Flames vs. Islanders Game Thread
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 1:54 PM PDT
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PrintCalgary Flames at New York Islanders, Mar 25, 2010 4:00 PM PDT
This game is one where the Flames aren't playing the best forwards around, so I suspect that if Niklas Hagman, Matt Stajan and Jarome Iginla don't sleep-walk through the affair, it should be one that they can control. Hagman was top-notch against the Ducks Tuesday evening, bossing matters in a fashion that we haven't seen since his arrival in Calgary. The coach chose to shift that line away from the Getzlaf line in order to spark some offense, and it certainly worked for the Finn.
That choice by Butter left Bourque, Conroy and Kotalik against the toughs, and they survived despite some less-than-stellar Corsi figures. Ales Kotalik isn't my choice for the role he's in, but ever he was going to get some traction, a game like this one might be his spot, because there's no line on the Islanders that can match Anaheim's top set.
That should leave Mikael Backlund, Nigel Dawes and David Moss intact. They broke even on the night, both by boxcar and underlying numbers, and given that the injured forwards aren't coming back any time this week, they'll need to be at least that good tonight and until further notice. Backlund can't afford another 0/-8 scoring chance night like he fashioned in St. Paul, and I do wonder if in his aim to please the boss he isn't a bit too passive with the puck. I have no idea if he's going to be any more than a decent player, but against this sort of team, he should be able to take more control of the play. He'll likely face players that are close in age tonight, so maybe this is a decent evaluation moment against his peer group.
The fourth line was very good against Anaheim. Brett Sutter fit right in with Eric Nystrom and Jamal Mayers, driving possession north by a substantial margin against the dregs of the Duck forwards. As an aside, in yesterday's Herald chat, John Down dropped these two, er , nuggets:
John Down: Northcrunk: I'd keep Nystrom. Like his gung-ho attitude, can score for a fourth-liner (might get you 20 on a second line), great for media.
John Down: GioFan: I'd give Nystrom long-term, at least three years right around that number, or perhaps a building deal that starts at say 1.2 and ends at 2mil.
That salary figure than Down was mentioning was per season. Good Lord.
Look, I like Eric Nystrom just fine as a guy who can fit a spot between the 10th and 14th position on a roster. The contract that Down would give out would be more than Glencross or Moss is getting, and there isn't any reason to make that sort of move. If he gets a nickel more than Dawes' 850K per year, that would be a very poor deal, IMO. I'm hoping that that number was just spit-balling by a reporter as opposed to any working knowledge of potential negotiations. Oh, and his media skills are worth exactly zero dollars and zero cents. My two cents, YMMV, all that stuff, but overpaying a career fourth liner is a loser move that the outfit up Highway 2 specializes in. It's nothing worth emulating.
Back to the matter at hand. Freed up by the decision to hard-match Conroy's line and the Reggie-White pairing against Getzlaf, Jay Bouwmeester and Steve Staios enjoyed a rare night in the Corsi black in support of Hagman-Iginla-Stajan. If Sutter manages his bench in the same manner this evening, they might well see a bit of Kyle Okposo. Miikka Kiprusoff will start in net.
The Islanders have been more or less competitive this year, thanks to acceptable goaltending by Dwayne Roloson, another good year from Mark Streit, and excellent work from Frans Nielsen. Kent's highlighted him today, and the Danish center is worthy of the attention. When a guy can play good comp, not have a lucky looking PDO, and be in the black both by traditional and underlying numbers, well, that's the sort of foot-soldier type that can help a team survive. The Islanders are paying him 525k for two more years, which is peanuts for his contribution. Seriously, he's a nice player, and his presence allows the Islanders to shelter a few of their younger types, John Tavares in particular. From the sounds of it, Tavares will be reunited for this one with another useful gent in Matt Moulson. Left Wing Lock has no goalie confirmed, but Roloson did play in last night's 5-0 loss to the Rangers, so Biron could get the nod.
