Thebrewcrew

Iginla has 8 goals in 6 games against Wenatchee

Where would have Eiserman at? One scenario I’ve wondered about is where all of the D are gone and you’re left with Eiserman, Iginla and Greentree

I actually liked the Lipinski pick. Ive really liked him this year. Top line centre for VAN, used in all situations. Pretty solid in the dot as well. Most nights he’s been more noticeable than Honzek.

Look they’re simply just a bad team right now. But the blueline is a major issue. They haven’t done a good enough job at prioritizing defence in the draft, the blueline that they are trotting out right now is a direct result of that. If the Flames want to tank next year, all they have to do is run it back with a very similar group of blueline. They would have to play the heck out of Weegar and Andersson. Burn them out by mid-season, lose a lot of games. What I’d be trying to do is prevent a Devan Dubnyk situation with Wolf. Highly touted prospect, they put him in a terrible situation in Edmonton. Give him at least 4 NHL D. The third pair and 7th D, by all means, make it an open competition .

I think the Flames have to sign two defenders in UFA. I don't care whether or not they're rebuilding, they've got 2.5 NHL D. Kylington is the .5, he's still not 100% back IMO and may not reach the level he was at in 21/22, without a suitable partner. I look at through the lens of "how do they develop Wolf". He needs some help from the blueline. They'll ruin Wolf if they put him in a spot where they're giving up 4 goals and 35-40 shots a night. Doesn't have to be sexy, Demelo/Edmundson/Scandella/Roy/Carrier. There's actually a decent list of defenceman available in UFA. I think you can get some of those guys on a short term deal. Can always deal them at a TDL as well. Carrier in particular, probably a longer term commitment. I would expect a fierce battle for the 5/6/7 roles. Hanley/Okhotiuk/Pachal/Miromanov/Kuznetsov/Solovyov/Poirier/Grushnikov. All of a sudden you have a very unproven logjam. Eight guys for three spots. With the exception of Poirier, I'd likely look to include one of those guys in a Mangiapane trade. They just have too many bodies. Biggest point I'm trying to make is, they can be bad, without being a defensive trainwreck in front of their young goalie.

Pospisil gonna get another call from player safety

They’re leaning on the Flames now. Regardless, I think they need superb goaltending from Hellebuyck to have a chance against DAL or COL. I think the Jets are a good team, the Stars and Avs are elite.

I don’t see a long run from this Jets team in the central division

I’m at the Red Deer Medicine Hat game tonight. Notable Flames contingent in the stands. No coincidence that Lindstrom is back for the playoffs. Andrew Basha is really good too.

And this was supposed to be a "for sure W". Haha. This needs to happen.

I would say Ristolainen is the only One in recent memory.

Craig Button used Marchand as a comparison. It's not a great comp. You aren't getting any of the antics that Marchand brings. I think it's more a comp in terms of hockey sense, skating stride. The closest similarity to his dad would be his shot and his ability to find holes on a goalie. You're not getting the edge or physicality that Jarome had. If I was holding the #1 pick, I would have almost zero interest in moving it. Especially, if it were the Flames. Celebrini projects very much like a #1 C and franchise player. Yes, there may be better players selected in this draft than Celebrini, but based on the body of work thus far, right now Celebrini is that guy.

This video is a lot of fun for Flames fans.

It's hard to predict at this point in the season. I was at the game last night. LA should have been desperate, they played terrible. Credit to the Flames though, can't control your opponents effort. San Jose essentially ended St. Louis season last night. The Flames have shown they can lose to literally anyone. The thing is though, there's zero consensus with this draft. I would say from 3 through 13, there's a chunk of players that could go in any order.

Yes, it’s a list that’s a combination of who I think could be available and where the Flames will pick. Ultimately I think they pick in the 8-11 range.

