<p>We&#8217;re a quarter into the 2022-23 regular season schedule, and the Calgary Flames are .500 and fans seem stressed. To check in on the vibes, we delved into our weekly mailbag.</p>
<p></p>
<p>(We received a few questions that sorta all hit the same themes, so we cherry-picked a few that were more or less representative of how everybody seemed to be feeling.)</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Does treliving really not believe that an internal fix like calling up a player is probably easier than finding a scorer who may or may not work out for you?</p>
<p>&mdash; Veer Kahlon (@VeerFlames91) <a href="https://twitter.com/VeerFlames91/status/1597003897302024192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>I haven&#8217;t had a long chat with Brad Treliving about this recently, so I won&#8217;t profess to know <em>exactly</em> what he&#8217;s thinking or believes.</p>
<p>But, here&#8217;s my theory, and hear me out: this is the group that Treliving put together, with a pretty good amount of input from Darryl Sutter. Think of it this way: this is the recipe that these guys put together as a tandem. They each have their own precise ideas of what a championship team looks like – how they play on the ice and the types of players involved – and Treliving&#8217;s put together the best approximation of that shared understanding they have, within the constraints of the salary cap.</p>
<p>Aside from Oliver Kylington&#8217;s unplanned absence, this is probably the best 22 player combination that the duo could have envisioned together. And even though it seems like chunks of it are not working as envisioned, these are <em>Brad and Darryl&#8217;s guys</em>. If you worked in any job and put together your dream team, you&#8217;d probably be a bit hesitant to tweak it if it wasn&#8217;t working because of your particular affinity (or familiarity bias) to the people on your team.</p>
<p>But when you <em>do</em> finally think &#8220;Okay, let&#8217;s mix things up,&#8221; going for players with a track record makes some sense because they may be perceived as a less risky choice than a complete unknown because of having a track record. You know what that player can and cannot do, so it&#8217;s easier to find and cast players with track records for specific roles you think they can do rather than audition players with less experience. (Again, familiarity bias.)</p>
<p>It&#8217;s neither good nor bad, it&#8217;s merely a bit of (likely poorly-explained) psychology.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">At what point in the season will Treliving appear and finally do something smart to help this team out? Like, I don’t know…call up Phillips and/or Pelletier? Are they really taking a spot away from anyone deserving if they get a call-up?</p>
<p>&mdash; McPuffin (@McPuffi03177250) <a href="https://twitter.com/McPuffi03177250/status/1596953342265081856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>If the Flames decide to shake things up, it&#8217;s probably because they think they&#8217;ve exhausted avenues for finding solutions within the group of players currently on the NHL roster. As in: when they&#8217;ve tried to fix the things that they think they can fix, and if things still aren&#8217;t going as envisioned at that point.</p>
<p>I don&#8217;t know what that point would necessarily be, but it would probably be at a point where they&#8217;re far enough back in the standings that they throw the existing plan out the window and decide to get wacky.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">One more from me &#8211;<br />is this the most desperate the flames have looked for some fresh young talent to boost the team, since pre-Monahan/gaudreau?</p>
<p>&mdash; Veer Kahlon (@VeerFlames91) <a href="https://twitter.com/VeerFlames91/status/1597004153834045440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>I wouldn&#8217;t use the phrasing &#8220;desperate,&#8221; but perhaps? I&#8217;ll note that a lot of prominent mid-season call-ups in recent years – David Rittich in 2017-18, Andrew Mangiapane in 2018-19 and Dillon Dube in 2019-20 – came when there was a very specific role that needed to be filled due to injury or poor performance, and these guys were the obvious choices to try out.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a lot easier to tell, say, Rittich, &#8220;Hey, we need you to start a road game once every 10 days&#8221; than &#8220;Hey, we need you to fix the team.&#8221; Bringing in a new face to save the season is a recipe for failure. Bringing in a new face to fulfill a specific, well-defined function can work (and has in the past).</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Will they ever win again</p>
<p>&mdash; French Fry (@French_Fry00) <a href="https://twitter.com/French_Fry00/status/1596972645416771584?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 27, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>Perhaps as soon as this week.</p>
<div>
<h2><a href="https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1664849123732000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0nJWtUnBBjohyTJjZey5uA">MAILBAG PRESENTED BY CANADA SNOWBOARD </a></h2>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-100786" src="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada.png" alt="" width="1176" height="1418" srcset="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada.png 1176w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada-249x300.png 249w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada-849x1024.png 849w, https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada-768x926.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1176px) 100vw, 1176px" /></p>
<p>Experience a world-class mash-up of snowboarding and style, right here in Alberta. A heightened fan experience grants you front-row seats to watch the best snowboarders go head-to-head in the largest stadium Big Air contest Canada has ever seen. <a href="https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1664849123732000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0nJWtUnBBjohyTJjZey5uA">Get your tickets here.</a></p>
</div>

