Claimed: A sit down with LaFlamme [1/2]

[Laflamme 376]

A sit down with LaFlamme

 

It seems in every article we tend to write, you hear it. It seems in any article anyone writes, you hear it. LaFlamme is not a household name overly in Seattle, or at least not when it comes to his skills or contributions. He hasn't really showed the fans, management or his teammates that he was the player they thought he'd become on draft day - however, despite the issues with training and development, we give him credit for still trying to become that guy for himself and the Bears. In fact, the only thing he may have become a household name for, and we say this was all the respect in the world, is being someone who constantly performs under expectations and constantly leaves fans yelling at their tv's "Fuck sakes, LaFlamme". Furthering onto the point, LaFlamme only has 18 points through 47 games this season and of those points, only 4 are goals. I guess you could say we understand the frustration of the fans and who knows, probably him too. While we just made that assumption, we finally got the opportunity to sit down with Xavier and ask him a couple Q's. HERE WE GO!

 

 

What are your thoughts on your career so far? Did you have higher expectations? Are you disappointed or happy? Back when being drafted, where did you envision yourself?

 

I'm not happy with the way my career is going so far, but how can I really complain? When you quit trying and training, can you really expect anything different? I'm half the player I should be and am man enough to take the blame for it. I know it may be harsh for some to see or hear, but it isn't for me. Not being a dick to myself - it is what it is. You could strongly say that I am disappointed. I don't want to be a guy who gets 18 points in 47 games. Of course I want to be someone the team can count on. Someone who hovers around the 0.8 to point per game totals. 

 

Where I thought I'd be? You know, I kind of just explained it. I want 30 goals a season and 30 assists at least to match. I don't NEED to be a point per game guy, but you know, that would be awesome too. If I'm hovering somewhere around that level - fuck yeah, but I'm not and that's something I've looked at, thought about and really, really want to change. Hopefully that's something you can expect as we fight through the final bits of the season and into the playoffs. 

 

Yeah, we see where you're coming from. I'm sure it gets frustrating. On a  team aspect though, how are things in Seattle? 

 

Good besides the fact that I'm struggling to get going once again. The guys are amazing and we really have a nice group of good guys in the locker room. Removing play personalities from it, we have some heavy fire power and that could be something that also takes away from my production. There's a lot of better players who are putting the puck at the net and get stronger chances because they're simply better. Management wise, dunno if you could find much better. I see the stigma of him sending tons of PM's maybe, or being outspoken sometimes and having a bit of a big mouth. At the end of the day though, I just see all those things as him being emotional. He cares a fuck ton about this team and you know, if shit don't go his way or his team or he gets bashed, he's going to stick up for what he believes in. Most don't, but some have an issue with it and I don't know why. Why the hell would you want to play for a GM with such passion and dedication to a team? He's offered to donate for the boys AFTER they agreed to resign, meaning, they all accepted to extend happily and willingly and then he brought up that option for then. Also the amount he's helped me out is outrageous over the years.

 

Fair enough. And overall, what are your thoughts on the Bears this season and where do you think they can go in the playoffs?

 

You can call it biased, but I think we're killing it this season. We were on such a strong run and while we have chilled out a little bit, we're still going strong. We've seen solid seasons from everyone (except me) and that's a really amazing sign heading into the final stretches. I'm not sure people really expected us to be ahead of both the Legion and Riga right now but if you look at the standings, we are.

 

For where we can go, the sky is the limit, man. We can lose out first round, second round or the finals - or hell, we can win the whole fucking thing. I think it's a possibility but it obviously won't be easy at all. Legion, Rigs and even New York are pretty solid teams and upsets have happened before. When playoffs start, it's going to be nerve racking for everyone win the league and most likely the league too. They surely will be some of the most exciting playoff series that happen taken place in  many, many seasons.

 

I probably couldn't agree more. Now, last question. I know most guys don't like to focus on next season, but let's look into the crystal ball here a bit. If you don't mind, where do you see yourself?

 

Ha, yeah, we like to take things day by day but with how behind I am, it doesn't hurt to do a little looking ahead to make sure I'm on track and on the pace I want to be on. Right now, I'm feeling good and have had minor hiccups but nothing like before. I know the odds are against me, but I'd really like to overcome them the best I can. If I could take a stab in the dark, I'm going to say I hit 50 points - and that may be a little generous on my behalf, but I'm really feeling it if I can keep things up. 18 goals, 32 assists. Calling it now! 

 

 

Claiming for January 15th to 21st 

AND

January 22nd to January 28th

[Banackock 7,637]

GJ

[DollarAndADream 3,356]

Review:

I think Laflamme has had a great career, all things considered. I always enjoy following your players as well.

I've always seen Bana as a good dude also. Never had any problems with him.

Good read.