Lets talk about the Flames defense

[Oilers Propagandist]

You would think Oilers are some sort of contender with the way their fans are talking in this thread

How does proclaiming that the flames have 6 #1 defencemen have any correlation to the Oilers being contenders from what we type on here? Sound logic, bruv.

 

[VainGretzky]

Flames were never hyped to be stanley cup favorites like the Oilers. Now look where the Oilers are. Thats 10x more embarressing than saying Flames have a top 3 dcore. And VainGretzky u seem to have a very irrational hate for the Flames lol.
As for the thread the defense has played trash but its still not even halfway i expect them to pick it up

Look at the summer thread and the rational posts I made backed with facts why your defence was not top 3 and putting a bunch of offensive minded on a team does not make defence the best, I also explained how the defence were bad at the actual position ,


I was bombarded with goalies fault etc etc . Those posters that tried assuring me it was one of the top defences in the league and I did not know what the hell I was talking about are now crickets. So I ask again is it the defence or Mike Smith fault this time .

 

[flamesforcup]

Look at the summer thread and the rational posts I made backed with facts why your defence was not top 3 and putting a bunch of offensive minded on a team does not make defence the best, I also explained how the defence were bad at the actual position ,


I was bombarded with goalies fault etc etc . Those posters that tried assuring me it was one of the top defences in the league and I did not know what the hell I was talking about are now crickets. So I ask again is it the defence or Mike Smith fault this time .

Are u saying Flames did not have bad goaltending last 2 years? It was league worst but that does not mean our defense is top 3 or top 5 which is what i see u say in literally every single post about the Flames cause its the only thing u have. I find it hypocritical that when u visit the Oilers thread alot of them are blaming the season on goaltending yet when it happened to the Flames it was 100% the defenses fault.

 

[VainGretzky]

Well a mediocre team is usually a team that hovers around a playoff spot is it not? Maybe i should have used the term "bubble team" to be more accurate. And its only 27 games the years before Flames defense has blown the Oilers out of the water offensively

Cool beans maybe why Oilers have has less goals against 3 straight seasons and probably a 4th by the end of this one, Reason why Dman are paid to defend not put up points

 

[VainGretzky]

Are u saying Flames did not have bad goaltending last 2 years? It was league worst but that does not mean our defense is top 3 or top 5 which is what i see u say in literally every single post about the Flames cause its the only thing u have. I find it hypocritical that when u visit the Oilers thread alot of them are blaming the season on goaltending yet when it happened to the Flames it was 100% the defenses fault.

No Flames imo are a line team that cheats big time which also leads to a lot of breakaways and prime scoring chances for other teams. Year after year you guys magically make goals tenders look bad who had very good numbers on other teams . Coincidence or bad defensive team.

 

[Oilers Propagandist]

No Flames imo are a line team that cheats big time which also leads to a lot of breakaways and prime scoring chances for other teams. Year after year you guys magically make goals tenders look bad who had very good numbers on other teams . Coincidence or bad defensive team.

I would say their 2nd line is the best and most defensively responsible. Johnny™ could score 100 points but be defensively reliable for 105 against.

 

[FlamerForLife]

Overrated by the national media, local media and most level-headed fans were cautiously optimistic after the acquisition of Hamonic.

 

[Oilers Propagandist]

Overrated by the national media, local media and most level-headed fans were cautiously optimistic after the acquisition of Hamonic.

You believe that dribble?
OKG and Cp are an accurate representation of flames fans. They called him better than gio and Hamilton, all in the name of sticking it to the Oilers for paying a ransom for someone the Oilers knew wasn't worth it. Treliving pulled a chia x2 vs snow. Snow destroyed 'Berta but Calgary got wrecked by the Oilers for the faux interest, directly raising the price. Flames got hood taxed.

Famous quote from DJ Khaled:

- you played yourself

 

[Skobel24]

The thing is, most people who call their defense the best in the league do so seriously. Most people who say they suck are doing it half jokingly as a response to them being overrated.

The reality is, they do have a fairly good defensive core, but aside from Backlund, their forwards suck defensively and it makes everyone look worse as a result. Especially since their defense is built around offensive dmen.

They also don’t have 3 or 4 #1 dmen like Calgary fans usually think. They might not have 1 at this point even. They have 3 dmen in the #2-#3 range, a #4, and a #5. They also have an abundance of currently crap dmen to try on the bottom pairing with Stone.

And in regards to Smith, I’d say if anything, he’s propped them up at this point. He definitely hasn’t made them look worse.

There are only a select few who believe that. Outside of Giordano (who in my mind, is absolutely a #1 right now), I don't view any of them as a #1. Hamilton is a solid #2/3, Brodie (when he's on his game), is #2/3. Unfortunately, he's been a wreck lately. I don't think he's as good as he was with Gio, but I also don't think that he's as bad as he's been lately.

I had hoped Hamonic could be a solid #4 (and play a similar role to Regehr), but he's been a disappointment so far.

As for your evaluation on the defense from the forwards, I'd agree entirely. Outside of Backlund and Frolik, there's very little there. Brouwer is a decent penalty killer, but that's about it.

 

[FlamerForLife]

You believe that dribble?
OKG and Cp are an accurate representation of flames fans. They called him better than gio and Hamilton, all in the name of sticking it to the Oilers for paying a ransom for someone the Oilers knew wasn't worth it. Treliving pulled a chia x2 vs snow. Snow destroyed 'Berta but Calgary got wrecked by the Oilers for the faux interest, directly raising the price. Flames got hood taxed.

Famous quote from DJ Khaled:

- you played yourself

If you believe that those you mentioned are accurate representation of Flames fans, then you sir played yourself.