CGY- 1st Dickinson, Buium, Catton, Helenius, Lindstrom VAN 1st- Lucas Pettersson, Michael Hage, Jett Luchanko, Tanner Howe CGY 2nd- Alfons Freij, Dominik Badinka, Marek Vanaker, Miguel Marques DAL 2nd- Charlie Elick, John Mustard, Luke Misa, Linus Eriksson 3rd round- would target a goalie. I’ve liked Chase Wutzke with Red Deer this year. Lukas Matecha with Tri City had a really solid year, on a bad team. I would look at Justin Poirier if he’s still on the board too. Also Anthony Romani

Hat-trick for Iginla tonight and one for Parascak with PG.

Cayden Lindstrom is now back in the lineup with Medicine Hat. I believe it was a broken wrist that sidelined him this season. Not something I would be too worried about long-term. He projects as a centre, which is very interesting. With Eiserman, he's a natural goal scorer. Hard to find. He's working to rectify this, but he's a guy that can go invisible if he's not scoring and at times, the work away from the puck is an issue. My concern would be, can his game translate to the next level? The NTDP has produced some similar profile players in recent years, Debrincat, Caufield, Kaliyev, Wahlstrom. Skeptics view him similarily to Wahlstrom as a guy that got to the NHL on an elite shot, but has struggled to adapt to the best league in the world. Signability is not a concern for me. His draft status would dictate he gets a very bonus heavy ELC. If on the (very) small chance he says no thanks, you get a Cutter Gauthier for Drysdale type return. My only other concern with Eiserman isn't about the player necessarily, it's more philosophical. He's a LW, the organization needs C, RW and D. C and D should be more a priority. The Flames have a logjam of wingers because in their mind the LW has always been the best available option. I agree with BPA, to an extent, but eventually you reach the point where you end up like the current Flames. Tons of wingers, no centres and a skeleton crew on D. Sorry for the long post. I guess to put a bow on it, I would be fine if they took Eiserman. He's an exciting prospect, he can sure score. The thing I would wrestle with the most if I'm the Flames, do you take Eiserman or a Dickinson/Buium? Personally, I'd address the blueline, but I can understand being tempted by the 30 goal upside.

Part of a two goal first period for Iginla

That’s a good comp. I believe Simashev had two years under contract as well. Right now, my wish list is some combination of Dickinson, Buium, Catton. Although I would be happy with almost anyone in the top thirteen or so. Eiserman is the one I’m wrestling with though. Like the tools, but I have some concerns.

Thanks for sharing. That’s the highest I’ve seen Yakemchuk. Also probably the lowest I’ve seen Eiserman. The biggest wildcard in the draft is Silayev, I think. He’s under contract in the KHL through 26/27. I wonder if it’s like Michkov last year, where he kinda picks his spot. He’s the one player in the top ten that in not sure if the Flames would take. It can be argued either way, but I don’t think they want to wait two years before they even have a chance at getting him to North America. Not with a high pick, later in the draft, sure.

I don’t know if the Flames skipped any steps in the last rebuild. If anything, it was accelerated because Gaudreau ended up being a star. The last core was frustrating for sure. It felt like they left some meat on the bone in the playoffs. They did have a season where they were a 1 seed and another where they were a 2. People can see regular season doesn’t matter, but that’s impressive. Edmonton hasn’t had a season like that since the 90’s. I think some people are frustrated that the Flames didnt end up with lotto picks. But they did. You don’t have to pick first in the draft to get the best player. If you redraft 2016, Tkachuk is a 2nd overall pick. In 2011 Gaudreau probably goes 2nd in a redraft as well.

Is it easy though? Sharks blew the Flames out 6-2. That was with Hanifin and Tanev. Yes, the Sharks are very bad, but the Flames aren't that good. Ducks have some young talent. Yotes will give them some issues too. I think they need to lose at least one game to ANA or SJ. I'm gonna guess 3-7 to close it out. LA x2. Kings are now WC2, they need those wins. WPG needs wins too, they're sliding and may end up WC with NSH rolling. EDM game feels like a 6-1 L. Canucks in the final weekend of the year, could be a win. They likely rest some guys.

Three assists for Parekh in game 1 of the OHL playoffs. Ryder Ritchie with 1 and 1 in PA's game one upset over Saskatoon.