Todd Cordell: It's experiment time for Geoff Ward and the Calgary Flames

Small steps Todd. Gaudreau is struggling & probably knows it. But the big thing I noticed & is the shift of Gaudreau to the RW where he played in College. Get him acclimatized to RW & then shift him up to RW with Lindholm & Tkachuk. Or he might flip with Dube with Monahan on LW & Backlund at Centre. I always hoped Bennett & Tkachuk would be the pairing like Gaudreau & Monahan became but last while I have been yearning to move Lindholm to centre with Chucky. Good for Ward. Just hope he can stay the course.

Go Flames!!!

Who do we play against? What time?

Go Flames!!!

Who do we play against? What time?
- DuranDuran

Buffalo but not until tomorrow at 7:00

Buffalo but not until tomorrow at 7:00
- Kevin R

Well a I guess a long break between games is not a bad thing with a new head coach.

I forgot JG played RW in college. Why the hell did they never shift him over before?

What would you good folk say Anderson's ceiling is ? Does he have any shot at being a top pairing D or is he a solid top 4 guy?

What would you good folk say Anderson's ceiling is ? Does he have any shot at being a top pairing D or is he a solid top 4 guy?
- Devilish4

He's already playing top pairing on many nights. Top 4 for sure.

Well a I guess a long break between games is not a bad thing with a new head coach.

I forgot JG played RW in college. Why the hell did they never shift him over before?
- DuranDuran

Gulu tried him out at RW for a while and Peters tried it sparingly.

He also played some center in college. Better at making plays on his left side and better at finishing plays on his offhand right side.

He's already playing top pairing on many nights. Top 4 for sure.
- tincup

Would you compare him to any notable young stars or is he in a tier below most of the house hold names ?

Is he similar to Provy. Or is there any out east comparasions?

Well a I guess a long break between games is not a bad thing with a new head coach.

I forgot JG played RW in college. Why the hell did they never shift him over before?
- DuranDuran

Peters was stubborn & kept rolling out the same top line that clearly wasnt working.

I like Ward trying new things here. Funny, my Wife & her sister went to high school with Ward. Neither of them mentioned that when he was an assistant coach. Which shows how much they follow hockey haha. I took my wife to a Flame game back when we were dating, it was an Oiler-Flames epic clash back when the Oilers & Flames where the top 2 teams in the league & Semenko & Hunter were in their peak of terror & had epic battles. When Hunter & Semenko dropped their gloves everyone stood & roared. I looked down & saw my wife reading her fcking Harlequin Romance book.
At that point I told she was never going to another Flame game with me & 39 years later that has held true.

Would you compare him to any notable young stars or is he in a tier below most of the house hold names ?

Is he similar to Provy. Or is there any out east comparasions?
- Devilish4

Right now he is solid, good positioning, great IQ in his breakouts, great shot but being in his 2nd year now, he hasnt had a chance at any first PP time on ice to rack up points. I wouldnt compare him to Provy right now but he is certainly trending to be very comparable to Provy. He has held his own really well with Gio on the top pairing but Brodie has always played well with Gio. The pairing that I think is our future top pairing has been Hanifin paired up with Andersen while Hamonic has been out. I kinda wish they continue with those two on the 2nd pairing this year. Too bad Valamaki went down prior to training camp, it would have been interesting to see him in this mix as he has more expectations than Andersen.

Right now he is solid, good positioning, great IQ in his breakouts, great shot but being in his 2nd year now, he hasnt had a chance at any first PP time on ice to rack up points. I wouldnt compare him to Provy right now but he is certainly trending to be very comparable to Provy. He has held his own really well with Gio on the top pairing but Brodie has always played well with Gio. The pairing that I think is our future top pairing has been Hanifin paired up with Andersen while Hamonic has been out. I kinda wish they continue with those two on the 2nd pairing this year. Too bad Valamaki went down prior to training camp, it would have been interesting to see him in this mix as he has more expectations than Andersen.
- Kevin R

He can shoot to cant he ? I feel like I read an article way back when ( during his colt days ) comparing him to Ekblad.

Arguably, Ryan and Lucic has been our best line for the last 10 games. They haven’t turned good play into a lot of goals but they have created chances and have had zone time. For the most part lucic hasn’t been a liability. Unlike Neil last year who basically stood around doing nothing not scoring,not hitting not playing defensively, not, hustling!!! Lucic at least tries. He might actually give Jenny a few more inches out there. And translating into more room out there. Worth a try!!

He can shoot to cant he ? I feel like I read an article way back when ( during his colt days ) comparing him to Ekblad.
- Devilish4

He can shoot and I think he's got some offensive upside. He can also play physical. He's sneaky big. He needs a new contract after this season so it'll be interesting what they do with him. He's proven quite a bit in the last 2 years so would not be surprised to see the Flames throw some term at him.

What would you good folk say Anderson's ceiling is ? Does he have any shot at being a top pairing D or is he a solid top 4 guy?
- Devilish4

He's in the TJ Brodie, Jake Muzzin tier. Probably not really a top pairing guy on his own, but can be a more than adequate partner with the right guy.

During this slow week I thought I would throw out a trade idea to see if it was a terrible idea.

