Puck stops here
Flames' Sutter chats with CNNSI.com fans
Posted: Monday June 22, 1998 10:51 PM
ATLANTA (CNN/SI) -- The NHL has had its share of Sutters.
The list may continue to grow over the next decade.
Calgary Flames coach
Brian Sutter and his brothers Darryl, head coach of the San Jose Sharks, Brent,
Duane, Rich and Ron all skated in the NHL.
Brian Sutter's 18-year-old son, Shaun, may be next.
The 5-foot-11 1/2, 160-pound center is ranked 190th among North American
players rated by the NHL's Central Scouting Service for Saturday's NHL
draft. The service rated over 800 players from the United States, Canada
and Europe for the draft, which begins at 12:45 P.M. EDT at the Marine
Midland Arena in Buffalo, New York.
Brian Sutter talked about his son's chances, the top prospects for the
draft, the Stanley Cup playoffs and his team Monday night during a live
chat on CNNSI.com.
Here's a transcript of the discussion:
Host: Who are the top prospects for the draft?
Sutter: The top two or three prospects for the draft would probably be
[Vincent] Lecavalier and [David] Legwand. There are two top defensemen
available -- Bryan Allen from Oshawa [of the Ontario Hockey League] and
Brad Stuart from the Regina Pats {of the Western Hockey League].
Host: Who do you think will be picked first?
Sutter: That's hard to say, obviously the first few that I mentioned will
be in demand. I don't know who [each team] will look at. There's a Russian
that is a good defenseman [Dimitri Kalinin] and the first few that I
mentioned."
Host: Where's the talent level for this draft?
Sutter: The talent level seems to drop off after the top few picks. It's
the homework that the teams will have to do, to find the players that have
the heart and what works.
Host: With expansion, will there be enough talent to go around?
Sutter: I can't answer what will happen a year down the road. But this
year there is Nashville, and this is the first time that only one team
comes in. They call it a draft, but Nashville gets their pick after each
team protects their players. They could take up to five or six free agents.
It's going to be an interesting move.
Ron: Do you think the Flames will draft your son Shaun on
Saturday?
Sutter: I don't really know that. I know he will be drafted somewhere. He
knows the game well. He's a good player, but I really don' t know. I'll be
proud when they announce his name, wherever it is announced.
Ron: Are there anymore Sutters who will play in the NHL
someday?
Sutter: Shaun is going to get drafted this year, after that, there are a
few others but they are youngsters. They are a long way away from the
NHL.
Rick: Who will the Flames take?
Sutter: That's a tough question for a coach to answer. I haven't seen
everyone play -- you would be best to ask a scout for a team.
Rick: How much input do you have on draft day?
Sutter: Not very much. Most coaches don't have that. I deal with what is
in my hand -- what is in front of me. I have a wish list, of course, but I
have to work with what I have.
NickG: How do you think Darryl did last year with the Sharks?
Sutter: He obviously went into a situation that needed to be turned
around. There are some advantages and some disadvantages to that. He had a
veteran hockey club -- that's an advantage that we didn't have here. That
means a lot down the road.
Calgary: Who are the Flames exposing for the expansion draft? Will Joel Bouchard and
[Rick] Tabaracci be among the notables?
Sutter: It will be released later in the day.
Host: What should expansion teams look for first -- defense or
offense?
Sutter: I think if you look back in the past at the New York Islanders, they
took [defenseman] Denis Potvin in that draft. You build from goaltender and
work your way up through defense and to forward. You can see how it's like
a baseball game. You have to watch the development of the players
taken.
Tom: What were the big surprises of the Stanley Cup playoffs?
Sutter: I don't think there were a lot of surprises. Detroit was there
before. They had the challenge of repeating. Washington was there for the
first time, but they had the most veteran team in the semifinals. Dallas
was in the final four and they deserved to be. Buffalo had the best goalie
in the world. With the final four, I don't find any surprises. We are a
young team and didn't have the experience that those other teams had. We
ran out of depth at the end with injuries.
Calgary: Do you think that Ken Wregget,
Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Tyler Moss can carry
the load for the Flames next season?