 

[Fig]

Oilers were hyped to be cup favorites due to the favorites and how week the west had been looking. Very few expected the Oilers to crash this far.

Calgarys defense was bad last year, blamed it on goaltending
Calgarys defense was bad the year before, blamed it on goaltending
Calgarys defense is bad this year and Smith is the only reason you guys have more wins than the Oilers.

Both are embarassing but Calgary has been making excuses for their defense for years.

Would your mind explode if BOTH opinions are true?

2 years ago, we had Hiller and Ramo. Both are no longer in the league
1 year ago, we had Elliott and Johnson. Both are not exactly lighting the league on fire this season.

2 years ago, we had the likes of Wideman, Smid, Engelland, Russell as our 4/5/6/7. Treliving could not do anything due to cap issues relating Wideman, Smid and Engelland making a combined 11.5 Mil.
1 year ago, we had the likes of Jokkipakka, Engelland, Kulak, TSpoon as our 4/5/6/7 and Treliving chased down Stone and Hamonic to upgrade it because it was not good enough.

Smith has been great and it's nice that the team can reasonably rely on him. We Flames fans know that there are issues with the D that need resolution. But to honestly look backwards and say that goal tending was not a part of the issue is silly.

The goal tending was problematic. The d system or corps also have an issue. Both opinions can be right at the same time.

As a Flames fan, this season's D is atrocious. They don't even look like what they did last season. Like I mentioned, we're on at least the 3rd Gulutzan system in 1.5 seasons on top of the transition of Hartley's lunch pail barely system. I hope that somehow a combination of dmen chemistry, systems improvement etc. can resolve whatever this mess is of a system.

Luckily, there's definitely enough evidence to show that the team has not fully internalized the system, Gully will change the system if needed, and we're still above .500. It's infuriating, but I honestly believe the roster deserves time to develop together and learn the new system together.

 

[Hank Plank]

You would think Oilers are some sort of contender with the way their fans are talking in this thread

Oilers certainly are. Contenders to pick 1st overall.

 

[2023FriendshipTour]

Oilers certainly are. Contenders to pick 1st overall.

The cup parade was planned for Whyte last summer, but another first overall will have to do... Really just a disgraceful franchise.

 

[Lunatik]

You believe that dribble?

it's drivel, not dribble. Unless he was doing something amazing with a basketball that I could not see.

 

[canuckster19]

it's drivel, not dribble. Unless he was doing something amazing with a basketball that I could not see.

He very well could have been drooling as he was typing that, then it would kind of make sense.

 

[Oilers Propagandist]

it's drivel, not dribble. Unless he was doing something amazing with a basketball that I could not see.

iPhone does weird things.

 

[Juxtaposer]

Giordano and Hamilton are great. The problem is that Hamonic and the bottom pairing are god-awful and Hamonic is dragging down Brodie.

 

[Tofveve]

Gio is the only rock star D man we have. Hamilton is pretty good too. Everyone else is kind of suck. Except Brodie if you have some top end talent in a trade for him then he's a Norris candidate.

 

[Lunatik]

Giordano and Hamilton are great. The problem is that Hamonic and the bottom pairing are god-awful and Hamonic is dragging down Brodie.

This might have some merit if it was remotely true. It's actually Brodie that has been god-awful and dragging Hamonic down, we're not sure what his deal is but he seems to be making a ton of stupid mistakes this year. As for the 3rd pairing being god awful, I beg to differ; Stone has been solid and Kulak is steadily improving and has looked good with sheltered minutes.

 

[DJJones]

Ya not sure why people are ripping on the 3rd pairing. Best 3rd pairing we've had in forever haha

 

[CodeE]

You believe that dribble?
OKG and Cp are an accurate representation of flames fans. They called him better than gio and Hamilton, all in the name of sticking it to the Oilers for paying a ransom for someone the Oilers knew wasn't worth it. Treliving pulled a chia x2 vs snow. Snow destroyed 'Berta but Calgary got wrecked by the Oilers for the faux interest, directly raising the price. Flames got hood taxed.

Famous quote from DJ Khaled:

- you played yourself

The "we always knew acquiring Hamonic wasn't worth it" narrative from an Oiler fan is hysterical.

Back to fighting amongst the fanbases, I'm off to the trade rumors forum to turn down a "CGY 1st for Jimmy Howard" offer.

 

[Tkachuky]

Oh yeah? Lmao
Brodie > Nurse this season seems like extremely high praise for the aforementioned Brodie.
"Battle" of Alberta: Flames vs Oilers - 8 PM MT

Yeah Brodie > Nurse is correct. your agenda against the flames is admirable. You go around and like every post in the Flames GDT. Talk about having too much time on your hands.

 

[Flamesfan62]

Every summer it's the same thing top 3 D in the league and almost every year they finish near the bottom in GA their defense allowed 4 breakaway's against the Oilers Saturday night they are bottom 10 again in GA this season . Is it overrated big time every summer or is it Mike Smith fault ?

They should fire GG.

 

[InfinityIggy]

The "we always knew acquiring Hamonic wasn't worth it" narrative from an Oiler fan is hysterical.

Back to fighting amongst the fanbases, I'm off to the trade rumors forum to turn down a "CGY 1st for Jimmy Howard" offer.

The attempt to equivocate Chia ending up with less than nothing (Reinhart) to what Calgary payed for Hamonic makes my sides hurt.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

it's hard to quantify defense.

forwards have a pretty big impact on team defensive stats like shot suppression, scoring chance suppression and goalies have a big influence on goals against statistics. then you have to take into account how the defense help drive offense.

the Flames are a little worse than league average in Expected Goals Against/60, Corsi Against/60, and Shots Against/60 but they are the 3rd best Shot Generation team who play at a very high pace.