Tre puts together a good trade deal that NJ allows permission to talk to Hall, Tre then signs Hall to a 6 year extension (that would make Hall 34 years old at the end of the contract) at $9M AAV starting next year. The trade would be for 2020 1st rnd pick, Andersson and Gawdin for Hall signed for a 6 year extension NJ would eat 50% of Hall's salary this year plus a 6th round 2021 pick to round out the trade.

Would this make you furious, sick to your stomach, laugh out loud at how outrageous it is or be happy with a deal like that?

During this slow week I thought I would throw out a trade idea to see if it was a terrible idea.

Tre puts together a good trade deal that NJ allows permission to talk to Hall, Tre then signs Hall to a 6 year extension (that would make Hall 34 years old at the end of the contract) at $9M AAV starting next year. The trade would be for 2020 1st rnd pick, Andersson and Gawdin for Hall signed for a 6 year extension NJ would eat 50% of Hall's salary this year plus a 6th round 2021 pick to round out the trade.

Would this make you furious, sick to your stomach, laugh out loud at how outrageous it is or be happy with a deal like that?
- buddy_doug

Lol.. a hard no!! Anderson is a valuable D man. Gawdin has potential and a first.. put the. Jimmy bean down and step away!!! Hall is toxic!! he has been every place he has played. He has always been about him and only him.

During this slow week I thought I would throw out a trade idea to see if it was a terrible idea.

Tre puts together a good trade deal that NJ allows permission to talk to Hall, Tre then signs Hall to a 6 year extension (that would make Hall 34 years old at the end of the contract) at $9M AAV starting next year. The trade would be for 2020 1st rnd pick, Andersson and Gawdin for Hall signed for a 6 year extension NJ would eat 50% of Hall's salary this year plus a 6th round 2021 pick to round out the trade.

Would this make you furious, sick to your stomach, laugh out loud at how outrageous it is or be happy with a deal like that?
- buddy_doug

Furious
Better than a 50/50 chance our 2020 first is a lottery pick and for me that's a non starter as I dont believe the Flames are a playoff team this year.
Hall is a bit injury prone and that will only magnify as he ages.
Also we need help at RW not LW.
6 x 9 million for Hall please no!

He's in the TJ Brodie, Jake Muzzin tier. Probably not really a top pairing guy on his own, but can be a more than adequate partner with the right guy.
- Hunkulese

I guess he is currently in that tier, but i would argue hes trending to that next tier real soon.

During this slow week I thought I would throw out a trade idea to see if it was a terrible idea.

Tre puts together a good trade deal that NJ allows permission to talk to Hall, Tre then signs Hall to a 6 year extension (that would make Hall 34 years old at the end of the contract) at $9M AAV starting next year. The trade would be for 2020 1st rnd pick, Andersson and Gawdin for Hall signed for a 6 year extension NJ would eat 50% of Hall's salary this year plus a 6th round 2021 pick to round out the trade.

Would this make you furious, sick to your stomach, laugh out loud at how outrageous it is or be happy with a deal like that?
- buddy_doug

The Devils will be able to do much, much better than that. Someone will give them an A prospect, possibly an A prospect and a first. The Flames would have to be giving up Valimaki or 2 firsts for New Jersey to even consider it. Gawdin has about as much value as Czarnik did when he was in the AHL. Maybe he turns into an NHLer but has zero value in a trade.

They'd also have to offer Hall max term to get him to sign anything without testing free agency.

It also doesn't make a ton of sense for the Flames unless they want some of that Hall mojo to help rebuild with some great picks.

Guys, you let your resident window-licker out of his cage again. Please come pick him up.

I'd still much rather see Tre put in a solid offer for Josh Andersen from CLB. And grab David Savard while they're at it.
Frolik- Brodie- Czarnik and maybe either Kylington or Mangiapane . The 3 pending UFA'S could be good trade options at the deadline to help replenish what they traded away last season or maybe they try to resign them. Kyl or Mangi would help them rebuild with some youth. We could even offer up Janko.

I'd still much rather see Tre put in a solid offer for Josh Andersen from CLB. And grab David Savard while they're at it.
Frolik- Brodie- Czarnik and maybe either Kylington or Mangiapane . The 3 pending UFA'S could be good trade options at the deadline to help replenish what they traded away last season or maybe they try to resign them. Kyl or Mangi would help them rebuild with some youth. We could even offer up Janko.
- TandA4Flames

I like you're thinking on Andersen.

The Devils will be able to do much, much better than that. Someone will give them an A prospect, possibly an A prospect and a first. The Flames would have to be giving up Valimaki or 2 firsts for New Jersey to even consider it. Gawdin has about as much value as Czarnik did when he was in the AHL. Maybe he turns into an NHLer but has zero value in a trade.

They'd also have to offer Hall max term to get him to sign anything without testing free agency.

It also doesn't make a ton of sense for the Flames unless they want some of that Hall mojo to help rebuild with some great picks.
- Hunkulese

We don't even know the market yet.

We don't even know the market yet.
- fry

When has a superstar not been able to get an A prospect at the deadline? He's the best player available. Someone will pay the price. They always do, and a pretty good defenceman and a 1st round pick isn't what the Devils are going to want. They're going to want an 18-20-year-old with top line, top-pairing potential and a pick if they can get it.