Last week I went over the top five best picks of the Calgary Flames in franchise history. This week we turn the script and look at the five worst concept choices. Although we fans have been spoiled with Craig Conroy in the last few designs, there have been some doozies.
The placement criteria are based on where they were taken, which means that someone could have a better career, but because they have been set up so much higher, they are higher on this list. It is also about their time with the flames. However, their career outside is taken into account to a lesser extent. On the way to Europe, especially early, the ranking of a player will harm.
Before I am in the top five, we first look at an honorable mention.
Honorous mention – Matt Pelech
Matt Pelech was generally prepared in the NHL design of 2005 by the Flames. Pelech is the older brother of Adam Pelech and cousin of Mike Gillis. Pelech was mentioned as both a defender and a right wing player and was never anything special, even during the junior. Instead, it was his 6’4 ″, 236 LBS frame that intrigued the flames.
That would not affect him, because he only played five games with the Flames in the 2008-2009 season. Pelech only registered three points in those games. The extensive defender spent the following two seasons with the Abbotsford Heat in the AHL before he went to the San Jose Sharks. He played eight games with the sharks and spent most of his time in the AHL, with a short period in the Echl. He spent time in several European competitions before he retired in 2020 as captain of the Belfast Giants in the Eihl.
If you think that sounds bad, you just wait.
#5 Kris Chucko
Starting the top five is Kris Chucko from Burnaby, BC. The 39-year-old was a 24th general choice in 2004. In the 2008-2009 season, Chucko played his only two NHL matches, both with the Flames. Chucko was never able to record an NHL point and play the rest of his career in the AHL. It included Stints with the Abbotsford Heat, Quad City Flames and the Omaha AK-SAR-Ben Knights.
Chucko retired after the 2010–11 season after a serious concussion in October that season. After the season ended, he withdrew from the competition, only seven years after he was prepared. Nowadays, Chucko lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, who works at Old National Bank as a company bank manager.
#4 Brent Krahn
Taking a keeper in the top ten normally does not work so well. The same can be said for when the Flames Brent Krahn generally names in the NHL design of 2000. Mention on 6’5 ″, 214 pounds, he fitted in the account of exactly what you wanted to protect your net. The only problem is that Krahn struggled. The flames called him twice; However, he never played a game with them.
He only played one NHL match with the Dallas Stars in the 2008-2009 season. In that match, Krahn scored three goals of six shots, a goals against nine and a .667 savings percentage. Krahn spent his career divided between the AHL and Echl. He retired after the 2010–11 season and put an end to a long career, just not with the flames.
#3 hours erixon
Someone who is currently playing is 34-year-old Tim Erixon. The 23rd general choice in the NHL design of 2009, Erixon did not realize his first round status. He never played a match in the Flames organization, which played in Sweden before moving to North America, and then for the New York Rangers in the 2011-12 season. A pick in the first round wasted to someone who has never played in your organization, goes immediately to the top three.
Erixon was in and out of the NHL and the Ahl. His stints in the NHL were short and he spent most of his time in the AHL. He moved the last game in the NHL in the 2014–15 season with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2019-2020 season.
#2 Rico Girl
On the way to retired players, we have Rico Fata, a sixth general choice in 1998. He played a total of 27 games with the Calgary Flames, with some time in the AHL with the Saint John Flames. He only had one point with the Flames, which came during his first Stint in the 1989–90 season. After three seasons with the organization, he was sent to the New York Rangers.
He still had five seasons in North America to play for the Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Atlanta Thrashers and Washington Capitals organizations. He moved to Germany for a year and a half before he went to Switzerland for five more seasons. In his last season in 2013-14 he played in Liiga in Finland before hunging his skates.
#1 Daniel Tkaczuk
My choice for the worst choice of concept in Flames History is the sixth general choice in 1997, Daniel Tkaczuk. His first full season within the organization was in the AHL in Saint John. The next season he played his only 19 NHL matches, all with the Flames. He placed 11 points – four goals, seven assists – but was sent back and never returned. He played two more seasons in North America with various franchises before he went to Europe.
Tkaczuk spent a year in Finland before he went to Milan and played in Italy. He spent three seasons in Germany before trying a comeback in North America. In the 2009–10 season he joined the Charlotte Checkers in the Echl. He was quickly sent on loan to three different teams in the AHL: the Syracuse Crunch, the Rochester Americans and the Hartford Wolf Pack. The following season he played in both Austria and in England before called it on his play career.
Character problems and a concussion played both roles in the failure of Tkaczuk in the NHL. A player who had potential was out of the competition as fast as he had arrived.
If you think someone has been left from the list, let us know in the comments!
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