Conroy, Criticism, and the Perils of Armchair Management

Who doesn’t like to think that they’re smarter than a GM? Tell me I am wrong, please. As a blogger, the biggest complaints I hear are about the lack of trades.

The second biggest complaint I hear is the lack of intensity from players who seem to be just going through the motions. I admit that players do, at times, look disinterested. To be fair to the players, at times, they do not fit the system but can become stars in other systems. One example of this is Martin St. Louis.

Martin St. Louis

Playing for the Calgary Flames in 1998, St. Louis fell quickly to the fourth line. He appeared in only 13 games in Calgary during the 1998 season, spending most of the season in Saint John.

On July 31, 2000, Martin signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning, and things began to change. In the 2004 playoffs, he led the Lightning to the Stanley Cup, coming back to haunt his old Flames teammates in a seven-game thriller series, and won the Hart Memorial Trophy (Most Valuable Player). His best year was a 102-point season in 2006-2007 with 43 goals and 59 assists. He remained a star for years to come.

The General Manager’s Tenuous Existence

Marty is a prime example of how a player fits one team but not another. But does that mean that one general manager is better than the other? Sometimes a team hits pure gold. Every general manager hopes he hits pure gold, but first he has to sift through the fool’s gold. He could be fired at any time if he makes the wrong judgment call. You still want his job?

Next time you want to shoot Conroy, remember the pressure he is under. And watch out, you might just get what you wish for.

There have been times when I have not liked the decisions that Conroy has made. But I do not doubt his heart, so, as a faithful armchair general manager, I will not be pushing him out quite yet. Give me a couple of weeks. Yes, I am being facetious, but we are all finicky fans. We would all fire and hire him at least 20 times. 

Randy

The Math the Flames Still Haven’t Learned

There is a simple math test I wish the Calgary Flames would learn: a hockey game is 60 minutes long. Playing 1/3 of a hockey game does not give you two points. My math is pretty good. Twenty minutes is 1/3 of 60. I am being sarcastic, but my point is the Flames have to play a full 60 minutes to win a game. That one-third was fun to watch, but it isn’t enough of an effort.

If you were the coaching staff of the Flames, would you concentrate on the period they played like a team, or would you chew them out for the two periods they played like a bunch of individuals? I would spend 2/3 of the time on the individual players and 1/3 on what they did right as a team.   

Dustin Wolf

Wolf has won his last three starts, although he could have done better against the Buffalo Sabres. Has the old Wolf returned? He can be the standup goalie; he is one of the elite. My fingers are crossed that the Flames could still have a bright future in net. Nice to see signs of the good Wolf back again.

Yegor Sharangovich

Yegor is beginning to play better; maybe he is upping his trade value. Seriously, though, he seems to be more relaxed. Hopefully, he will continue to progress. He has a lot of talent, but at times he looks disinterested.  

MacKenzie Weeger

It is nice to see MacKenzie get his shot back. He has struggled this season. I wonder if it is as simple as MacKenzie putting too much pressure on himself. I think if he just plays instead of overthinking, we will see the old MacKenzie Weeger.

Final word

If I am reading these veterans right, I come to one conclusion. They are working toward the playoffs. I’m not saying they’ll make the playoffs, though. These vets have to show the younger players what it takes to play a full 60 minutes. It comes down to simple math. Although we have seen some signs of improvement, there is still more to do. It may be cliché, but hockey is a game of 60 minutes. 

It’s Time to Talk Turkey — Do the Isles Go All In?

The Isles are at a crossroads this season; they have to make a decision about the direction of this team. In the last blog, I wrote about a replacement for Romanov. Do I dare say the loss of Kyle Palmieri is worse? Where is the offense coming from? If they’re serious about making the playoffs, the Isles need to address the issue.

