1st Line: Neal gets 1st line time, and should produce as long as he stays healthy. Monahan & Gaudreau have also shown that they play well with other left shots on their line (Hudler, Granlund, Ferland, etc.), not that they have ever played with many right shots though.
2nd line: Peters has said he wants to try Tkachuk on the right side of Monahan & Gaudreau, but I think he will move back with Backlund soon after, if he does indeed start on the 1st line. Frolik does not have enough offensive capabilities anymore to keep on the 2nd line, so he moves down to the 3rd line & Lindholm slots in with Tkachuk & Backlund due to the fact that he is able to put up 40-50 points on a poor offensive Carolina team, and he is capable of playing decent defensively as well.
3rd Line: Jankowski should centre Bennett & Frolik. However, I can see Ryan and Jankowski spending time together in key situations due to the fact that they are opposite handed centre's and if one gets kicked out of the circle the other can step in.
4th Line: This will be a constantly rotating 4th line due to the fact that only Ryan has had full seasons in the NHL & he will move up and down through the lineup due to injuries and in-game situations. It should start with Klimchuk on the left wing. He has played well enough the last 2 AHL season that he deserves more than a 1 game stint as a former 1st round pick. He is an all situations player with good speed, enough skill and a great work ethic. Dedicates himself hard to fitness & nutrition. Injury woes haven't been as big of a concern for him in the AHL as they were in junior. Czarnik I don't know too much about but as many as 20 teams wanted to sign him & the flames gave him a 2 year 1-way deal. Whomever falters will switch with Hathaway & Lazar whom have been fringe players the past 2 seasons, with Hathaway getting too much ice-time in my opinion. Lazar was almost exclusively kept to the 4th line with Stajan & Brouwer which didn't provide him with much of chance to showcase the skill he did in Junior. Foo, Mangiapane & Dube should also get some time this year rotating here and the 3rd line depending on injuries.
1st D pair: Brodie moves back to the right side where he prefers and played better previously. These two were an elite pair in years past playing together and each player got on different Mock Olympic teams from different NHL insiders in 2014.
2nd D Pair: Hanifin should get a chance to skate and show off more offensive upside playing along Hamonic who is way more a steady d-man. Hanifin was very sheltered in Carolina & if plays alongside Hamonic will have the opportunity to show if he is a capable 2-way d-man. Hamonic improved at the end of last season, after a horrid start with Brodie. Maybe they can have some good chemistry as offensive and defensive d-men.
3rd D Pair: I see Valimaki making the jump straight to the NHL out of junior. He is a stud and does everything well. Underrated offensive skills, great skater, and good stick defensively. Doesn't punish guys with his large frame. Stone is a reliable 2-way guy with a booming shot. Didn't have a great season last year but can play up, and at times was the best d-man on the ice. He is slow but hard working and good defensively. Stone's wife is from Calgary and they have 3 kids here now. Will work hard to prove to Calgary fans that last season was a fluke. Did take a pay cut last year to sign here. Can be capable of more. Andersson is NHL ready but Valimaki should jump him & Kulak for the 6th D spot. Kylington should challenge at some point too. He has greatly improved.
Starting Goalie: Smith is unbelievable when he is healthy. Gets injured as often as he is healthy and struggles to return to form after injuries.
Backup Goalie: Will be determined in camp, but Rittich got the 1-way deal for this year so he has a head start over Gillies who got the 2-way for this year and 1-way for next year. Would prefer Rittich as the back-up but prefer Gillies as the injury replacement starter as he is absolutely huge and has good raw talent. Very flexible and good reflexes, but not the best positioning.
I think Calgary is getting slept on this year as a contender, but once Smith goes down the biggest question is can the goalies step up? They didn't last year.
Also, As it is Calgary they will have a nice big slump at one point. If Bennett & Jankowski can be consistent scorers, that alone will be enough to push them into a playoff spot. Their home record last year was atrocious. If they improve to league average with last years roster (in my opinion it was worse), they are a playoff team at the minimum.
