Turning up the heat - NHL 15 BE A GM

[Dynasty]

Just some line changes to note for tonight's home game VS Carolina.

Curtis Glencross finally draws into the line up, which means David Jones will have a seat in the press box.

Glen cross will see action on the second line with Sam Bennett and Johnny Gaudreau. Gaudreau slips to the second line, switching spots with Mason Raymond who will move up to the top line to play with Sean Monahan and Sven Beartschi.

Devin Setoguchi goes to the third line and will see action along side Markus Granlund and Jiri Hudler.

Karri Ramo was the first goalie off the ice at this mornings skate which gives indication that he will see his second start in as many games.

Tonights forward lines:
Mason Raymond Sean Monahan Sven Beartschi
Johhny Gaudreau Sam Bennett Curtis Gelncross
Jiri Hudler Markus Granlund Devin Setoguchi
Lance Bouma Max Reinhart Joe Colborne

[Dynasty]

Ten game update: About as expected

Well folks the 14/15 NHL season is ten games old now, and the Flames are trending as expected with a 3-7-0 record which leaves them in the basement in 22nd place overall.

Stats pack:

18 goals for - 1.8 Goals for per game
26 goals against - 2.6 goals against per game
3 power play goals - 19 total power plays - 15.79 PP%
1 short handed goal against
3 power play goals against - 12 times short handed - 75 PK%
1-3 at home
2-4 away

This is as expected I think, lots of youth and guys moving around my line up trying to find where they belong, I am happy with my power play honestly, I focus on umbrella and moving the puck for set ups and I like the flow of it so far, just haven't been able to beat goalies.

So far its hard to tell with my sliders if I need to up the shooting or its just my guys needing to develop more first, goals have been hard to come by.

Last ten games:

3-1 L VS Vancouver
1-0 L @ Edmonton
3-2 W @ St. Louis
6-3 W @ Nshville
5-0 L @ Chicago
4-2 L @ Columbus
3-2 L @ Winnipeg
1-0 L VS Tampabay
2-1 L VS Carolina
3-2 W VS Washington

The games have been up and down yet fairly consistent, the trend in the past ten games have been take early leads to fall apart in the second and scramble back into the game in the third yet fall short. We have done a fairly good job of keeping high profile players off the board, like Stammer and Ovi but our defence is having issues with positioning in front of the net and it burns me regularly. Not to mention Hiller has been swiss cheese.

Calgary Flames Stats - 14/15
Skaters	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	GW	PIM	SOG	SPCT
D. Setoguchi	10	4	3	7	1	0	4	21	19.05%
M. Raymond	10	4	2	6	4	1	4	20	20%
S. Bennett	10	2	3	5	4	0	0	22	9.09%
T. Brodie	10	1	4	5	3	0	2	7	14.29%
S. Monahan	10	2	3	5	0	0	0	14	14.29%
J. Hudler	10	2	2	4	0	0	0	20	10%
D. Wideman	10	0	3	3	-6	0	0	3	0%
J. Gaudrea	10	2	1	3	0	1	0	25	8%
M. Granlund	10	1	2	3	-5	0	2	10	10%
J. Colborne	10	0	2	2	-5	0	5	14	0%
D. Jones	8	0	2	2	-4	0	4	6	0%
T. Wotherspoon	10	0	1	1	-5	0	5	8	0%
L. Smid	10	0	1	1	-5	0	2	4	0%
K. Russell	10	0	1	1	-5	0	0	9	0%
M. Reinhart	10	0	1	1	-7	0	2	8	0%
M. Giordano	10	0	1	1	2	0	2	7	0%
Goalies	GP	W	L	T	GAA	TOI	SV	SV%	SHO
K. Ramo	5	1	4	0	1.78	301	91	.908	0
J. Hiller	5	2	3	0	3.41	298	82	.828	0