Unless another forward steps up to help Bo Horvat, the offensive production will be a problem. The Isles’ forwards are going to have to pick it up. I am looking at you, Jonathan Drouin, with three goals this season. He needs to improve. Anders Lee, with five goals, will have to pick up his game, too. The one player who has played well is the unsung hero, Emil Heinemann. He is the only other player in double digits.

The next quandary is what to do with Matt Barzal. Do the Islanders separate the two to add scoring depth? Could Barzal survive on his own? I think he has to for the Islanders’ success. Last but not least, the Isles need the bottom list to pinch in. The scoring as a committee will be full force.

The best solution is the trade route. Can the Isles find a suitable partner who is willing to talk turkey? Pardon the pun, can the Isles find the right dressing to bring the team to the table? It all comes down to whether the New York Islanders want to go all in or play it cool and try to pull off a hockey trade.

Final Word

There is one player I would put high on my list if I were the New York Islanders. Let’s qualify this before I go ahead—I am in no way suggesting that the New York Islanders are talking to the Calgary Flames. This is only a suggestion, not inside info. That being said, the play I would highly recommend is the New York Islanders, with Blake Coleman from the Calgary Flames.

Do you think the Islanders are a playoff team? It’s material at this moment because the fact is, they are within shouting distance of making the playoffs. Like it or not, those are the facts. Whether you feel they are a playoff team or not doesn’t change their position. The New York Islanders will have a choice to make by the deadline. Do they go for it, or will they sell and get ready for the draft next year? That is anyone’s guess. I would look into replacing the injured players and take it from there.

Randy 

From Rage to Resilience: A Fan's Survival Guide

As we go into a five-year rebuild or retool (or whatever you want to call it.) Keep in mind, there are some bright sides—we just can’t find them. In all seriousness, there are some. Here are some personal attributes you will develop by following this losing team.

Patience is a virtue

You are learning an important trait that will help you become a better person. You will know that not everyone will agree with you, and that your way is not always the best way to go. You will learn that it will take time to become where you want to be. You will learn that it will take many losses to win once.  

You will expand your vocabulary

You will learn many words to express yourself. There are many excellent expletives in the English language. You do not have to keep repeating the same words to make people happy; they already know exactly how you feel.

Your voice will reach higher notes

You will be able to become a music teacher. You will teach people to reach down to levels in their lower gut that they have never reached before. You will learn this by screaming at your TV, getting louder and louder, as the team goes through puberty.

You can spot when people suck miles away

We can be a talent agent, sifting through the bad to find the good. That is because we have seen so much bad talent on TV over the years. The only problem is knowing good talent when we see it.

Breaking TVs is expensive

You will learn frugality. Yes, after you break the 20th TV, your spouse will definitely give you a deterrent. You will learn the value of money or learn to like hospital food. Of course, broken bones kind of suck, too.

You will learn that talking to yourself is not normal

When you scream at the players while watching TV, you expect them to improve their play, but they will not respond to you. This behavior is of growing concern to your friends and family. You mustn’t do this in public, or people in straightjackets will come knocking at your door.

Final word

Yes, you too can be truly happy with millions of hours of therapy. Maybe you can learn that you do have to fall many times before learning to walk. And yes, you too can ask for directions.

Randy 

Why Owners Choose Retools Over Rebuilds (And What It Means for the Flames)

I do not understand the dislike of Don Maloney. In the real world, most people are subject to their employers. If we do not do what the boss tells us, we are fired.

We may not like Don’s refusal to let the Calgary Flames do a full rebuild, but teams no longer do total rebuilds. The magic word is retool. Owners do not want to go into five-year rebuilds. What they see as a five-year rebuild is five years with no money. The owners are into this money-making thing.

The way they make money is to win; you don’t win much during a rebuild.

Although I do not like what I’m hearing, I completely understand where the Calgary Flames owners are coming from. Their business is to build a winning team as quickly as possible.  

Okay, let’s move on.