Game wise, this is a game that the Flames have to win, and despite the fact that the Islanders haven't been openly awful this year, they still shouldn't beat a team that's in the hunt. They're also down to roughly two NHL defencemen at this point, so if the Flames can get a few pucks deep, the cycle game has a good chance to wear down the Islander back-end. If Phaneuf were still around, the Okposo hit would be a talking point, but that was dealt with when the Leafs played the Islanders a while back from all reports. I'd spend more time noting the fact that the Islander PK is not very good, but that would mean that penalties would have to be called, wouldn't it?
Game time is 5 MT on Sportsnet West.
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Yeah, Nystrom’s career best SH% (11.8) this season is inflating his value in the eyes of some I think. He’s always been generally popular because of the way he plays the game, but anyone talking about 1.5M+ for Nystrom prior to his 10 goal effort this season would have been roundly laughed at.
I don’t know, he’s got the hands of a young Paul Ranheim plus something which you can’t put a price on:
HEART.
~
I think mikeH came up with it after wi missed something.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 3:48 PM PDT up reply actions
I still like the upside-down exclamation point, myself;
You know, “I think signing Nystrom to a 3 year, 4.8 million dollar deal would be just fine.” ¡ ¡
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 3:55 PM PDT up reply actions
it was totally not me or mikeH. i recommended a sarcasm font. someone else (i forget who) suggested the tilde.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 4:27 PM PDT up reply actions
LOL. it was rod blogojevich…. i gotta say that it’s an effin’ joke that the guy with the most rec’d comment in M&G history got banned. as he pointed out today over at mine, the tilde was his legacy.
by walkinvisible on Mar 26, 2010 8:07 AM PDT up reply actions
Holy cow, batman! That’s a lot of links!
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 26, 2010 8:10 AM PDT up reply actions
1.2-2.00M? For Nystrom? Geez, if I were to get a name & number on a Jersey I’d want Nystrom’s and I have a gut feeling that he’ll have a letter on his Jersey one day… in short he’s one of my favorite players and even I wouldn’t dole out that much scratch for him.
Eric Nystrom is a career 4th line checker/PK’er, that’s his role and he’s quite good at it but it’s a role that isn’t very hard to replace and the Flames alone have a bunch of prospects that already fit that mold.
Would be nice if Nyzerman scored tonight.
by Guti on Mar 25, 2010 2:29 PM PDT via mobile reply actions
It’d (oddly, considering he plays for the away team) make the home town crowd happy I imagine he being Bob’s son and all. I mean if any team were to pay Nystrom 1.2-2.0M I imagine it’d be the Isles since he’s got the whole Legacy thing going on. From a marketing perspective it might actually make sense considering that they don’t hurt for cap space.
Wait, we did not actually re-sign Nystrom to this amount, right? It’s just a delusion from a fan of hockey video games?
I mean, that’s what I read above, RCleave, but I just want to make sure because if that kind of contract really happened, I would give up in Sutter entirely.
Okay. Agh. Re-read every sentence in detail, it’s just wishful thinking on the part of idiots.
Phew.
Correct. If Sutter ever went that route, an intervention would be in order, IMO.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 3:09 PM PDT up reply actions
sorry, how is staios at 2.7 for next year not enough to warrant an intervention ?
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 3:20 PM PDT up reply actions
Because he brings leadership and he’s a great guy!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 3:24 PM PDT up reply actions
Staios only has one year left and Darryl has had the green light to bury big contracts before. And as I keep reminding myself, it’s not my money.
It likely is, but Steve Staios, for all his flaws, will be a problem no more after next year, as R O points out. When the Flames need room to re-sign Glencross and Giordano next summer, Staios won’t be under contract. Nystrom would be, under this unlikely scenario. I’m not justifying the Staios trade, of course. There’s a lengthy article on this very website under my name that lays out my objections to his acquisition, chapter and verse. Sutter’s trying to save his job, and trading for Staios, as wrong-headed as it was, was simply a sign of that desperation. How does over-paying for Nystrom fit into that mold? It’s beyond it, IMO, and heads toward the gross-overpaying of bottom-end players. Those contracts are killers, even more than trading for a crap deal like Steady Steve’s.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 3:43 PM PDT up reply actions
The only injured guy I could see coming back this year at all is GlenX, mostly because his crutches were like a cane when I saw him tuesday. Higgins is still in a walking cast, so he’s done, and Lanks is also done. GlenX may make it back for the post season, if there is one.
