposition to shut down a one line team. Don't know what I'd do but I would love to see a Bennett/Gaudreau combo, see what they can do. It might be just what Sam needs to gain his confidence.

 

[GAMO1992]

at this point I'd sit:

Hamilton
Money
Bennett

and play the backups.


this team needs reminding that you play for your job, it's never safe. we've lost that jump to us that we had going for us. guys were playing like their lives depended on it because it did last year. we've become too complacent.

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

I don't think teams have taken away our stretch pass at all. I think the loss of Brodie is extremely evident here because he is among the best in the league at the stretch pass. Giordano is still shaking off rust as hasn't been able to complete the stretch pass. Russell has just been terrible all around. I'd be fine with him being benched for a night TBH. Hamilton is still learning the system and the tendencies of our guys so he isn't effective with the stretch pass yet. I think Brodie coming back will make all the difference in the world for this aspect of our game.

Everyone is saying Brodie will make a difference. I agree he will, but I don't think adding him will lead to a complete turnaround if the players they are passing to can't score.

Right now the offense is Gaudreau.

 

[Lunatik]

Everyone is saying Brodie will make a difference. I agree he will, but I don't think adding him will lead to a complete turnaround if the players they are passing to can't score.

Right now the offense is Gaudreau.

I think it will be a significant difference because it will result in more scoring chances and with more scoring chances I think it will lead to a chain reaction. More chances will result in a few more goals, more goals will result in confidence offensively, which in itself will result in even more chances and even more goals. Once the team is more confident offensively they will stop gripping their sticks so tightly in the defensive zone and that will make things better for the goaltenders.

 

[tmurfin]

at this point I'd sit:

Hamilton
Money
Bennett

and play the backups.


this team needs reminding that you play for your job, it's never safe. we've lost that jump to us that we had going for us. guys were playing like their lives depended on it because it did last year. we've become too complacent.

Bennett?? He was one of our best forwards the past two games.


So can I panic now? This is quite the hole we're digging....

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Agree with you there. Was really hoping Bennett would take the mantle as our 2C this season but it's not looking likely, although it is still early.

I have trouble laying the blame at Hartley's feet this early. It's true that the stretch pass isn't 'working', but at the same time our D has just been atrocious on both sides of the rink save for Gio recently, which was a big part of not only the stretch pass, but getting the D up into the play.

I think to some extent we actually aren't playing the same kind of game we were last year. Listening to Hartley's comments last night about how losing guys like Bouma, Ferland is like losing a top player. I think that is somewhat true in Hartleys system. The system relies on making space not only with the stretch/outlet pass but with physicality in our own end to break up plays create turnovers. We have completely and utterly lacked that. I also feel like Hartley doesn't really have a ton of options, especially without Brodie, who was probably the guy for creating those amazing stretch passes, and jumping up into the play.

You are right though that Hartley does need to do something to adjust here, because the only other options are: the Flames players magically play up to their potential or, we see management make a move of some kind.

I agree about the physicality. When I was at the Flames game a couple of weeks ago I saw a play where Bennett was in on the forecheck and the puck was dumped in the opposition zone and Bennett just skated by the defender. I turned to my brother-in-law and said that Bennett needs to hit that guy, by doing so throughout the game it wears on the team and makes the opposition team prone to turnovers. The Flames are not playing a physical game at all right now.

Brodie will obviously help a lot in the stretch pass game, but I really feel that teams are cutting that off right now from us. We're playing a 5 on 5 possession game much more than a run-and-gun game like last year. Basically we are not utilizing our skill, and missing guys like Bouma and Ferland really hurt because no one is laying the body to create space like you said and Jooris is playing no where no near the level he was at last year.

 

[InfinityIggy]

Everyone is saying Brodie will make a difference. I agree he will, but I don't think adding him will lead to a complete turnaround if the players they are passing to can't score.

Right now the offense is Gaudreau.

It's such a ripple effect though.

Brodie makes Gio better.
Brodie puts Wideman back on the 2nd pairing where he should be.
Brodie is a scoring threat with whatever forwards are on the ice because of his passing ability.
Brodie is a nearly perfect fit for Hartley's system.

He won't single handedly turn the team around on his own of course, but I do think he will make a significant difference.

Who knows what the team might look like when he finally gets into a game though

 

[GAMO1992]

Bennett?? He was one of our best forwards the past two games.


So can I panic now? This is quite the hole we're digging....

yeah Bennett. a game off would do him good. just to let him see the game.
Hamilton has been average. and Money has been really off. all could use 1 game off to get their heads back in the game.

 

[Master Bill]

It's also very questionable on the coaching staff to have a set of the most mobile defensemen in the NHL stay stationary and play the stretch pass even when there's time and space to carry it. It's just stupid misuse of their skillset.

When you have terrific skaters like Hamilton, Gio, and Russell, you should have them use their skating abilities for ****'s sakes.

There's too many occasions where Ds can carry it themselves but a forced pass leads to icing & when they can simply pass it off to their D partner to have the forwards regroup for an extra bit to get ready for a stretch pass if needed be.

 

[Lunatik]

Bennett?? He was one of our best forwards the past two games.


So can I panic now? This is quite the hole we're digging....

I think Bennett's play gets extremely overrated. He is trying to do too much, he really isn't generating much for scoring chances and he doesn't use his linemates effectively.