We're a quarter into the 2022-23 regular season schedule, and the Calgary Flames are .500 and fans seem stressed. To check in on the vibes, we delved into our weekly mailbag.



(We received a few questions that sorta all hit the same themes, so we cherry-picked a few that were more or less representative of how everybody seemed to be feeling.)

https://twitter.com/VeerFlames91/status/1597003897302024192

I haven't had a long chat with Brad Treliving about this recently, so I won't profess to know <em>exactly</em> what he's thinking or believes.

But, here's my theory, and hear me out: this is the group that Treliving put together, with a pretty good amount of input from Darryl Sutter. Think of it this way: this is the recipe that these guys put together as a tandem. They each have their own precise ideas of what a championship team looks like – how they play on the ice and the types of players involved – and Treliving's put together the best approximation of that shared understanding they have, within the constraints of the salary cap.

Aside from Oliver Kylington's unplanned absence, this is probably the best 22 player combination that the duo could have envisioned together. And even though it seems like chunks of it are not working as envisioned, these are <em>Brad and Darryl's guys</em>. If you worked in any job and put together your dream team, you'd probably be a bit hesitant to tweak it if it wasn't working because of your particular affinity (or familiarity bias) to the people on your team.

But when you <em>do</em> finally think "Okay, let's mix things up," going for players with a track record makes some sense because they may be perceived as a less risky choice than a complete unknown because of having a track record. You know what that player can and cannot do, so it's easier to find and cast players with track records for specific roles you think they can do rather than audition players with less experience. (Again, familiarity bias.)

It's neither good nor bad, it's merely a bit of (likely poorly-explained) psychology.

https://twitter.com/McPuffi03177250/status/1596953342265081856

If the Flames decide to shake things up, it's probably because they think they've exhausted avenues for finding solutions within the group of players currently on the NHL roster. As in: when they've tried to fix the things that they think they can fix, and if things still aren't going as envisioned at that point.

I don't know what that point would necessarily be, but it would probably be at a point where they're far enough back in the standings that they throw the existing plan out the window and decide to get wacky.

https://twitter.com/VeerFlames91/status/1597004153834045440

I wouldn't use the phrasing "desperate," but perhaps? I'll note that a lot of prominent mid-season call-ups in recent years – David Rittich in 2017-18, Andrew Mangiapane in 2018-19 and Dillon Dube in 2019-20 – came when there was a very specific role that needed to be filled due to injury or poor performance, and these guys were the obvious choices to try out.

It's a lot easier to tell, say, Rittich, "Hey, we need you to start a road game once every 10 days" than "Hey, we need you to fix the team." Bringing in a new face to save the season is a recipe for failure. Bringing in a new face to fulfill a specific, well-defined function can work (and has in the past).

https://twitter.com/French_Fry00/status/1596972645416771584

Yes.

Perhaps as soon as this week.
<div>
<h2><a href="https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1664849123732000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0nJWtUnBBjohyTJjZey5uA">MAILBAG PRESENTED BY CANADA SNOWBOARD </a></h2>
<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-100786" src="https://publish.flamesnation.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/10/Snowboard-Canada.png" alt="" width="1176" height="1418" />

Experience a world-class mash-up of snowboarding and style, right here in Alberta. A heightened fan experience grants you front-row seats to watch the best snowboarders go head-to-head in the largest stadium Big Air contest Canada has ever seen. <a href="https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ticketmaster.ca/the-style-experience-fis-snowboard-big-edmonton-alberta-12-10-2022/event/11005D1ECC2951C3&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1664849123732000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0nJWtUnBBjohyTJjZey5uA">Get your tickets here.</a>

</div>

FlamesNation Mailbag: 21 games down, 61 to go

Recent articles from Ryan Pike

Breaking News