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Losing Langkow hurts most of all.
But what bone could he have broken? Wouldn’t we have heard about a spinal injury?
It would have been a broken vertebrae. I overheard him talking to a security guard and he defiantly said something was broken-I just couldn’t hear the second part of it.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 3:37 PM PDT up reply actions
AT ES, he isn’t really. Underwater in terms of possession, despite a great zonestart and playing with St. Louis. His on-ice SH% is a team high 12 and his PDO is 102.
Probably already a good to great PP player though. And he’s only like 20, so…
That’s what I figured without seeing any of the numbers. The guy doesn’t have Crosby-like pedigree so I figured he was riding luck and soft minutes.
But, I’ve already taken enough shit this week for calling high-scoring overrated spades, spades, so I didn’t bother looking into it :-)
Even if he is getting soft minutes, he’s a second year player with 40. That’s pretty good.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 4:48 PM PDT up reply actions
Yeah, but he’s a 1st overall pick so he has pedigree and skill. It’s kind of expected that he could put up big points with good circumstances, that’s doesn’t necessarily mean he has a big impact on his team’s chances to winning games.
The gap between a Stamkos-like performance and real game-winning impact is the same as the gap between Crosby and Malkin.
Crosby’s numbers this year suggest he’s p[laying the toughs, but last year, Malkin played tougher comp by a fair bit Richard. Staal played tougher comp than Sid last year as well. Crosby was 9th amongst the Pens’ regulars last year in terms of QComp. The ZoneStarts for both of them were a lot easier than Staal’s as well. I know that doesn’t fit the narrative, but those were the facts.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions
It looks like he and Vinny get about the same sort of comp/zone starts, which maybe says more about Vinny than Stamkos as a 20 year old. Stamkos is a PP killer, of couirse, and he shoots a million %, but that was his M.O. in junior as well. Gare Joyce’s scouting report on him as a 15-16 year old was that if he got the puck in the slot, you could just skate back to center ice. That has been true in the bigs as well. I suspect that he might turn out OK ;-)
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 4:38 PM PDT up reply actions
Steaming dog turd.
3 scoring chances, one at ES, two of the stick of a guy they had scratched a couple of weeks ago.
Add in the fact that they had 6 minutes on the PP and nothing happened, and disappointing doesn’t really do it justice.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 4:50 PM PDT up reply actions
I have to agree with the panel here. (shutter.) Iggy should have shot that.
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Yikes.
Hopefully they can get something here in the second.
In my mind, Nystrom just stood up and gave a passionate speech in the dressing room.
That’s worth a couple million right there.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 5:01 PM PDT up reply actions
9.8 over 4
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 25, 2010 5:01 PM PDT up reply actions
Strictly bad luck. I don’t have a problem with Spacek on that one.
And, dear Columbus; save a few of those goals for all those games you have against Detroit, OK?
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 5:49 PM PDT up reply actions
depends on your definition of “better.”
;)
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:29 PM PDT up reply actions
january, actually, would’ve been a better time.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:14 PM PDT up reply actions
I know Ny’s had a good night, but that line after an icing, well, I should used to it by now, I guess.
i was prepared for nystrom and mayers. i honestlly thought he’d sub out sutter.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:17 PM PDT up reply actions
well, the first line (whomever that might be) just came off a PP shift, so THAT’s defensible. and not putting backlund out is also defensible. and moss/kotalik have been stonehands, so i’m okay with that too…. but not sutter over dawes in any incarnation.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:20 PM PDT up reply actions
3 words to describe this flames’ season:
god. bless. gio.
see you guys saturday. flames central. 11am.
i think we’ll have fun. i have planned my weekend around getting hammered by noon. ;)
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:27 PM PDT up reply actions
The one game I thought they were assured to win. GOOD JOB, DICKHEADS
by SmellOfVictory on Mar 25, 2010 6:28 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
I’m not sure they ever got a SOG in all that scrambling at the end. Start the post-mortems, folks.
CGY -10, even in the third. The top six got shit-kicked.
EV shots 19-17 NYI, 10-7 CGY in the third.
i already did one. should i re-calibrate the sutter(s) dismissal clock ?