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

I think it will be a significant difference because it will result in more scoring chances and with more scoring chances I think it will lead to a chain reaction. More chances will result in a few more goals, more goals will result in confidence offensively, which in itself will result in even more chances and even more goals. Once the team is more confident offensively they will stop gripping their sticks so tightly in the defensive zone and that will make things better for the goaltenders.

You make it sound easy. If it was that easy the current defenseman would attempt more stretch passes. Brodie is really good, but he can't fix the forward depth. Let's not get ahead of ourselves.

 

[Lunatik]

You make it sound easy. If it was that easy the current defenseman would attempt more stretch passes. Brodie is really good, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

I never said it would be easy and it's not just Brodie returning that will result in that. It's a combination of him returning, Gio shaking the rust off and Hamilton learning the tendencies of our players. It's not going to be like turning a light switch on.

 

[tmurfin]

I think Bennett's play gets extremely overrated. He is trying to do too much and he really isn't generating much for scoring chances. Frankly he seems to be a bit of a puck hog.

Bennett was the only one to do anything offensive in the way of chances tonight. He does do too much sometimes but he's gotten a fair share of chances the last two games. That's why he was put with Gaudreau in the 3rd, the only two doing anything.

 

[herashak]

bennett could use some gaudreau

 

[Lunatik]

Bennett was the only one to do anything offensive in the way of chances tonight. He does do too much sometimes but he's gotten a fair share of chances the last two games. That's why he was put with Gaudreau in the 3rd, the only two doing anything.

guys weren't put with Gaudreau because they were "doing something" they were put with Gaudreau because Hartley was throwing **** against the wall hoping something would stick.

 

[Tofveve]

Pretty much, if he had 4 - 5 points right now people wouldn't be saying a thing.

Yeah, literally for me I don't even think of him hardly because for a rookie it's not like he's supposed to be leading your team or anything. Let him play, get minutes in. The points will come.

 

[Tofveve]

As an aside, Monahan and Hudler both were off the charts amazing last year - particularly down the stretch and then for most of the first round. But from the 2nd round til now they've been noticeably off. I don't know what the hell this is. So bizarre.

 

[tyflames]

A lot of people are disappointed in how this season is going but in some sense this is going as it should. We were spoiled last year with a lot of players having career years and our dynamic duo in net. When the fact remains that while our D is underperforming a little bit, with the loss of Brodie and Hamilton taking time to fit in we stil have a lot of issues.
1. We don't have a number one goalie who performs consistently
2. Very little to no secondary scoring
3. Our breakout players (bouma, wideman with a crazy amount of points last season, hulder and monahan putting up awesome numbers last year, and hiller) are all back on earth where they are projected to be.

Hence our current struggles. It is surprising, cause the team hasn't been working as hard but maybe it really shouldn't be that surprising. That's the way I see it. It's still early however.

 

[Ace Rimmer]

Bennett was the only one to do anything offensive in the way of chances tonight. He does do too much sometimes but he's gotten a fair share of chances the last two games. That's why he was put with Gaudreau in the 3rd, the only two doing anything.

Agreed.

 

[Anglesmith]

Honestly, we've come out and played a flat-out bad game exactly twice this year in my opinion: first game Vancouver and the Edmonton debacle. The rest of the time it's been a matter of not finishing chances and making critical errors at bad times in the defensive zone. We've played some very good teams (the other five losses were St. Louis, Winnipeg, Washington, and the New York teams) to start the year here, and when you play good teams you need to a) finish and b) stay sharp in your own end.

I think Wednesday's game in Ottawa should be a good litmus test game. That's a mediocre team that's struggling right now. Very much like us. If we come out and get the doors blown off again, I think it's a very bad sign for the rest of the season. If we can eek out a win, that would be great. A statement game is what the team really needs, though.

 

[Lunatik]

i thought the Caps game was pretty terrible too

 

[Anglesmith]

i thought the Caps game was pretty terrible too

Well, it was a case of the team going into shock when the other team got a goal in the second. The Flames actually had a good first and a good third, but totally froze up in the second when things went against them.

Games like that (and others this season) are a matter of confidence, I think. First of all because, as we've been all along here, we grip our sticks and waste a lot of good chances, and that leaves us with very little margin for error when we have to try to win while scoring one goal each game. Secondly, when a goal goes in, the team seems to panic a bit, knowing just how difficult it will be to get it back.

 

[Volica]

It's been bad this year. Really bad. Things will turn around eventually; this team's too talented to be a bottom feeder.

On the flip side, if it's too late, may as well not turn it around. This team maybe has 10 more games to do a little turn around before they dig themselves too deep of a hole. May as well throw that hat into the Matthews sweepstakes if by game 20 we are just as bad. There's just not point if we're 5-15 at that point; the likelihood of playoffs would be so minimal... That it wouldn't be worth playing out of a good lotto pick %.

People need to relax with Dougie. He hasn't been great, but he's also 22 and in a new system. Suter, arguably a top 5 d at the time he moved to Minny was an absolute tire fire in his first 20+ games. Not worried at all, again, too much talent.

 

[Master Bill]

When will we ever not concede a goal in the 2nd?

 

[Anglesmith]

When will we ever not concede a goal in the 2nd?

Three days ago?