Team stat leaders:
Goals: Setoguchi/Raymond - 4
Assists: Brodie - 4
Points: Setoguchi - 7
PIMS: Bouma/Colborne/Wotherspoon - 5
+/-: Bennett/Ratmond - 4
PPG: Raymond/Setoguchi/Gaudreau - 1
GWG: Raymond/Gaudreau - 1
Shots: Gaudreau - 25
Shooting %: Raymond - 20%
Face off wins: Monahan - 46
Face offs taken: Monahan - 90
Face off %: Granlund - 59%
Hits: Smid - 15
Give aways: Giordano - 14
Take aways: Giordano - 4
Minutes: Wideman - 232

I honestly got to say though, Gaudreau has been snake bitten to a whole new level, he has rung so many off posts and crossbars that its just making me shake my head, he has been a very good player that looks bad statistically because he isn't getting the bounces.

NHL League Leaders - Updated: Oct 25, 2014
Goals		G	Assists		A
	1. T. Seguin	8		1. B. Marchand	11
	2. Z. Chara	7		2. M. Lucic	10
	3. S. Crosby	7		3. J. Thornton	9
	4. J. Benn	6		4. C. Stewart	9
	5. M. Cmmalleri	6		5. P. Kessel	9
Points		PTS	Plus/minus		+/-
	1. B. Marchand	14		1. P. Bergeron	10
	2. M. Lucic	13		2. B. Marchand	9
	3. P. Bergeron	13		3. E. Staal	9
	4. P. Kessel	11		4. M. Lucic	8
	5. Z. Chara	11		5. A. Semin	8
Wins		W	Goals against average		GAA
	1. C. Schneider	6		1. N. Backstrom	1.49
	2. C. Anderson	6		2. C. Ward	1.79
	3. B. Bishop	5		3. K. Ramo	1.78
	4. B. Elliott	5		4. B. Bishop	1.85
	5. J. Halak	5		5. C. Anderson	1.99
Save percentage		SV%	Shutouts		SO
	1. N. Backstrom	.957		1. C. Crawford	2
	2. C. Anderson	.942		2. C. Ward	2
	3. C. Ward	.938		3. C. Schneider	2
	4. B. Bishop	.934		4. B. Bishop	1
	5. B. Elliott	.931		5. N. Backstrom	1

Around the league:

Minnesota trades: LW Matt Cooke

To Tampabay for:
LW Henri Ikonen
D Dylan Blujus

There are also rumours around that the Edmonton Oilers, Columbus blue jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs (lol) have inquired about Matt Stajan, also the New Jersey devils are rumoured to be sniffing around asking about Mikeal Backlund.

[Dynasty]

Calgary news and notes:

Calgary trades:
C Matt Stajan (TWF) 30 years old top 9 forward 83 overall 3.125M per season 4 years remaining on contract

To Ottawa for:
2015 2nd round pick (DAL)

Flames GM Brad Treliving on the trade:

"First off I want to thank Matt for his years of service here, he was a consummate teammate and well liked in our locker room.

The facts of it is that we are heading in a different direction and Matt was losing his spot to some younger guys that need to get NHL reps in, it's a tough thing to have to deal with and Bob was having a hard time finding Matt ice time, this move makes sense for Matt as Ottawa was at our door about a month ago asking about Matt and if we wanted to move him.

We wish Matt well in Ottawa"

Stajan on the move:
"Well hopefully they will find some ice time for me"

Analytics on the trade:

This is a pretty simple deal to make I think for the Flames, Stajan was eating cap space and providing little to nothing.

Looking at last year, which was his most productive in that past four seasons he put up 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points with a -13 rating.

With the kids coming into the NHL and guys like Sam Bennett staying past the nine game mark, Stajan was fighting for a third or fourth line spot, looking at those players (granted they have been moving around) we see in the centre slot:

Markus Granlund 21 years old - 12GP - 1G -3A - 4PTS - -3 - .765M 2 years
Max Reinhart 22 years old - 12GP - 0G - 1A - 1PT - -9 - .620M 1 year

So an argument can be made both ways here. Granlund is roughly the same player as Stajan, just nine years younger and 2.6M cheaper so it makes sense there, Stajan could be used in that fourth hole bumping Reinhart to healthy scratch. The Flames aren't even close to the cap so money isn't an issue this year, and probably not for the next few but having that much more room doesn't hurt.