Sutter: Let's put it this way -- [Wregget] should give us some stability.
Last year we had 51 games that we won or lost by one goal. So consistent
goaltending is important.
TheRock: What do you think of the direction the Maple Leafs are heading
in?
Sutter: I couldn't honestly answer that one -- I'm not close to their
organization. But I have a lot of respect for their leadership.
BARFLY316: How come the TV ratings were so bad for the
playoffs?
Sutter: It's simple. There's ratings, then the playoffs dragged on
forever. Even people in the NHL lost interest. Many of the players became
extremely tired with the level of intensity. They dragged this on for
ratings in the United States. And it suffered for it.
Ron: What did you think of Detroit's run?
Sutter: The question mark was Chris Osgood in
goal. But he showed how well he could do with extremely strong
performances.
SMShujah: How do you feel about Valeri Bure joining
your roster?
Sutter: He's a young guy with a lot of speed and a lot of natural
ability. He has a lot of determination and a lot of pride in what he is
doing. More will be expected from him next year.
Ron: Who is the best player in the NHL?
Sutter: That's a tough one. There are a lot of guys at the top of the
list. Teemu
Selanne had a great year. [Jaromir] Jagr. [Steve] Yzerman. Wayne Gretzky is
still a great player.
Bob: Who would you pick to start an expansion team?
Sutter: The top goalie available, then defense and then the forwards.
That's how you build. That's where you would look.
Ron: Did the Olympics make the season too long in your opinion?
Sutter: No, they had nothing to do with lengthening the year. What did it
was TV and the playoffs.
Calgary: Do you think the Flames will make an effort to trade up in the
draft to get a center like David Legwand?
Sutter: I know a lot has been discussed. But anything is possible this
week.
NickG: Did anyone particularly catch your eye during Saint John's
playoff run?
Sutter: Certainly, we sent a number of people back to play there. They
may have had a more veteran team than we did. Guys like [Ladislav] Kohn and
[Marty] Murray.
Ron: Who do you see as the big favorites next year?
Sutter: I don't think it'll change much from this year. Two of the top
teams this year that didn't go on were ourselves and Vancouver. We were not
far off. There were only four teams at .500 that were better than us.
Greg: What do you think about Andy Moog's
retirement?
Sutter: I think Andy had a tremendous career. His record was pretty darn
good this year, and I know some criticized his performance later on, but he
lost to the best goalie in the world in Buffalo.
Ron: Do you think Marty Murray has a
future within this organization?
Sutter: Marty was given the opportunity early this year. If he was bigger
he would be among the best players in this league. He has a lot of heart
and determination, and we expect him to come to camp with that next
year.
Ron: What are your opinions on recent Flame signees Darrel Scoville
and Chris Clark?
Sutter: Clark wasn't your typical college player. He worked hard and plays
with a lot of heart. I didn't see Scoville play. They both have a bit of
size and are good prospects.
Ron: Were you impressed by the progress made by both Denis Gauthier and
Chris
O'Sullivan this spring?
Sutter: Denis probably would have played all year if we had gotten off to
a better start. He moves the puck well, and has good size. He came a long
way as a player this year. Mr. O'Sullivan played well, but he seemed to
have problems at defense. He cranked up his performance during the
playoffs, though. We expect that we'll see more of him next year.
Ron: Do you think any more Canadian hockey teams will move to the
USA?
Sutter: That's something as Canadians that is always a concern. We
certainly don't want to see that happen again down the road. It was tough
to lose teams in Winnipeg and Quebec. The teams are so vital to Canada's
economy.
Bob: Will Hockey ever become a huge sport in the U.S. -- on the level
with football?
Sutter: We hope so down the road. We are expanding to new markets that we
hope will bring a lot of new people in to watch. A key thing is to upgrade
everything with the fans and make sure they are satisfied.
Greg: What do the Flames have to do to make the playoffs next
year?
Sutter: There's no question that our top concern is more consistent goal
production. We've got to add a point man to help our power play, and we
need consistent goaltending.
Host: Thanks for being here, Mr. Sutter. That was our last question,
folks. Thanks for a great chat!
Sutter: Take care folks, and thanks!
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