Flames Quarterly Review

A little bit about everything so far.

As game #24 passes with a 5-4 victory over the Maple Leafs, the team GM reflects back on the first quarter and looks ahead in a quick interview with the local press.
RECORD 13-8-3

How has the season gone from your view?
Excellent, we are winning games. The guys we thought would perform are and our goaltending has been amazing which is the major reason we are higher in the standings that most would think we would be. Do I think it's sustainable? No, I would be quite surprised and pleased if it continued but realistically we're still a year or two away from being a playoff contender, but we will definitely give it our all this year to make it.

Who has been the team MVP?
That's Rinne for sure, we are outshot consistently and he keeps bailing us out. McAvoy has played incredibly and produced on both ends and Getzlaf has really had a great start also and been quite clutch.

What teams have surprised you so far, good and bad?
Obviously, that's the Sharks and their horrible start. It seems team management has clocked out so far this year with zero line loads but the sim also had McDavid playing 4th line wing for a huge part of the start. Unfortunately, the sim has his lines normal now and they are winning again. Expect them to contend for the division going forward with or without an active GM. The Sabres, Lightning and Senators are surprising as well but it's hard to tell being the Atlantic is such a poor division.

Do you feel the team got ripped off by not getting Premiere Ticket Sales?
For sure, are they sticking by their guns, yes. Is it worth the energy to continue the discussion? No, I think the poll that came about because of our concerns shows that the majority believe it should be Point % which only makes sense and I feel that's what it will be going forward. Should we have been added to the top ranks, of course, admit your mistake and don't penalize the one team that got screwed a couple of bucks because of it. Honestly wouldn't even have to bump Colorado out, just add us for this one time. Realistically it was our only chance this year but shit happens and I'm sure we will survive!

Feelings on being #2 in the Prospect Rankings?
It's amazing when you look how bare the cupboards were only a few short seasons back. I agree fully with not being #1, with McDavid still part of that stacked Sharks team it was always going to be near impossible to top that. All this being said, we fully expect to contend for the top spot next year, most of the Sharks top guys are graduating and I believe all 10 of ours are still eligible so we're in pretty good shape and if Chicago continues its decline, we should have another lottery pick to add to the mix.

Are there any trade talks going on?
I'd really like to say yes, but since free agency, it's been pretty quiet. With so many bad contracts being given out over the last couple of years, I think the teams that need to improve can't afford to or aren't willing to add the insane terms that the unrealistic contracts come with in order to add the big names that might be available. I also think it's so early that no one knows who the contenders and pretenders really are. Ourselves, we did have discussions about Stephen Johns early on and have discussed Chara with a couple of teams but nothing much to report on. We aren't willing to lose much of our future to make a play on something that helps us this year only but if we're contending around the trade deadline we might look to improve a little bit on certain areas of concern. Flipping that around though, we also have a number of guys such as Chara, Rinne, Suter, Getzlaf, Koivu, and Bouwmeester who would all be made available for trade if we fall out of the playoff race.