Mark Giordano: confirmed credibility

(Calgary) Throughout the coming season, Mark Giordano will be referred to as the Norris Trophy holder.

Posted at 7:07 am

Donna Spencer
The Canadian Press

For the only player in the history of the Calgary Flames to have won this honor, this is a great motivation.

"You want to prove that this is not the story of a season," he said Monday. You want to improve yourself. When you look at the best players in the league, the thing that always comes up is consistency. I want to be this player, to know another good season. "

Giordano became only the fourth defenseman in 65 years to get his hands on this trophy after 35 years. The others are Nicklas Lidström, Doug Harvey and Al MacInnis. The conclusion of his speech at the NHL Gala in June – "Let's continue in this direction. I feel young. I feel fresh. – served as ammunition for his teammates and friends to tease him all summer long.

"I still get text messages with the 'fresh and young' hashtag every week, admitted Giordano, who turns 36 on October 3rd. (…) Friends have even made t-shirts with the hashtag. "

That Giordano feels young and fresh bodes well for the Flames' 2019-2020 season, his seventh as club captain.

The six-foot, 200-pound Torontonian led the Bettman circuit with a plus-39 differential last year. He finished second among defensemen with 17 goals and 57 assists. The Flames finished atop the West with a 107-point record, their best season since winning the Stanley Cup in 1989. They have lost in five games to the Colorado Avalanche in the first tower.

The summer did nothing to minimize Giordano's frustration.

"The way we were excluded is still hurting. We have not been able to impose our style of play. We have not been as aggressive as we can be. (…) Watching the rest of the series thinking that you can beat the teams still in the running does not help anymore. It is now up to us to move to another level. "

If the team fails to get along with the unrestricted free agent Matthew Tkachuk, who scored 34 goals in 2018-19, he will miss a big chunk of training.

"There is no doubt that it is important for our club," said Giordano de Tkachuk. He gives his 100% every night. I speak often. We try to laugh at the situation. It always gets better, but we hope it's sooner rather than later. "

This absence could be added to that of 20-year-old defender Juuso Valimaki. The first round pick in 2017 will miss the start of the campaign due to a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament of the knee, suffered in early August.

"The hard part is that you do not know how long you have to leave," Giordano said. Once in rehabilitation, he will get away. It has been difficult to hear this news because it is already an important part of our club. It will be for several years. "

The Flames have added two ex-Oilers to their training this summer: goalkeeper Cam Talbot and forward Milan Lucic. The Flames surrendered James Neal to the Oilers to win Lucic, a two-player deal that performed below expectations and earned a big salary.

"I played against Lucic for many seasons. He is a guy who can change the course of a match with a ton of experience. He will be a leader for our team, "said Giordano.