What are we gonna do about this team?

[apollo18]

what do u guys think of maybe having mangiapane move down to the 3rd line in the future.
tbh i dont care what advanced stats say but hes a 3rd liner lets be real

 

[Ace Rimmer]

what do u guys think of maybe having mangiapane move down to the 3rd line in the future.
tbh i dont care what advanced stats say but hes a 3rd liner lets be real

And he's replaced by whom?

 

[Anglesmith]

what do u guys think of maybe having mangiapane move down to the 3rd line in the future.
tbh i dont care what advanced stats say but hes a 3rd liner lets be real

It would be even better if we moved him down to the fourth line. That would mean we have nine wingers better than him.

 

[Mazatt]

And he's replaced by whom?

Probably by Dube, since his skill set is built more for the top 6, that's my only thought. No one else is really deserving of top 6, and even then, Dube should make the move to centre soon instead of climbing up the lineup as a winger.

 

[Basko34]

My mind is spinning how to move forward with the Flames. Just started to brainstorm and thrown it in bucket. Some are depth players some are key players.

with some we could potential deal a package.

Center
Eichel, Buffalo
Barkov, Florida
Point, Tampa
Hertl, San José
Cirelli, Tampa
Domi, Montreal
Danault, Montreal
Dickinson, Dallas
Johnson, Tampa
N.Thompson, Philadelphia, FA
Lias Andersson, NYR
Talvitie, NJ
Rasmussen, Detroit
Veleno, Detroit

Left Winger
Hall, Arizona, FA
Kempe, LA
Laughton, Philadelphia
DeBrusk, Boston
Greenway, Minnesota

Right Winger
Marner, Toronto
Nylander, Toronto
Kapanen, Toronto
Anderson, Columbus
Gallagher, Montreal
Palmieri, NJ
Konecny, Philadelphia
Armia, Montreal
Puljujärvi, Edmonton
Hartman, Minnesota
Labanc, San José

LHD
Sanheim, Philadelphia
Nemeth, Detroit
Stillman, Florida
Nutivaara, Columbus
Butcher, NJ

RHD
Montour, Buffalo
Barrie, Toronto, FA
Gudas, Washington
Myers, Philadelphia
Nils Lundkvist, NYR
Schultz, Pittsburgh, FA
Carlo, Boston
Ristolainen, Buffalo
Dumba, Minnesota
Petry, Montreal
Timmins, Colorado
Holzer, Nashville, FA
Sean Walker, LA
Jokiharju, Buffalo
Vatanen, Carolina, FA

Goalie
Georgiev, NYR
Luukonen, Buffalo
Kahkonen, Minnesota
Korpisalo, Columbus

 

[Fig]

I think coaching is hugely underrated. In 2015, a roster worse than the 2020 Ottawa senators made it to the second round.

I would love if we look into gambling on one of BB, GG and Lavi, but unsure of what ownership would do. I don't know if Ken king passing away changes anything, but I would hope they open their pocket book and get us a gamer coach. We have talent and a balanced roster that destroys the 2015 Flames several times over. Maybe we make a few lateral moves of LW to get some RW, but IMO, I'd ride this core again and insulate it further.

Even if this sounds weird, IMO, the Flames are currently fulled with enough talent to compete with some of the prior years Stanley cup finals losers. IMO it's a roster filled with enough talent I that it should be able to make it to the finals as an underdog. But we can't even make it to the conference finals. IMO, coaching should help bring out the best in our players.

I disagree with comments about Ward. Ward is above average as a coach IMO. He's literally a rookie coach doing decently well in a bad situation. He's unlocked Bennet, Lucic, Dube and a few other guys, but like other coaches haven't figured out how to unlock JG and Mony.

But BB, GG and Lavi are top end coaches that are available right now. You have to look into them IMO.

