Flames/Blues Post-Game: The Great Depression

They’ll likely get everyone, including Franzen, back no later than right after the Olympics. They’re also shooting 7% 5 v 5. That’s unlucky. The Flames 5 v 5 SH% is still middle of the pack, but that’s basically an artifact from shooting 15% the first few weeks.

There was a couple of bad bounces on that one.

It’s going to be absolutely fascinating to see what Sutter does at the deadline this year. Last season, he acquired a piece the Flames arguably didn’t need – not only just because Jokinen is more hype than player, but because the team was scoring anyways. Of course, I’m sure it was more about grabbing a guy he’d coveted for years than anything else, but another quality defender (on top of Leo) and another legit goalie would have been nice.

This year, his team isn’t as injured, but has glaring needs up front. To the degree that it’s doubtful a single trade will right the ship. He also has no real trade assets outside of defenders people may not want (at least, not until the off-season). His options are limited but both the results and optics demand he do something.

He makes 50k a year more than Sjostrom, and I suspect he’s a cut or two above Freddan. Worst case, he’s the same. Best case, you get lucky the way the Flames did with Juice when Florida gave up on him. It’s like anything else, though. What will Detroit want, and will they do a deal with a team that they’re battling with for a playoff spot?

No Maimster, no!! Don’t go to the Dark side!

:-)

You raise a good point about Kipper holding things together but imo that surprise (and it was a surprise) was counterbalanced by the complete disappointment of the forward corps (also a surprise, to me anyway). Last season this team was very good at driving possession, and I still hold that the loss of Cammalleri is not the answer.

I remember last season that Iggy played a lot with Cammalleri but Keenan also tried him with Bertuzzi and we know that’s just a bad idea off the bat. And I’m the first to condemn Keenan for giving Bertuzzi more than fourth-line ice time but to his credit he gave the big guy zero responsibilities and kept him from truly harming the team for much of the season.

And I don’t remember the most frequent lines used but I do know Iggy played sheltered ice time with players suited for it (Camm for instance) and just judging by my hazy recollection of how the centre depth chart shook out (Lombardi was frequently a second-line feature, for instance), he played significant ice time with Lanks as well. Which just makes perfect fucking sense, no? Play your best winger with your best centre, surely good things might come of it.

All that is to say a few things:
1.) MattF is prescient, he wanted to keep Keenan and get Smyth, so he foresaw both that B. Sutter would fuck with the roster and that the Flames needed another forward difference maker while I thought beat-them-line-by-line would work again no matter how the lines shook out.
2.) This team still has the capability to put together a terrific PVP line and last year’s so called “third line” could probably play secondary opposition to a draw. The problem is now forward depth will be an issue in the playoffs and plus it makes good sense both now and into the next two years.
3.) Capability and action are different things. If Brent Sutter doesn’t see the light regarding his forwards then I think he needs to be canned, no matter the PR consequences.

And finally:
4.) We’re basically talking about a seven game stretch where they dominated for two games, played well enough to win in one (or two) of them, kinda limped in one, and really stunk it up in two games. So the underliers of this losing streak aren’t as bad as they seem, and the odds of the next seven games going as badly in the win column are infinitesimally low. And the odds of the next seven after that, still infintesimaly low. And so on.

I make no predictions about playoffs because right now they’re on the bubble and luck is huge and I don’t have the intestinal fortitude for gambling with the kind of razor thin edges you get in hockey. But it’s entirely within the range of reasonable expectations that they make it comfortably, and less in the range of reasonable expectations that they miss. You know what I mean?

And I hope I don’t come across as a Flames apologist but I think you know I don’t. You and I probably both remember the NYR game where I put up that poll asking whether the Flames played well (having won), and I think you and I were the only ones who said “no”.