Dustin Wolf

In no way am I saying it is completely Dustin’s fault that the team is struggling this season. The defence in front of him has been faulty. Yes, he has struggled and not been quite himself, but the Calgary defence in front of him has not helped. I am forecasting that Dustin won’t get as many starts this year as he did last. The Calgary Flames will have to be patient with him until he can work this out. The defence has to improve—giving up two, three, or four goals every game does not cut it.

Devin Cooley

Devin is quite the story this season! Devin has been absolutely outstanding in every category. He has not had a bad start this season. I’m really looking forward to seeing how the Calgary Flames use him for the rest of the year. Good on you, Devin. What I love about him is that he is positionally sound, follows the puck, and has terrific vision.

Defence

Let’s talk about the defense a little bit. Yes, they have struggled this year.

MacKenzie Weegar

MacKenzie this year is not the same as the MacKenzie of the past. He has struggled to say the least. Whether it is because of Huska or MacKenzie, he has struggled with the Calgary Flames’ system this year. I’m beginning to wonder if MacKenzie isn’t completely healthy, or maybe he is second-guessing whether he wants to be here. Hopefully, he’ll work it out this year.

Yan Kuznetsov

Yan has been the biggest surprise this season. He has done everything that he has been asked for as a third-pairing defenseman. I love his maturity, and he hasn’t panicked much this season. He may be nothing flashy, but he doesn’t have to be. What I like most about him is that he’s defensively responsible and plays with a chip on his shoulder. He has been the perfect fit for the Calgary Flames.

Final Word

I may be shot for this, but I’m one of the few people who would love to see Rasmus Andersson resign. Of course, that is not going to happen. He’s going to be traded sooner or later. The good news is that he has upped his trade value this season. The bad news is that it may be nearly the deadline before that deal happens. The Calgary Flames have not received any offers that come close to what they want for him.

The news that interests me the most is the amount of interest in Blake Coleman. I am watching to see whether the Calgary Flames keep or trade him. Blake is a very useful player and could get a pretty good package.

Kadri sounds like he’s staying, but things could change by the end of the year.

From Bench Depth to Trade Buzz — Kadri Talk Heats Up Amid Canadiens Injuries

With the Montréal Canadiens’ injuries piling up, I suspect they will inquire about the services of Kadri from the Calgary Flames. As of this writing, Kadri has not yet been made available on the market. Now, as you know, things could change overnight. Trust me, with the Calgary Flames, things can change on a thin dime. It’s happened before.

The Calgary Flames have shown improvement in the last two games. They totally shut down the San Jose Sharks, and it might have been one of the easiest shutouts Wolf has ever had. I would go so far as to say it might have been the team’s most complete game of the year. The key point of the game was that the forwards came down to help the defence, and everybody worked as a unit to succeed. Offensively, they still cannot score, but at least defensively, they covered up and never allowed the Sharks to do much.

In the Winnipeg Jets game, the Flames were not very good defensively. They went back to silly mistakes, mental breakdowns, and then leaving Dustin Wolf to the dogs. (See what I did there?) The positive side is that each time the Winnipeg Jets took a lead, the Calgary Flames fought back to tie the game. That is a huge improvement compared to previous games, when they just gave up and went through the motions. In this game, the Calgary Flames never gave up. This is all positive, offering the coach and staff areas for improvement.

Yan Kuznetsov

Yan has really fit in nicely. He has done everything he has been asked to do. Dare I suggest the Calgary Flames have finally found a third-pairing defenceman who can actually play defence?

Emil Heineman

I got a call from my source asking me if I remembered who the throw-in piece was in the Sam Bennett trade. It seems like we’ve heard his name before. Yeah, I’m being facetious. Emil Heineman has been blowing up the Islanders with nine goals and six assists in 21 games. Calgary basically let him go for nothing in the Tyler Toffoli trade. This goes to show how important the scouts are to the organization. You never know when a prospect might change from a piece of coal to a diamond. Emil has scored more goals than most Calgary Flames have had all season. Imagine if we had his offensive prowess on this team.

Randy