BT has done a really good job in spite of ownership meddling. Most of his moves always seem logical even if they don't always pan out. I feel he is underrated above average, but not top tier. I feel his career might be akin to Poile's if the Preds can't figure out how to get the cup (and same as BT). Seriously, he's not allowed to salary retain. How do you succeed if you as a GM aren't allowed all your tools? He fought for autonomy in his last extension! He's successfully fought to do buyouts in his current tenure. Even Benning as a mostly sock puppet isn't operating under such restrictions. BT is a very good GM in an underrated bad circumstance/situation.

 

[Body Checker]

I’m not happy with a lot but if we go with the narrative of keeping this team together then instead of Hall why not target Toffoli? Imagine him and Tkachuk in the lineup for game 6.

Resign Talbot, resign Brodie, sign Toffoli, trade for Colin Miller as a RHD to go with Kylington on the 3rd pairing.....realistic moves......does that move the chains down the field enough to contend with Vegas, Colorado and St Louis?

 

[DomBarr]

what do u guys think of maybe having mangiapane move down to the 3rd line in the future.
tbh i dont care what advanced stats say but hes a 3rd liner lets be real

if they do it its to shake things up even though the "3rd" line doesn't need it putting Dube, Bennett, and Mangiapane on a line would be awesome to see

 

[Fig]

I would consider trading mango for an equivalent RW and getting another really good middle 6 c to move Ryan to swing RW. We also can do a quantities for quality move in this same vein as well.

This also allows us to move Lindholm to C for some pretty intimidating centre talent up and down the lineup.

Hall* - Backlund -Tkachuk
JG - Mony - Ryan
Dube/Backlund/Bennett
Lucic - 4C-?

Hmm... This is a mess. May need a quality for quantity trade to fix.

 

[viper0220]

Right now(this season, this messed up year that the world is in such turmoil, this year that everyone wants to end, this f***ed up year, yes this year) the Flames have a golden opportunity to take a step forward.

The best thing for this team is to trade Gaudreau(Johnny's mind, soul is in the East, by his hometown.)

Johnny is a very good player, he needs a very good center that can open things up for him and unfortunately we don't have that center and it is very very very very hard to get those types of centers(Johnny with Eichel would torch this league).

Trade Johnny East to one of New Jersey Devils, The Buffalo Sabres or the Philadelphia Flyers. We can get good young players/high draft picks from these teams. The Devils and the Sabres are under pressure to get into the playoffs, so they might pull the trigger on a big deal with the Flames.

Don't trade Gaudreau alone, trade him in a package(in a good package), he will be worth more.

Go hard after Taylor Hall, it is not often that players of Taylor Hall's caliber make it to UFA, so go hard after him, he has his warts but so does every player. We have been signing crap second or third tier UFA's.

Hire one of the better coaches available, I love Ward but we can see that he is not the answer here. One of Peter Laviolette or Gerard Gallant would do wonders for this team.

If major changes are not made(good major changes), than in 2-3 years, we will be in a situation, where we will be on the verge of rebuilding.

 

[Mobiandi]

Moving forward we can build around the team's best playoff performer

 

[Anglesmith]

Moving forward we can build around the team's best playoff performer

I like how he waits into Bennett passes Monahan by one before making the tweet.

No question that Bennett has been the more effective centre in the playoffs, though.

 

[User1996]

Yes, let’s build around a player who has yet to show the ability needed to get a team into the playoffs.

 

[Gargyn]

My outsider view is to take one step back so you can move forward deeper than you would if you keep the status quo.

Move Monahan to the Rangers as they are desperate for another centre to go with Zibanejad. Hanifin and Monahan for DeAngelo, Kravtsov and Georgiev. Gaudreau to Buffalo for Miller, 8th overall and Tage Thompson. Giordano for Nylander. Draft Holtz. Sign Hall. Re-sign Brodie

Hall Lindholm Tkachuk
Dube Bennett Nylander
Mangiapane Backlund Holtz
Pelletier Ryan Kravtsov
Thompson and Lucic

Brodie DeAngelo
Valimaki Andersson
Kylington Miller

Georgiev Rittich

 

[Iggys Dome]

I honestly wouldn’t mind bottoming out for a year or two and draft a high end stud. That’s probably exactly what this team needs, rather than middling in the regular season and treating a playoff series win like a Stanley cup.