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:30 PM PDT up reply actions
I think you’re right. The Sutterites are gonna lose their jobs, so it’s not going to just feel like a wake…
they obviously won’t get canned til seasons end. they might want to start working on their resumés, though.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 6:34 PM PDT up reply actions
I think you and Kent should start working on your resumes to send to the Flames. Oh, and depending on how Justin’s season is going in NHL10, maybe he should submit as well.
I’m now 49-11-4, playing on All-Star.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 26, 2010 6:56 AM PDT up reply actions
Somehow Ales Kotalik has 7 goals. It’s really sad that he sucks IRL.
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 26, 2010 9:48 AM PDT up reply actions
4 ES all night. By the whole team. Iginla with none.
Really.
I’m not one for speculation about personalities or conflict but that’s the kind of performance that makes you wonder if these guys are trying to get Darryl fired.
Wow.
Sorry for your hopes to be fading so fast . Even i’m starting to belive it might be over . But you all have been very classy toward me even if my main team is the hated Wings .
And for that i say Thank You Flames fan’s i hope next year the Cup takes a trip down the Red Mile
Show me the CUP
We’re getting too used to this stuff for my taste. I can’t make a serious argument that the Flames deserve to be in the post-season, based on their overall play. They haven’t been jobbed. They’re a study in mediocrity, full stop.
Thanks for stopping by.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 6:43 PM PDT up reply actions
That would be the perfect title for a book to this season.
“Study in Mediocrity”
Missed opportunity & The Do’s and Do not’s of running an NHL franchise.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
As Kent and I were noting earlier today, the post-mortems are going to be pretty interesting this season, because of the wealth of material the GM and coach have given us.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 6:48 PM PDT up reply actions
Very true but players underachieving isn’t a General Manager’s problem that would be a Coaching issue correct. I’d be very interested in hearing what Ownership is thinking right about now – even though the season isn’t quite done yet.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
He has done that but the ones that we think from the start that look very promising turn out to be crap for at least the first year. JayBou is the perfect example this but 5 years remain for him to get adjusted to life in a much tougher Western Conference that is just maybe one thing you can’t fault Sutter on.
I’d like to see a list of possible GM’s that could take over the Flames job that don’t include Steve Yzerman.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
That’s why you try to load the roster with as many good bets as possible – because humans are fallible and inconsistent. If you have enough good bets, more will turn out and you win.
Sutter didn’t do that. Not consistently. For every Bourque or Giordano, there was a Kotalik or Staios.
also, at some point you HAVE to wonder why the team ain’t gettin’ it done. the turnover of players from the cup run is 80% (the only players left being iggy, kipps, reggie & conny) so it’s hard to blame them each year. it’s also hard to blame the coaches when there’s been four in five years. something higher’s gotta give and while i might someday (soon ?) regret wanting him out, i want fresh blood in the GM’s chair.
by walkinvisible on Mar 25, 2010 9:20 PM PDT up reply actions
I wonder if Paul Fenton from Nashville is ready? That organization seems to have a pretty good handle on things. I suspect a team might see if Jim Nill is interested, as well.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 7:05 PM PDT up reply actions
From a hockey fans stand point i feel it would be a real shame if Kipper & Iggy never get to hold the cup .
Show me the CUP
Scary thing is more so with Jarome he could be this generations Ray Bourque and it kills me to say that because I would hate to see this city the day Jarome is sent packing.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
If he’s 36 and there is no hope here, I want him to go somewhere so he can hoist that mug. It should have been in 03-04, but “we waz robbed.”
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by Justin Azevedo on Mar 26, 2010 6:59 AM PDT up reply actions
I’d hate to be Pat Steinberg tonight once again he has to deal with a wave of false hope and drunken rage that follows these type of games.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
He just posted at FN that he wasn’t looking forward to it. Part of getting a paycheque, I guess.
by Robert Cleave on Mar 25, 2010 7:14 PM PDT up reply actions
Yeah just read it I might just tune in to hear what I already know.
And I guess some good news the Hitmen are up 2-1 midway through the 2nd in their do or die game.
GO FLAMES GO!!!
4-1 now, late. Amazing how we dominate them when the refs let them play.
by Resolute on Mar 25, 2010 8:11 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
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