Zadorov calls out Flames teammates for their individualistic approach

The season may only be six games in, but Nikita Zadorov is not impressed with what he has seen from his Calgary Flames teammates so far.

After dropping each of their past two outings to see their record drop to 2-3-1 on the year, Zadorov spoke with reporters ahead of Tuesday night’s game versus the New York Rangers. The outspoken Russian defenceman wasn’t shy when giving his assessment of what has gone wrong so far.

“The main thing is we’re just not working as a unit. We have too many individuals playing as themselves,” Zadorov said. “We have to figure out if we wanna play as a team or play as our own guy.

“Last season was different. It was Darryl [Sutter]. Now there’s no Darryl, so there’s no excuses.”

These comments certainly raised some eyebrows among Flames fans, but Zadorov has never been afraid to speak his mind. That isn’t something new since he arrived in Calgary, either, as he was vocal during his stints with the Buffalo Sabres, Colorado Avalanche, and Chicago Blackhawks. Simply put, he calls it how he sees it.

Zadorov also spoke in the offseason regarding Sutter’s firing, saying that he enjoyed having the 65-year-old as his coach, but believed that given the state of the locker room, the team needed to move in a different direction.

Zadorov clearly believes that his team needs to play as a better five-man group moving forward, and they will have a chance to start doing that tonight, as they are preparing to take on the New York Rangers at 7:45 pm MT. It will be a difficult outing against a Rangers team that has found the back of the net 15 times in five games this season, but one that the Flames are capable of winning if they can put together a full 60 minutes.

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