Losing Hamilton wasn't as bad as everything thinks. He could not play defense. At all. Frequently got out-muscled in corners & took dumb penalties. Everyone says they were an elite pair, which they were, but that was because of Giordano doing everything defensively, letting Hamilton do the offensive work. Giordano-Brodie will be very very good this year, barring injury.
This will also be a soft team that might get pushed around, with the lineup they have put together. Hathaway will grind and play tough, as will Hamonic. They are really the only two players that are sort of tough & rugged. Stone almost falls into that category but not quite. Neal will go to the dirty areas, play hard and with an edge, same with Giordano, Tkachuk & Bennett, but are not by any means tough guys.
Feel free to let me know your opinions/rebuttals to my opinions on the lineup and thoughts.
That is true that could be a factor. There is no other option really to play with Hamonic though. Giordano-Brodie is virtual lock. Stone won't play left side with Hamonic. Kulak is not good enough to play top 4. Valimaki remains to be seen. Maybe he moves up there at some point. I do believe that Valimaki will be great. That leaves Hanifin with Hamonic. Whoever plays with Hamonic will be playing some pretty good opposing teams forwards.
However, maybe Peters switches it up and Giordano plays With Hamonic as a shutdown pair. Hanifin plays the left side with Brodie on the right, & they take on the offensive roles. Brodie is one of the best skaters in the league so he has the ability to catch up after bad plays. With the exception of catching up to McDavid & Mackinnon, they're too fast hahaha.
First three lines are pretty set id be surprised to see tkachuk be as effective on the first line as Neal could be. gaudreau will have two options for the pass with neal and Monahan and I could definetly see a career year of assists coming his way
I agree with the assessment on klimchuk but he will most likely go through the trial phase of 9 games (if he makes the team at all) and if he doesn't prove that he is capable it might be the last time he steps on the ice in a Calgary flames jersey. mangiapane got his 10 games last season and did next to nothing. 0 points and -3. spencer foo IMO is the most obvious guy that has got the ability to make that jump to the NHL. Dube needs a full season in the minors but I expect him to compete for a spot in 2019-2020 (perhaps on the wing cause he's a little small to be an NHL center). we have a lot of on the cusp talent and it is gonna be up to the player to lock down a spot.
ryan might replace jankowski on the third against teams with three scoring lines like Pittsburg or Toronto because he will be more effective defensively alongside frolik and bennett than jankowski will be. making the fouth line with Janks a sneaky scoring line (depending on the wingers).
Defense looks air tight. Anderson might out compete valimaki for that 6/7 spot but that remains to be seen
finally the Achilles heel of the Calgary flames the goal tending. Smith needs to stay healthy enough to play 45-55 games this season at least. this also means rittich and gillies need to become dependable backups. if either of these two things fail to happen then Calgary needs to scramble for a goalie at the deadline. if this means we overpay then we overpay cause this team will only be as good as its goaltending down the stretch. I truly believe Calgary is one bonafide goaltender away from being a top contender. Can Smith be the guy???? I cant wait to find out..........
Yeah, honestly I don't see him actually making the team. It seems like he just doesn't excel at one thing enough to make the jump. I don't envision him playing for the Flames. I do however know that Giordano told him at last years camp to "...keep it up & you'll be here full time" so who knows. Dube is sneaky good and wont be a star or a centreman but he will play in the NHL as a winger eventually. After all, he almost made the team out of last years camp. Yes ,Ryan will go up & down depending on the opposing team. I also don't watch Andersson enough to know if he plays the left side well, because that's what he would be playing for the Flames, unless there is an injury to Stone or Hamonic. 6Dman spot will be tough in between Kulak, Andersson, Valimaki & Kylington. In the end I think Kulak is gone by the start of next season.
@Canadianape also, the 9 game trail phase is only for junior eligible players, & it is for not burning a year off of their entry-level deal. This doesn't apply here.
@Canadianape also, the 9 game trail phase is only for junior eligible players, & it is for not burning a year off of their entry-level deal. This doesn't apply here.
oh ok thanks for clarifying I had never read up on that rule. I just assumed it was all rookie players.
in that case if he is able to make the team it will be a 5-10 game trial period to see if he's cut out for the NHL
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