PR - Flames

This season has been a relatively quiet season for the Atlanta Flames. They
came into the new season boasting a very strong team. Flames GM, Patrick Amantea
had high hopes for potential super star Rick Nash BUT once again, "tubby" came
into camp quite out of shape and it showed on the ice. While he has world class
skill, his endurance was below that of an ECHL player. Hopes for Rick Nash
quickly shifted and his presence on the first line was surpressing the team.
Finally, Patrick told Nash that he was to be traded and that was final. Coming back
the Flames acquired a true top end sniper to fit perfectly on the side of
Gaborik and Michalek. So far he has become the Flames leading goal scorer and looked
very very good. The other part of the deal dealt the Flames a 1st round pick,
which will most likely be a top 3 pick (potentially 1st overall). It will be
interesting to see what happens with that pick, as the Flames boast quite a strong
farm system (even though their farm recor
d does not show it).

On a side note, the Flames are getting the reputation around the league as
being bullies. The Flames boast quite a physical team. They lead the league with
most hits and are very tough to play against. This was clearly evident in the
previous game vs the Apocalypse where they managed to injure 3 players and take
out Tessier (their leading scorer) for the rest of the year. This toughness
factor should bode well come playoff time when grit becomes huge.