Stajans contract was the longest on the team payroll believe it or not.

Looking on the wings we find that only:

Jiri Hudler 30 years old - 12GP - 4G - 2A - 6PTS - +2 - 4M 2 years

Was inline to reach or exceed Stajan's last year performance and we could argue that Hudler isn't a bottom six forward, he's just spending time there while the roster figures itself out, so statistically there was room for Stajan to find the ice but perhaps it's time to pass that torch to the younger generation.

If injury strikes there are guys like David Jones and Mikeal Backlund waiting in the press box looking for their chance plus Paul Byron and Corban Knight in Adirondack that could fill a hole or two.

Not much risk on the Flames side, currently Dallas sits 3rd in the Central division and 13th in the NHL, so the Flames dropped some cap, and maybe a rising issue for a potential mid second rounder without removing a guy that was playing minutes for the club.

Not bad.

Other news:

I hate speaking on rumour alone but word out of sources close to the Flames management group is that the Calgary Flames Captain Mark Giordano has quietly let it be known he wouldn't turn down a trade if it were offered to him.

This could be a great boon in an asset sense for the club as Giordano just came off a terrific season where it was mainstream opinion that he was a top contender for the Norris trophy.

Giordano leads the Flames with 280 minutes played this season, 20 more than closest rival Dennis Wideman, the list of suitors could be long for a man of his talents.

Like i said earlier these are just rumours as it stands but it is believed that Giordano enjoys playing for the team and city and really does like it here, but Calgary is obviously a few years out of contending for the playoffs, never mind the cup. and at 31 Giordano isn't getting any younger.

As a side bar, Mikeal Backlund still hasn't seen any playtime so far this season, but with the bottom six in Galgary struggling it is possible he will make an appearance soon.

Bonus

Heres a clip from last night's shootout loss to the Nashville predators



Finally the sound of post won't haunt Johnny hockey

[Dynasty]

Hello and welcome all for TSN I am hockey insider Bob McKenzie.

Let it never be said that the power of suggestion is a weak or incapable force. Since last weeks rumour of Mark Giordano suggesting that he wouldn't refuse a trade out of Calgary the hockey media community has been circling the Flames and its captain like vultures over a fresh carcass.

Speculation has run rampant as per usual, varying from Giordano wanting out of Calgary because of the rebuilding team will take too long to give him a shot at post season glory all the way to Giordano offering himself up to advance the rebuild along. Everything from one extreme to the other has been put forth and evaluated by the media.

Giordano and the Calgary Flames have refused to comment on the situation, other than typical standoff answers along the lines of hockey being a business and whatever happens does, to the media will (and has) drummed up any story it feels will draw attention.

The fact of the matter is, regardless if Giordano wants out, or wants to remain he adds value to this organization. If he remains he will continue to add high value to their Defense as he is now (and has in the past) the leadership role that he fits very well into will only benefit those younger players around him and he is capable of leading on and off the ice, via voice or by example.

Is he the consummate captain? Perhaps not, is he a good captain? Yes do they have better? I'd venture to say no, not right now. So his benefit to the club if he remains is a tangible thing, and one we can see plainly before us.

So what if he were to be traded?

Right now Calgary is in a good position and GM Brad Treliving would be dealing from a position of relative strength if this situation remains the same. As it stands he has a high value asset who logs a team high 22-26 minutes a night who is a top pairing two way Defensemen capable in all zones, a capable leader that fits well in a locker room, with some term on his contract (two years) and a manageable cap hit of under 5.3M per season.

In addition to this Treliving doesn't have move Giordano at all, if rumour holds true Giordano doesn't want to move per se, he has offered the idea of a trade if it was deemed beneficial by the powers that be. So if the market isn't receptive or the return isn't as desired then it can be as simple as no thank you, we decided he is more valuable in the organization that he is out of it.

