Game Over: Golf for Loser Flames
We were promised a better effort, we got a bunch of no shows. Everyone said the right things, but the only people who showed up for the game was the crowd.
You also got the impression that Todd Bertuzzi is in his own stupid world. After writing a quick tiffy against the pathetic refs of Game 5 where Todd Bertuzzi took a penalty a minute in. The holding call was weak, tonight, it was a high elbow. Gosh, can you really pick on the refs when it’s the same guy getting the same opening penalties?
Who can you blame? One minute in, Bertuzzi does it again in Game 6, the crucial game six. The Chicago Blackhawks score. Then it all falls apart again. Thankfully, another stupid penalty wasn’t called, but the Flames forgot to play defence. The team just collapsed. Three minutes later another goal. Down 2-0 in the first.
Top lines? Nothing, Hitting? Barely. Pride? Left somewhere in March when the Flames crapped their pants. Admittedly injuries have taken a toll. No Phaneuf tonight but alas, toinght, they didn’t even show, again.
No heart for no show Flames
Can you believe it? THE PLAYOFFS, and the CALGARY FLAMES embarrassed themselves by not even bringing a competent game. Blame injuries, blame refs, in reality you can’t, this team tanked from March and continued throughout the playoffs. From Jarome to Jokinen the team was garbage.
Bertuzzi struck again, even though Calgary had great chances in the second, on a too many men penalty. It was so clearly six players playing on the ice, not just one getting caught. Chicago scored on the ensuing PP all but sealing the game closed. Sure, one more period to play, but who cares, a team of losers overwhelmed by a better team on EVERY SINGLE FACET.
Bertuzzi did score one minute into the third, but big deal, he scores once in 15 games and causes 1 per game, not a great trade off. From then on the Flames maintained offensive zone pressure, but couldn’t generate quality chances.
No intensity capped the night. The last ten minutes lacked desperation. Either Calgary sucks really bad, or Chicago is really good. I bit of both I surmise.
No use beating a dead horse, there’s so little to cover from a Calgary perspective. Jarome Iginla was nothing, the top players, nothing, goalie, nothing, defense, beleaguered. That about sums up the last season where this boat sunk HARD.
I guess there is always next year…
They tried, but mostly they were just very trying.
Big Shake-up coming, or management are just as stupid as Bertuzzi or Jokinnen.
But I’ll still be in there next year rooting my tail off.
Here’s to some new changes to the team next year. It’s disappointing to swallow for two reasons:
1) the team was better but because of huge injuries they couldn’t recover.
2) the stars were absolute no shows. blame both the coach for never keeping a line together and the players for not taking any oness on themselves to do a damn thing on ice.
Chicago is good, Calgary could have been better.
And of course, Vancouver is overated.
Man, I hate this feeling. Such a empty feeling after such a promising season up until the last couple of months. The damn injuries really hurt us and for some reason the big guys, namely Iggy couldn’t be a stand out. I feel there was more than enough depth on this team to handle this Hawks team but the players that should have been showing up didn’t. To damn bad… And yes, Vancouver is very overated. 1 man show if you ask me.
You need to acknowledge that the biggest difference in this series was goaltending. Khabibulin played 8/10, Kipper played 6/10. You can talk all you want about Iggy, but a $6m/year goalie who plays not just mediocre, but poorly, has a much larger impact on the bottom-line results. Games #1, #2 and #6 all the potential to be Flames victories if their goalie had a truly stellar game, and of which he had absolutely none in the series.
I look forward to reading about the criticism that Sutter so well deserves. The Flames embarass themselves when they talk about being an elite team with the kind of leadership they have in their front office.
Kipper’s play did not loose the series. Khabibulin was mediocre from game 3 onward. Tonight he made the big stops when he had to.
Vancouver will now play Chicago, we’ll see how they stack up, I hope it’s Chicago in 5.
So refreshing to hear some people not making excuses like the players, coaches and management. It is getting so ridiculous to believe that Calgary is a solid contender when they consistently play so horrible with such little pride and minimal grit. What a joke. Changes need to be made and they should have been made while this horrible slip was taking place during the season. Am I the only one who saw this? Blame injuries you say? Isn’t this where a championship team steps up and finds a way to win. Poor scouting! Horrible management! Yeah lets bring up Erickson, Good call. We sure performed like a team with salary cap issues. Shouldn’t this mean our players get paid the most because they are the best? Obviously not the case. Easy for me to point fingers but unfortunately I only have ten.
I will take a lot of enjoyment in watching the Hawks take out the Nucks. Knowing my luck though as a Flame fan, the Hawks will suck for that series…
Bye Bye….IGGY you are done
I don’t think Iggy is going anywhere. I can see maybe Kipper going, but I would be very surprised to see Iggy leave Cow Town.
Big Changes? Unlikely. Maybe we won’t put 5 million in players that will do nothing (Primeau, Nilson, Warrener).
Expect a new winger, a new tough guy, and a new D man. That’s it.