In all honesty maybe we need a 06-07 Flyers or 16-17 Avalanche season level of bad to “reset” the core and get a high draft pick. Shane Wright is a 2022 pick I think who looks pretty good, not sure about 2021 but you get my point.

 

[Body Checker]

GM - Ron Hextall
Coach - Gerard Gallant

 

[herashak]

Could sign hamonic for something in the 3s, Brodie in low 5s, Gio and Backlund gone pretty soon (maybe a couple years for backs). Package Monahan/gaudreau and Hanifin for a Goalie and youth/picks. Dube, Pelletier and Philips could all be solid but next season might be a time to add picks and draft near top 5 (lots of good dmen?)

 

[super6646]

Lets be honest, I don't think any Flames fan expects this team to win game 6. They've been horrible in elimination games the last half decade and I don't expect things to change. In saying that, what the hell are we going to do after that?

Now I have to admit my assessment of Giordano is rough in GDTs, and admittedly it isn't his fault that his decline has been sharp, but his days as a franchise dman are OVER! You can argue he wasn't that in the regular season, but he was still a solid #1d at least, but no longer. Add to the fact Brodie will likely be walking for nothing and our defense looks very bad next year. Andersson might top out as a solid #2d, but I can't see him ever having the offensive impact that Giordano had in his prime. Noah Hanifin honestly doesn't look like anything more than a meh #4, and I doubt there many gms in the league that will bite on his upside like the Flames did. So we gonna pray that Valimaki magically becomes a #1d next year? Yikes!

Forward group might have some hope with Mangi and Dube growing, but I think the time has come to move Gaudreau (and maybe even Monahan). The duo has been awful for almost 2 years now, and the fact of the matter is there are too many flaws in each their game's to be the main offensive driver of a team. Cut Gaudreau off and take away space, and he simply can't make effective plays. Monahan can't be relied on as an effective puck carrier or defensive player, so how tf can he be considered a #1C? I've always been a fan of Gaudreau, but he ain't gonna get it done here (give him a solid #1C though and I think he makes people eat crow). Add to the fact Backlund is near the end of his prime, along with absolutely 0 blue chip centre prospects, and the forward group is going to be in a lot of trouble real soon (also looks like an almost certainty Gaudreau will walk in 2 years as well).

Talbot has been solid in the playoffs, but how are the Flames are gonna afford to keep him if they wanna improve the roster (and can he be trusted to be the #1G)? Rittich has lost the net twice in the playoffs, what's his future looking like?

Geoff Ward looks.... eh? Idk the team got caved against Colorado last year so you do have to question personnel, but I don't think he's the guy either.

The team rn is missing a #1C, a #1D, and a #1G. They also likely lose their #2D to free agency, and our #1W is likely all but gone in a couple years. My take, this team is primed for a retool and a top 10 pick or two. Either that or we could push the can down the road and probably implode just as our new arena is in place. Miracles can happen, but I don't think this core will EVER be a cup contender. Oh well, not like things will ever change.

Nothin changes

 

[DCDM]

Nothin changes

Made the mistake of getting excited when it was 3-0.

Oh how the turn tables

 

[crazyfisherman]

Resign talbot brodieand see how u can sign hall. Honestly if it were up to me, i would trade Gio. If we are gonna get lit up regardless, may as well give the young guys a chance

 

[Amadeus]

My outsider view is to take one step back so you can move forward deeper than you would if you keep the status quo.

Move Monahan to the Rangers as they are desperate for another centre to go with Zibanejad. Hanifin and Monahan for DeAngelo, Kravtsov and Georgiev. Gaudreau to Buffalo for Miller, 8th overall and Tage Thompson. Giordano for Nylander. Draft Holtz. Sign Hall. Re-sign Brodie

Hall Lindholm Tkachuk
Dube Bennett Nylander
Mangiapane Backlund Holtz
Pelletier Ryan Kravtsov
Thompson and Lucic

Brodie DeAngelo
Valimaki Andersson
Kylington Miller

Georgiev Rittich

We're not trading Nylander for an aging Giordano.