But it is also possible that this goes the way of the Luongo vs Scneider fiasco and the pressure alone results in perhaps an undesired move, or your position of perceived strength is widdled down to one of applied weakness.

So, with all that in mind, what is a player of his calibre worth on open market? Perhaps more than what will be offered but I would think that a first round pick is the base of any deal here, perhaps bundled with a prospect or two, or three may get it done but who fills the number one hole in the Defense? There isn't a lot of up coming defensive talent pushing at the door in Calgary, so do you patch and fill with what's available or does a roster player in return get added to this package?

Currently the Flames sit in 24th position which leaves them in top ten range, so losing a guy like Giordano who eats 22-26 tough minutes a night won't (or definitely shouldn't) provide a statistical boost, one would guess the Flames would sink a little lower without Giordano, which may also impact the weight and value of this trade, thus gaining Calgary a potentially higher pick, Connor McDavid high? That remains to be seen, and honestly could happen regardless of Giordano's presence on the ice.

Regardless of the hype, the media or perhaps even fan expectation I think it's safe to say that Flames GM Brad Treliving won't trade his captain just for the sake of making a deal, it has to have tangible returns that make sense for the long term benefit of this franchise if he's traded, or the short term returns of Giordano's presence and guidance.

For all things Calgary Flames keep your eyes here, for TSN I am hockey insider Bob McKenzie.

Thanks for reading.

[Dynasty]

Twenty game update:


Reinheart comes off the bench and finds himself all alone

Through twenty games the Flames are 7-10-3 sitting sixth in the Pacific Devision and tied for 23rd overall with Dallas, Toronto and Detroit with 17 points.

Bob Hartley on the Flames play so far:
"At this point I am happy with some of the steps our guys have taken forward, there are still many things to learn for many of our players but the improvement is there, our numbers are trending in this right direction and the guys are starting to feel more comfortable and are starting to believe in one another.

So much of this game is confidence and that's coming for our guys here, they believe in one another and are coming together as a team"

Line up notes:
C Mikeal Backlund finds himself in the press box again after seeing four games of action. Backlund had no points two PIMS a minus one rating and 42 face-off percentage, once again he looked disinterested in playing the game.

C Bill Arnold (TWF 22 years old high top 6 forward potential 74 overall) was called up from Adirondack and slid into the line up between Max Reinhart and Sven Beartschi on the fourth line. In four games Arnold has surpassed Backlund by putting up 1 goal 1 assist with a +2 rating an 48 face off percentage.


Monahan with an easy backhand after a tip on the power play

Monahan on the goal
"Yeah I watched the replay on that and this was made possible by Johnny, even after he lost the puck there on the left side he never gave up and poked it back and slid a nice little pass to a moving Brodie, I got a tip on it then when I turned around to see where it went it was sitting right there"

Stat pack:
48 goals for
2.4 goals for per game
53 goals against
2.65 goals against per game
5 power play goals
42 total power plays
11.9 power play percentage
1 short handed goal against
7 power play goals against
35 times short handed
80 penalty kill percentage
1 short handed goal for

Last ten games:
3-1 W VS MTL
4-3 SOL VS NSH
3-2 SOL @ MTL
3-1 L @ WSH
3-1 L @ TB
4-3 W @ FLA
6-3 W @ CAR
4-2 W @ ARZ
5-4 L VS OTT
3-2 SOL VS ANA

