Welcome to Calgary Old Friend

The day Todd left Vancouver was the day that I became his biggest fan. My dream was that one day I would see him in a Flaming Red 'C' and as of earlier this week my dreams came true. Everyone looks at the negatives of Todd...ie. Todd is this, Todd is that...but no one ever stops to think about the good stuff he does, the reason why, at one point, he was one of the leagues premiere power forwards.

So lets get a few negatives out of the way. Todd likes taking stupid penalties. I'm not denying it, I'm not going to beat around the bush, or doll it up so it sounds nice; Todd can be a moron at times. However, I think now that he is on a team with solid leadership with the likes of Jarome and Robyn, a crazy coach that will lock him in a cage (like he did with Kristian Huselius), and a business only GM he will settle down and figure out how to play smart hockey.

The other issue with Todd is his reputation. No one likes him. He was, at one point, the number one bad guy when it came to Flames fans and now he is one of us. I doubt that the Flames fans will boo him in our own house but I know that as soon as they take the show on the road the boo birds will come out every time he touches the puck. And you know what the best way is to shut them up? Put some points on the board. If Todd scores a goal on opening night then all the naysayers in Cowtown will think he is the second coming of Lanny McDonald. And if he just sticks to his game people will get tired of booing him. Plus, who could boo a guy that could potentially be playing on the same line as the greatest hockey player in the league (yes, that would be my boy, Iggy).

Now the good stuff. Todd has a hot wife....No, I'm kidding (though he does). Todd is a big boy. However, from what I understand he has shed a few pounds (around 25 lbs). This makes him much more mobile than he was before. With the way things are going in the NHL you can't have heavy guys out there because the younger, faster players will skate circles around you. Loosing these few pounds should help him keep up with Iggy or Lombo (depending on whether he's playing line one or two) but he's still pretty big so he's still the go to guy when room needs to be cleared for the guys with softer hands.

Another interesting point is the fact that Todd WANTS to play in Canada again. Sure, he could have gone to some backwater team like Nashville, Atlanta, Columbus, or Vancouver but he didn't. He came to a market where hockey is number one and from the moment he steps onto the ice people are going to criticize and he seems fine with that. He claims it will make him play better and I do hope it really elevates his game.

I'm sure when it came time to sign Todd it wasn't all willy-nilly. Darryl is a smart man and knows what he's doing. He most likely wouldn't pick up Todd if he didn't feel he could have something to offer. Darryl has got us this far so it's no time to be second guessing him now.

I am really looking forward to the start of the new season. The Flames have really improved their team with a bit more scoring and a lot more size. Lets wait till opening night at see how it goes.

And in the immortal words of the newest Calgary Flame "It is what it is...."