I cheer for Flames when the Leafs aren't in it as I've got tons of family in Calgary. I honestly think Goaltending is the issue here.

Get Lehner in the offseason. If not Lehner, target Korpisalo.

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

It's time to build this team properly.

What do we have, that can be built around?

Two excellent centers in Sam Bennett and Mikael Backlund
Five solid wingers in Matthew Tkachuk, Johnny Gaudreau, Elias Lindholm, Andrew Mangiapane, and Dillon Dube
One prime-aged star defenseman in TJ Brodie(pending a re-sign)
Three solid young defensive pieces in Rasmus Andersson, Oliver Kylington, and Juuso Valimaki

What do we also have, that is expendable?

One top 4 defenseman in Noah Hanifin
One top six forward in Sean Monahan

What do we need?
For starters, we need one right handed shot defenseman. Andersson can't be the only one in your top six group, that's ridiculous! The player I want to go after is Timothy Liljegren.

Additionally, we need right handed shot forwards. Lindholm can't be your only one in the top nine. that's inexcusable. They also need to be guys who can score from the perimeter, because our whole roster is too built around in-tight scoring to where teams that pack it in completely neutralize us. Look at the goals Gurianov scored for Dallas, we have no one that can do that. Bennett is the only one who even tried, but he's a left handed shot, and we need a right handed shot sniper. The dream is Jack Eichel, but I'm a realist, we'll never get a star like that. There are still really good RHS snipers out there.

Finally, we need an experienced coach. Not someone learning on the fly, but someone who's been through the battles, made mistakes already and learned from them. I respect that Ward put Bennett in a position to succeed. I respect that he got the team prepared for game 6. But I don't really think he's the guy for the job. This team needs someone who will have no leniency with lazy effort. Someone who'll bag skate them when they don't show up. That's what they need. Who that guy is, I don't know, but there are definitely some experienced coaches on the market.

 

[Mazatt]

I think we have to look at the young base we already have and realistically ask if what we have can win in the future.

Our controllable forwards are:

Tkachuk, Dube, Mangiapane, Bennett, Lindholm, Backlund, Lucic, Jankowski. Then there's Ruzicka, Pelletier, Pettersen, Zavgorodniy, Pospisil, Phillips, Gawdin. Then there's other prospects like Feuk, Nodler, and Nikolaeyev that are really unknown. Nothing really stands out as great here. Bennett - Dube - Mangiapane would be a cool 2nd line. But that doesn't feel great for the leaders of the future. Tkachuk is the clear piece to build around.

Defensively:
Giordano, Hanifin, Andersson. Those are the active players signed beyond this season. Prospect wise, I'll say Kylington and Valimaki are prospects because Mackey is the only other pieces there. We have pieces that can make a good top 4 but we need development and growth from them. Especially with Giordano regressing hard.

Tendie wise:
Rittich is signed for a year and that's it, Talbot is hit or miss on being re-signed imo. That leaves Zagidulin as the next best thing as a potential back up with Gillies and Parsons are falling out of favour. Wolf is the future, probably need to find a stop gap until we know if he's "it" or not.



Dealing for any player is difficult when you have middle six and #2-4 talent offensively and on the backend, since our young pieces getting traded makes the holes elsewhere more glaring. The big idea, in my opinion, sign free agent stop backs ala Gudas, Boyle, etc. that could assist in winning this season and potentially be traded if we aren't competing. Insulate the youth and go for one last run this year. Draft well and things look good for the future--especially re-stocking the D-core. I don't think big trades make sense, rather focus on having players graduate from the youth and supplement Gaudreau/Monahan that way before deciding if they're worth keeping around. Really, one last year before blowing it up is the idea here.

 

[Bounces R Way]

Hire a coach that knows what they're doing. Probably some other stuff too.

 

[TheButcher90]

Priority #1 : Get a premium coach (lots available this year fortunatly)