#Flames head coach Geoff Ward on Tkachuk: “I feel at this point in time I have to defend my player. Was there intent there to put his skate on Scheifele? No. There was no intent. I understand what Paul is doing. He’s trying to get an elite player on our team suspended.”
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FlamesNation Top 25 of 2020: #22 — Geoff Ward: Maurice trying to get an elite player suspended

Photo credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
By Zach Laing
Dec 4, 2020, 16:00 ESTUpdated: Dec 4, 2020, 16:07 EST
Welcome to the yearly wrap up of the top read articles over the last year!
There was one, of many big stories that came out of the play-in round of the NHL’s return-to-play that circled around the Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets.
Matthew Tkachuk was surrounded in controversy after Mark Scheifele was injured after an awkward collision on the wall.
An article penned by FlamesNation editor Ryan Pike published on Aug. 2 saw Geoff Ward standing up for his player. It was the 22nd most-read article this year.
Here’s what Pike wrote adding in a few tweets of Ward’s defence:
Friends, it’s no secret that Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk is a good hockey player. It’s also no secret that he has a bit of a reputation as an outright pain in the backside for other teams. In his remarks to the media on Sunday afternoon, Flames interim coach Geoff Ward defended his player.
On Twitter: @zjlaing
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