Just returned from the Flames game…yes we lost…but that is not the biggest disappointment….at the end of the game…the team did not raise their sticks to the fans…wow that is awesome fan appreciation…especially after those same fans gave them a standing “O” at the beginning of the game…forget the injuries and the coaching excuses and all the blah, blah blah…. Thank the Fans that pay your saleries…. Then fire Sutter…. can’t play, can’t coah, can’t manage..he’s the common denominator in all the problems of the Club…27 million dollars for 5 players….stupid is as stupid does…Golf Flames Golf!!!!
The Flames did come back out and salute the fans, you must have left early.
I believe it’s time to start changing to a post lock-out mode, which thanks to smiley bettman is a faster skating more skillful, less roughhousing type of team.
Not really true hockey as we Canadians know it, but it’s what wins hockey games nowadays, in this our Americanized league.
I think Stanley cups suck and there is no fun watching anymore. And I am not talking sour grapes but what is happening inside. For starters, the NHL executives should be reshuffled or recycled … whatever that means, but we need some youngster who knows what professionalism is and what sportsman ship is. It should not be all about money because they make more money up there and that sucks. They are ruining our player’s credibility and image.. Secondly, when the Flames took the winning edge, they were talking about Cammalleri’s suspension and Andre Roy was suspended. But what about the injury to Bourque and the Phaneuf’s hit that had shaken him? Gone are the times of Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr. – when hockey was special, it was talent and professional. According to me, only the leader from the Western conference and Eastern conference should play for the stanley cup. The rest should get consolation prizes for division leadership. That’s where it should end. That should stop all the biases, prejudices and controversys.
Well said anar, I feel our game has gone way south too, but really I’m an old codger and don’t kid yourself, back in the days of Gordie Howe and Bobby Orr it was a lot more violent out on the ice and they played for a hell of a lot less money. When Gordie Howe retired he had no real pension. He had to go to work for Eatons as a sales rep. Later on the Players Assoc. finally came up with a small pittance for him.
Bobby had to quit hockey way too early because he had such bad knees and all the opposing players knew it and purposely went for them whenever they got the chance.
I just don’t like the American slant (or Europian) favored way of playing the game.
But we will never change the fact that the owners are much more interested in the buck they earn than the game itself, no matter how many platitudes they use…
Cold Comfort: San Jose also lost. If Regehr had played things would have been different.
Let’s clean house: Bye Sutter bye Keenan and in a perfect world bye bye Bettman.
Til next season!!
You know, I’ve been thinking (always a scarey thing) but we really do have a lot of talent on the team. After all, we won 45 games this season with the talent we have.
I firmly believe, that if a different coach took over and played the lines in a cohesive fashion we might just be unstoppable.
From James.\\
REALITY 1 :
Even with a completely healthy team, it is an extremely daunting task to win a Stanley Cup – or even make it to the finals.
You have to win 4 grueling, blood soaked series to get there – if you even make the Playoffs – half the teams don’t.
REALITY 2 :
With 30 teams or so in the league now, it’s concievable that you could live a whole lifetime and never see your team win a Stanley Cup – or even make the finals. In other words, be ready for the reality that you may never see the Flames get back there again. You only get so many shots. Just ask Toronto … or Chicago … it can be a very long time.
REALITY 3 :
Many things need to go right to win a Stanley Cup: lack of injuries; great goaltending; your matchups; etc etc. And some ‘things’ are intangible, like ‘Chemistry’ … The ‘Best Team’ (on paper) often doesn’t win.
The Flames had a good season … and went pretty well injury free until about a month before the end of the season. Then they started to get one injury after another – which continued right down to the last playoff game against Chicago. In the ‘Age of Parity’ you need all your people.
Also they displayed an incredible lack of ‘finish’. No matter how many scoring chances they got – or generated – they could not convert. Why ? Who knows ? But it was true. The badly outplayed teams on several occasions … but lost.
REALITY 4 :
I love the Flames. I love Hockey. But … we may not see the Flames get back to the finals … for a very long time.
That’s life.
We are talented and ripping up the team won’t help.
Excellent post Barry Flames, I couldn’t agree more.The “finish” part drove my wife and I nuts.
I think you are right, Barry. We have great talented players and although everyone has a vision to win the cup, it is just not feasible for every team to win it – besides there is more to it than just talent that counts. We had our chances and came really close in 2004/05, but the cup was only rerouted from Calgary to Tampa Bay. If some dumb referee does not see that goal then we cannot blame anyone.
We know we have a good team because notwitstanding the injuries, our players did their best. They outshot the Hawks 44-16 and won most of the face offs in game 6. One consolation is that the Chicago Blackhawks did not take the series in 4 and that’s a compliment for the Flames.
I think Keenan has done a great job and is an inspiration to the Flames. I admire his courage and tact for handling things the way he did throughout the series, despite injuries, despite the losses and despite everything else.
By the way, heads off to the Calgary Flames for taking the Chicago Blackhawks to six games. Congratulations Flames for doing your best and for winning 45 games in the regular season. All the best until next season. You are awesome, guys.
To all the Flames fans. Thank you for your support and it was a pleasure exchanging views. Until September!
Blow it up and start all over.