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Friday, November 26, 1999
Savard's learning
At times, he's been kept behind at practice, alone on the ice, face-to-face with head coach Brian Sutter.
Intensity.
Responsibility.
Dedication.
The words that Sutter lived by have been drilled into Marc Savard day after day since his arrival from the New York Rangers in an off-season trade.
It remains a work in progress -- the hard-nosed coach and the soft player. But more and more, it is a work which appears to be producing results.
Last night, Savard scored the key first goal for the Flames -- a reply to the Hawks' opening lead just a minute and a half earlier. It got the Flames to overtime and another win.
After a seven-points-in-four-games streak earlier this month, Savard has now quietly worked his way up to third in team scoring, second in assists. While the numbers are improving, Savard is still not the impact player the Flames were hoping they were getting.
But he's a mile ahead of where he was a month ago. Savard may never know how close the supposed No. 1 centre was to not even playing in Calgary a month ago.
"We looked long and hard at sending him down to the minors," says Sutter. "We didn't have that option so he stayed and was able to learn here. But Marc has never been a guy who was relied on to make a difference every night.
"He has lived solely on his offence and the rest of his game wasn't a concern. He didn't have respect for playing away from the puck and as a result, teammates couldn't have respect for him."
That lack of respect also stemmed from the fact Savard showed up in Calgary in the worst shape of any player on the team. And this was supposed to be the guy to lead them offensively.
You can imagine how Sutter reacted.
"We've talked one on one a lot," says Savard of his intense tete-a-tetes with Sutter. "He wants me to play harder, particularly in our own zone, and I think that has been reflected in the past few games.
"I have a bit of an attitude too and I need to get under people's skins and he wants me to do that and compete every night and be consistent. I think I've learned to do that but I can still get better at it."
Against the Hawks, he centered a line of underachievers with Jarome Iginla, who has taken so long to rebound from an early-season holdout, and Andrei Nazarov, who has never really shown up consistently, on the wings.
"Savy has carried that line for the last 10 days," says Sutter.
Savard's personal wake-up call came early this season when Sutter pulled him from the lineup for no reason other than to send a message that his effort wasn't good enough.
The next game, Savard responded with two points. He didn't know it then, but that response saved him and the organization the embarrassment of sending their supposed No. 1 centre to the minors.
His line now is getting plenty of opportunity to prove itself and was the best Calgary unit last night.
But last week, Savard's defensive lapse was the spark that ignited Sutter's fury in Phoenix. The forward blew a checking assignment on the Coyotes' Jeremy Roenick, an error which ended up in the back of the Flames net as the game-winner.
But Sutter has no choice but to show faith in Savard.
There are no big trades or call-ups that are going to change the fact that it is the present players who must make a difference.
A quarter of the way into the season, this team was on pace for the worst record in franchise history.
Since then, they've put a streak together of three wins.
Modest, yes. But for the fragile confidence of young players such as Savard, it is a building block for more success.
Slowly, one meeting at a time, Sutter is impressing intensity, responsibility and dedication into a 22-year-old who has to potential to be an important part of this club for a long time.
"Sure I played a different game, but I can have patience with him. But in doing that, you have to be demanding as well. You can't let people off the hook.
"We have a different player now than the start of the season. Marc Savard is learning to be accountable."
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