<p>The 2022-23 season is five days and two games in, and the Calgary Flames have been pretty good and gotten two positive results. As we await the third game, against Vegas on Tuesday night, let&#8217;s check in with our pals who have questions in the mailbag!</p>
<p></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Is the first line an issue, and how do you solve it. Give us names!!!</p>
<p>&mdash; Ryan Gee (@redricardo) <a href="https://twitter.com/redricardo/status/1581749364594470913?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>So far, the first line has been&#8230; fine. They haven&#8217;t dazzled, they haven&#8217;t been terrible. They&#8217;ve been merely fine. But the key to them becoming better than fine probably just lies with giving them more game reps. If they were getting caved in, I&#8217;d suggest switching it up a bit. But since they&#8217;ve been respectable, but not overly impressive, that suggests a baseline of collective competence and that can be built upon going forward.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hey Ryan. What happens on D when/if Kylington returns?</p>
<p>&mdash; The Anvil (@Michael28011649) <a href="https://twitter.com/Michael28011649/status/1581764264175755264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>We have no timelines for Oliver Kylington&#8217;s return, and just hope he&#8217;s doing well and working through whatever he&#8217;s working through.</p>
<p>That said, right now the Flames have a pretty solid three defensive pairings, with Noah Hanifin with Rasmus Andersson, MacKenzie Weegar with Chris Tanev, and Michael Stone with Nikita Zadorov. Where Kylington fits in will probably be something that&#8217;s dependent on how the team is playing at the time, and I imagine in the week or two prior to him becoming active again he&#8217;ll be skating with the team extensively and tried out at various spots during skates and practices. Kylington&#8217;s smarts, skating and ability to move the puck could slot him in well with just about any of the existing blueliners. It&#8217;ll be a challenge to work him in if everybody keeps playing well, but that&#8217;s a good problem for the Flames to have to deal with.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">thoughts on the fourth line</p>
<p>&mdash; Ayden (@Ayden5613) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ayden5613/status/1581831518481416198?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>So far, so good. I feel a little bad for Adam Ruzicka because the easiest path for him to get into the lineup is if somebody in the bottom six struggles mightily, but so far, so good. The fourth line was given a ton of offensive zone starts and played the Oilers&#8217; lesser lights on Saturday&#8230; and they took advantage of these situations and had a very strong game (including a goal). It&#8217;s a small sample size, but there are a lot of positives so far.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">When does Tre pull a trade to bring in top six winger, and what do believe it will cost?</p>
<p>&mdash; Mediocre Flames Fan (@tsolakis_george) <a href="https://twitter.com/tsolakis_george/status/1581748594931290112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>A top six winger probably costs a top four blueliner, and probably takes up the same amount of cap space. Because of that, I would imagine the Flames aren&#8217;t in any hurry to make a move, at least until they figure out where Oliver Kylington slots in. Plus, they need to figure out how their existing forward pieces fit together before figuring out what they need. I would imagine we don&#8217;t see anything substantial happen until December at the earliest.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">How many games do you let markstrom play? Assuming vladar is still playing well? 60?</p>
<p>&mdash; joe mason (@itsmejc2011) <a href="https://twitter.com/itsmejc2011/status/1581861200920743936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>If Darryl Sutter sticks to his plan of giving Dan Vladar 26 starts &#8211; one per week &#8211; that would put Jacob Markstrom at 56 starts this season. Both of those numbers feel about the right level of activity for each player.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">What is the optimal way the league should ref BoA games?  It seems inconsistent all the time.</p>
<p>&mdash; Brad Cook 🇨🇦 (@b_t_cook) <a href="https://twitter.com/b_t_cook/status/1581748228260667392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>The scheduling behind officiating assignments is really complex and has a lot of things to juggle, but I wish the league could have the same crew of referees work the entire season series &#8211; they aim to do this in the playoffs, with the same handful of referees and linesmen working the same series together. The travel and logistics would be an absolute hassle, which is probably why it doesn&#8217;t happen, but if the aim is consistency, having the same players and officials get a few games together would be helpful.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Will Stone get more ice time? Especially on the PP</p>
<p>&mdash; Brian Hunter (@Ominousflames) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ominousflames/status/1581748947387052032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>I really like Michael Stone in his current role. He is probably the next blueliner up for power play duty, though; he stepped in for Rasmus Andersson for a shift on Saturday in Edmonton.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Is this scheduled meeting of any major significance? <a href="https://t.co/JIi4co1Jyi">https://t.co/JIi4co1Jyi</a></p>
<p>&mdash; FLAMES SZN (@ChpWTD22) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChpWTD22/status/1581751248755527681?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 16, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>It&#8217;s a regularly scheduled meeting announced at the end of the last meeting in early September, but you don&#8217;t organize meetings if there aren&#8217;t any updates to provide. That said, expect a very brief public update and then the meeting to go in-camera as the committee discusses how administration and the third party have been nudging things along.</p>
<p>We won&#8217;t hear very much publicly until there&#8217;s something substantial to bring forward to City Council.</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>
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</div>

