Follow Colin on Twitter! Follow @ColinDJD With all the new and shiny toys acquired by the Calgary Flames of late, it often becomes easy for fans to forget about their older toys left sitting in the closet waiting for their chance to be pulled out again.
Once thought to be the Flames “next best thing…, forward Sven Baertschi has arguably fallen down the ranks in terms of soon to be ready, high profile prospects. That said, it’s important for fans to not completely close the door on prospects who may not be developing at the pace which they’d like to see.
At only 21 years of age, Baertschi is still very much young and has a lot of learning to do yet. There are parts of his game which his coaches and GM’s have stressed need improvement, however there has always been one quality that has been undeniable; his raw talent with the puck.
Having now been pushed around between the AHL and NHL with somewhat high expectations from fans, Baertschi has been cast as a “disappointment… by perhaps too many. Coming out of the WHL with 94 points in 47 games, most expected this young forward to “light it up…, as they say, at the NHL level.
To date, Baertschi has played 51 NHL games and registered 24 points, and all things considered, it hasn’t been terrible so far. Sure he could stand to amass a few extra points and show some added confidence, but if we all recall the last string of NHL games of which he partook, it wasn’t his confidence or offensive opportunities that lacked, it was the rest of his game. Let's call it the early Phil Kessel disease - far too one dimensional.
To be a complete NHL player, coaches expect you to not only create offensive chances and back-check when they don’t go your way, but also to have strong defensive zone coverage and the ability to shift the play in your favour. This is where Sven struggled. He often waited for the puck and or play to come to him, and while he would generally create some chances when it did, he didn’t offer much in terms of a complete game.
As displayed last season, this Calgary Flames squad is going to be tough to play against by being strong in both ends of the ice. The Flames have high hopes for this young forward, but he was sent down the AHL to try and round out his overall game and there appears to be some positive feedback coming in that respect.
“I might have been as guilty as anyone. Sven had such success early, and I expected so much — and maybe it was unrealistic,… Conroy said. “Moving forward, I don’t think we want to put all those expectations on him, because it is such a jump to play in the NHL. And then, to be a star in the NHL is even another step.
“But I think he’s going about it the right way. He’s down there, he’s got a good attitude, he’s working hard, and he’s with the other young guys, and they’re kind of feeding off each other. That’s all part of becoming a pro.
“He’s gone through some good times and some bad times. Now, looking toward next year, he has to think, ‘What do I have to do to be on the Calgary Flames?’ This is going to be a huge summer for him.
“He’s gotta dedicate himself, and he’s gotta come in here and show us, ‘Hey, I don’t want to be in the minors anymore.’ …
At the end of the day, the Flames continue to be in a position where they have time and patience with players like Sven. That said, with the introduction of guys like Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, and Sam Bennett into the organization, having a well-rounded version of Sven Baertschi in a year or two could be something special.
There is plenty to be excited about in Cow town, and provided that the Flames management group can remain patient with some of these players (cough cough - Jankowski), this group could be on a very similar path as the Colorado Avalanche in a few short years.
Thanks for reading!