Calgary Flames Stats - 2014
Skaters	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	GW	PIM	SOG	SPCT
D. Setoguchi	20	7	7	14	8	0	8	42	16.6%
S. Monahan	20	6	8	14	3	0	2	33	18.8%
S. Bennett	20	6	5	11	5	0	4	43	13.9%
M. Raymond	20	8	3	11	7	1	4	49	16.3%
M. Reinhart	20	5	4	9	-3	0	4	18	27.7%
T. Brodie	20	1	7	8	2	0	6	11	9.9%
J. Gaudreau	20	4	4	8	-3	1	4	55	7.2%
D. Wideman	20	0	6	6	-5	0	10	9	0%
J. Hudler	20	4	2	6	1	1	4	41	9.7%
L. Smid	20	0	5	5	-7	0	2	10	0%
J. Colborne	20	1	4	5	-4	0	7	30	3.3%
M. Giordano	20	0	5	5	1	0	14	14	0%
M. Granlund	20	2	3	5	-3	0	2	26	7.6%
S. Beartschi	20	3	1	4	-5	1	9	19	15.7%
K. Russell	20	0	3	3	3	0	0	16	0%
C. Glencross	12	0	3	3	-1	0	2	18	0%
T. Wotherspoon	20	0	2	2	0	0	5	15	0%
D. Jones	8	0	2	2	-4	0	4	6	0%
B. Arnold	4	1	1	2	2	0	0	3	33.3%
Goalies	GP	W	L	T	GAA	TOI	SV	SV%	SHO
K. Ramo	10	3	6	0	2.38	606	225	.900	0
J. Hiller	10	4	4	0	2.85	607	191	.868	0

Johnny's luck continues but in his defense he needs to mature as well and his effectiveness should increase. even though statistically he doesn't have the hardest shot on my team, when he shoots it seems like its a very heavy shot, can't wait for him to develop.

Im going to be shuffling my bottom six again to some degree. Max Reinhart has thrived on the wing, putting up a lot of points since I moved him over and scoring some pretty nice goals, not just garbage.

Bill Arnold has been good since his call up and easily replaced Backlund, a couple guys I'm not happy with would be Joe Colborne, he's big and slow and not very useful thus far, Ty Wotherspoon has looked lost and may see some press box time shortly. Curtis Glencross has been decent, as I find him contributing to the game as a whole, just not on a score sheet. I think I just need to find the right place for him.

Sven Beartschi is falling out of my good graces, though he has sniped a couple very nice goals the past couple games, he doesn't seem to compete well, He is a smaller guy at 5'11" so I realize he can only do so much but Johnny Gaudreau is even smaller and seems to have more fire in him than Beartschi, Ive moved Sven up and down the line up including power play time but he isn't finding a home yet.

Hudler has been a drag, i'll try shuffling him around again but I dunno about him, not liking what I am seeing.


Beartschi finally does something worthwhile

NHL League Leaders - Updated: Jan 1,
Goals		G	Assists		A
	1. T. Seguin	15		1. B. Marchand	20
	2. J. Skinner	13		2. P. Kane	18
	3. Z. Chara	13		3. J. Thornton	16
	4. M. Hossa	12		4. D. Doughty	15
	5. P. Sharp	11		5. S. Stamkos	15
Points		PTS	Plus/minus		+/-
	1. J. Skinner	27		1. J. Skinner	18
	2. B. Marchand	25		2. J. Williams	15
	3. P. Kane	25		3. E. Staal	15
	4. M. Hossa	25		4. N. Hjalmarsson	14
	5. A. Semin	25		5. S. Voynov	13
Wins		W	Goals against average		GAA
	1. J. Quick	12		1. J. Quick	1.87
	2. C. Anderson	12		2. C. Ward	1.87
	3. C. Price	11		3. B. Bishop	1.91
	4. J. Halak	11		4. C. Crawford	2.13
	5. H. Lundqvist	9		5. C. Schneider	2.27
Save percentage		SV%	shutouts		SO
	1. J. Quick	.971		1. H. Lundqvist	3
	2. C. Ward	.935		2. C. Ward	3
	3. B. Bishop	.933		3. C. Schneider	3
	4. C. Schneider	.921		4. C. Crawford	3
	5. J. Bernier	.921		5. M. Smith	2

Monahan on a solo rush, nice effort and shot

[Dynasty]

Okay guys, your all caught up. I know it's a lot of reading for one day but enjoy.

[Braeden]

That's not a bad record at all. 7-10-3 is respectable.

Hopefully Johnny Hockey can net some goals for you!

(Also, I'd play grinders/TWF on the 4th line, having guys like Baerstchi there could hurt his development )

[bpete07]

Loving this so far. Will theses sliders work on ps3?