The Big Monday Thing - Tkachuk Forever, Eichel Never
we always loved you Matthew, please sign a long term contract extension to show up the haters
We saw the worst authors add the most bungled finishing touches to the concluding chapters of the Jack Eichel Fiasco this week, and unlike any three act narrative worth its salt, while the climax was a fast paced thrill ride that kept us glued to the page, the ending oh, man…sucked? We were fed countless factoids passed off as insider information from just about every single source you’ve ever heard of, whether they were reputable or if they were Jimmy Murphy, and it was hard to get a read on just what was happening. We all tucked ourselves into bed one night thinking Matthew Tkachuk was off to Buffalo, and Jack Eichel was going to don a Flaming C jersey with his trademark #99 on the back, only to wake up to a Shamylanian ending, all the hype twisting and devolving into a dull thud that faded out faster than the amount of time it takes you to wonder if Kevyn Adams is going to keep his job.
In the end, all I can say for certain is Matthew Tkachuk is NOT Peyton Krebs. Any conclusions we can draw beyond that remain to be seen.
Meanwhile, Daniel Tcakzuk’s favourite son remains one of our own, and like the beautiful, flawless angel he is, young Matthew took very little time this week reminding us of just how great we have it with him around. I think tibs said it best:
We’ll probably talk about it more this week, but I was convinced Jack Eichel was coming to Calgary, but he didn’t, and in the end, I’m relieved? Yeah, it would be dope as fuck to have Jack Eichel, but he doesn’t make us hold up a boombox outside his bedroom window. Now, let’s go stab people for Matthew Tkachuk. He’s earned it.
The Week of: November 1st-7th (spooky season is here!)
Results From Past Week: Look, you knew this team wasn’t going to just keep getting it done. 6 game win streaks are great and all, but runs like that only exist to come to an end. That’s what makes them great. But what if you could lose games and still pick up points? Wouldn’t that be something?
I only ask because the Flames now have points in ten straight games, and that’s a pretty fine consolation prize. After dropping two straight contests in overtime against Nashville and Dallas, matches in which you could very readily suggest the boys in red were the dominant team, Calgary topped the week off with one of the funniest 6-0 shitkickings of the New York Rangers you will ever see.
The team might be good. Can’t say for sure yet.
Flames Overall Record: 7-1-3, 17 pts
Standings: 2nd place in the Pacific Division, 3rd in the Western Conference. Bit of a dip in the standings on account of only getting the loser point in two out of three games this week, but at least they’re only trailing to perennial powerhouses Edmonton and St. Louis. I’m sure this is how the standings will shake out as the season comes to a close.
Soundtrack: Hostile Architecture - Every Time I Die
From ETID’s latest release Radical, Hostile Architecture is a track, lead singer Keith Buckley explains, about what life would be like if Matthew Tkachuk was not a Calgary Flame. That’s what he said. It was in an interview.
What We Liked:
Outside of that weird little luck-fueled run in 2015, fans of this team are pre-conditioned to about, conservatively, a decade of very lackluster play from a team that sure seemed to roll over and die under the slightest hint of duress. If the Flames allowed a goal early in the game (yes; lots), on most nights, you probably could pack it in right there and no one could blame you. Giving the team your attention anytime after that point was difficult, because they seemed to lack the drive and talent to realistically do much of anything about it. Why would you be expected to sit through that? Have you seen TV these days? It’s a golden age.
Fast forward to 2021, and those old days feel like a distant memory. I alluded to it earlier, but even though the Flames dropped a couple of decisions this past week, the performance was still very encouraging. Yeah, it veers into moral victory territory, but what we’re seeing from this team is an ability to claw its way back into a game if they fall behind early, allow a last minute goal, what have you. They were so absurdly better than the Predators this week, to the point where all you could do was laugh when Nashville scored in overtime, and what might have been a turbulent time surrounding the team in the wake of all the Eichel news, the Flames laughed off maybe their worst period of hockey all season against Dallas before wresting back control of that one as well. Again, the loss in the extra frame stings, but you certainly don’t feel a pattern developing here. I think this team seems to have a better hold over its fate than a lot of previous versions of itself, and the drubbing of the Rangers really shines a light on all of this.
We’re told ad nauseum that a Darryl Sutter hockey team is one that is obsessed with identity, and while that feels like - and is - an empty talking point for the media to fill camera time with, if a Sutter team takes those elements attributed to “identity teams” and merges it with talent, you might really have something here. There are a couple of Los Angeles Kings etchings on the Stanley Cup that speak to that.
What We Would Prefer Not To See:
That first period against the Stars was unquestonably abysmal. It was a return to form, something we’ll call Ward-esque, and given how results this season have been decidedly anything but that, no matter how accustomed to it we are, it was still somehow jarring to watch.
Also Jacob Markstrom kinda played like shit in that game. Not worried about it.
Really that’s about it. Not much to complain about from a Flames perspective. How weird is that?
Enemy of the Week:
From the “well I didn’t see that one coming” department, apparently it’s Adam Fox? This one came out of nowhere.
I know WHY they were booing him all game, but it felt like a pretty tenuous reach from the Saddledome faithful. At first. We here at the Scorchstack are adamant labour advocates, and believe Fox used what little power he had effectively to leverage himself into a position to get what he wants. He was not particularly enamoured at the idea of being a Calgary Flame, which, you know, I totally get. So it felt a little cheap to pile hate onto the shoulders of maybe the best defenseman in the league right now. After all, I feel like most of the resentment in the Adam Fox saga should lie at the feet of Brad Treliving, who certainly could have poked around at some more functional trade opportunities for the now reigning Norris Trophy winner instead of shoehorning him into a trade that sent another guy who SHOULD be a Norris Trophy winner out of town. But I get it.
It was kinda fun by the end though, so fuck it. Sometimes a guy generates just enough heel heat and the crowd runs with it, which is what happened before the first period even ended. That’s how the best stories start. It’s organic. So with that in mind, we’ll see you in hell, Adam Fox.
What Happens Next:
The Flames will welcome the San Jose Sharks to town, the culmination of a five game homestand, before heading back East for another road trip, this time with three matches against each of the Canadian teams Eastern Standard Time has to offer. With the exception of the matchup against a juggernaut Ottawa Senators, all of these games seem exceedingly winnable, and if the Flames continue to roll over teams the way they are, I suspect if things go well enough one of these teams will have to fire a coach or a manager or like trade Willie Nylander to his hometown Calgary Flames.
Kinda hope it’s that last one.
Dudes Rock of The Week:
There are about 7 Stanley Cup rings and likely somewhere in the range of $30 million in poorly researched retirement investment strategies in this one photo.
It dawns on me that if the Flames can win even one more Stanley Cup, we may never hear anyone say the name Mike Vernon ever again.
Unrelated Fact:
Starting on November 3rd, I felt like I had to start counting how many individual Christmas commercials I’ve seen. So far, 6. The War on Christmas starts earlier, by me, every year. That’s too many commercials. I won’t stand for it. I won’t do anything, but I won’t stand for it.
See You Next Week:
Amazing to think this is the last image we will ever remember of seeing Brett Ritchie while he was still alive.