The 2022-23 season is five days and two games in, and the Calgary Flames have been pretty good and gotten two positive results. As we await the third game, against Vegas on Tuesday night, let's check in with our pals who have questions in the mailbag!



https://twitter.com/redricardo/status/1581749364594470913

So far, the first line has been... fine. They haven't dazzled, they haven't been terrible. They've been merely fine. But the key to them becoming better than fine probably just lies with giving them more game reps. If they were getting caved in, I'd suggest switching it up a bit. But since they've been respectable, but not overly impressive, that suggests a baseline of collective competence and that can be built upon going forward.

https://twitter.com/Michael28011649/status/1581764264175755264

We have no timelines for Oliver Kylington's return, and just hope he's doing well and working through whatever he's working through.

That said, right now the Flames have a pretty solid three defensive pairings, with Noah Hanifin with Rasmus Andersson, MacKenzie Weegar with Chris Tanev, and Michael Stone with Nikita Zadorov. Where Kylington fits in will probably be something that's dependent on how the team is playing at the time, and I imagine in the week or two prior to him becoming active again he'll be skating with the team extensively and tried out at various spots during skates and practices. Kylington's smarts, skating and ability to move the puck could slot him in well with just about any of the existing blueliners. It'll be a challenge to work him in if everybody keeps playing well, but that's a good problem for the Flames to have to deal with.

https://twitter.com/Ayden5613/status/1581831518481416198

So far, so good. I feel a little bad for Adam Ruzicka because the easiest path for him to get into the lineup is if somebody in the bottom six struggles mightily, but so far, so good. The fourth line was given a ton of offensive zone starts and played the Oilers' lesser lights on Saturday... and they took advantage of these situations and had a very strong game (including a goal). It's a small sample size, but there are a lot of positives so far.

https://twitter.com/tsolakis_george/status/1581748594931290112

A top six winger probably costs a top four blueliner, and probably takes up the same amount of cap space. Because of that, I would imagine the Flames aren't in any hurry to make a move, at least until they figure out where Oliver Kylington slots in. Plus, they need to figure out how their existing forward pieces fit together before figuring out what they need. I would imagine we don't see anything substantial happen until December at the earliest.

https://twitter.com/itsmejc2011/status/1581861200920743936

If Darryl Sutter sticks to his plan of giving Dan Vladar 26 starts - one per week - that would put Jacob Markstrom at 56 starts this season. Both of those numbers feel about the right level of activity for each player.

https://twitter.com/b_t_cook/status/1581748228260667392

The scheduling behind officiating assignments is really complex and has a lot of things to juggle, but I wish the league could have the same crew of referees work the entire season series - they aim to do this in the playoffs, with the same handful of referees and linesmen working the same series together. The travel and logistics would be an absolute hassle, which is probably why it doesn't happen, but if the aim is consistency, having the same players and officials get a few games together would be helpful.

https://twitter.com/Ominousflames/status/1581748947387052032

I really like Michael Stone in his current role. He is probably the next blueliner up for power play duty, though; he stepped in for Rasmus Andersson for a shift on Saturday in Edmonton.

https://twitter.com/ChpWTD22/status/1581751248755527681

It's a regularly scheduled meeting announced at the end of the last meeting in early September, but you don't organize meetings if there aren't any updates to provide. That said, expect a very brief public update and then the meeting to go in-camera as the committee discusses how administration and the third party have been nudging things along.

We won't hear very much publicly until there's something substantial to bring forward to City Council.
<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>

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FlamesNation Mailbag: Two games down, 80 to go

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