Barn Burner: Boomer & Pinder with Rhett Warrener - Jacob Middleton Has Been An Absolute DISASTER For The Calgary Flames... | BB Clips

Episode Date: October 13, 2026

Boomer, Pinder and Rhett dive into the absolute disaster that has been Jacob Middleton's start with the Calgary Flames. Brought in as part of the Blake Coleman trade, Middleton was supposed to provide a steady veteran presence on the blue line, but holy hell, it has NOT gone according to plan! The guys break down just how bad Middleton has looked, his struggles defensively and whether he's actually making an already terrible Flames team even worse. And here's the real kicker... Calgary still has THREE more years of Middleton on the books! Was this simply a rough start with a new team, or did the Flames take on a contract that's going to become a serious problem? The boys debate whether Middleton can turn things around or if Calgary fans are in for a LONG few years watching this guy. Video Link: https://youtu.be/W2ocalZ02KE#nhl #nhlshorts #nhlplayoffs #nhlpredictions #nhlhockey #nhlpicks #stanleycup #stanleycupfinal #calgaryflames Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pitch 5 is a tough start. Can't really debate it. What do you want to talk about? I can see that you're going to say. You're thinking you're pensive. He's looking like a seven nut of five, six right now. Is that fair? What are we going to do there with this guy?

Because he brought him in to be tough and a leader. We've not seen anything like a, I don't know if he's shoved anybody hasn't even a face wash or even a stink eye and could you be a leader when you're looking like maybe the league is past you by well there's only three years left on that deal at 4.35 what I thought there was one year this is a cash dump from Minnesota

what are we? Oh what? Big time. Three? Well, and they saw all the matter last year and they're like oh, that's better than what we have. Let's make the deal. They take the bad contract, give them three picks,

Coleman in there. There's no way Minnesota loses this deal. And for the flames, you're getting a bunch of picks that you're less than 50% to find anything good, but hopefully you pack it together. You hit a home run. Critique the picks, critique the... No, yeah, but it's like...

And when I talk to people to know... the middleton very well it's like he rides this wave of confidence where if he's not feeling good he doesn't play well and if he feels good you'll notice it he has not been feeling good it's hard to be also an aging tough guy on a shitty team i'm not joking i would think totally because if you're on a good team there's probably only a few times like hey i could really swing the mo but you can't be doing that every night you don't want to 84 fights every game there have been down can swing the mo. I'd like to have seen it once by now to be fair.

And I think he's a nice I think he's a great guy. I think he's a great guy. I think they love him as a person. As a person? I want to like him as a player. He's going to have to do more. I don't know. Why didn't I get a deal? Well, maybe I did. Yeah, he did it. He kind of did.

Now you said three years, that's saluting this year. I mean, they played five. So I'm saying this year and two more. Oh, that makes it out. That's better. Okay, sure. Yeah. There's only two seasons after this season that you're still paying him to be a... How old is this man? 30.

Jeez. This is exactly, uh, what you said? 31 things got squirily for you? I know what we're going to do there. I don't love him with... Now, look, I might not love him anywhere right now because he's just not playing great hockey. He's better than this. But I don't think that's the guy he won't correct, because he's not going to be like

zip back forth. Boom. I use you. You use me. Like, he's not a pacif. passer of the puck with great proficiency. They might know. You're right, but it might be a, might be like protect the young guy, but it's partly, I'm sure it's some of that.

And it's also maybe the coach is going, I don't know who can play with Perrette because he kind of does his own thing. So I'm not sure. I'd like to see. What you can like to see. Doesn't make you the expert. I'm not the expert. No, I'm not saying I'm the expert. It's like we're literally talking about who can play with Perak.

So let's have the chat. You want someone defensively minded that can skate a bit and it can pass? Like I'd try him with Kuznats off. I try them on the left, like they talked about all summer. Then you can use them with White Cloud and or Nemich. Like, I don't want to keep the blender going per se, but I don't think that's where you're going to end up, but you're like that was a great fit.

It doesn't look like it. Doesn't look like it. No. Injures, injuries again. And we'll talk about it. Not on the blue line. Who? We'll talk about it with our next guest. Jacob Middleton comes back in the Coleman deal.

He's going to be kind of an aggressive leader, a guy in the room that can help keep things light. And can you, can you play that role when you're not playing well? Can you be the jovial guy when everybody's, maybe if you play a little better. It's been a tough start for Middleton. And I think he is a great guy. And I think he's what they need in that,

in that dressing room. Like the thing about Lomberg when he was here is that he was Lomberg whenever he stepped on the ice. Maybe that's an easier job than what Middleton's being asked. But he wasn't on that. the ice too, which is as important. But it's not like you'd go and look, it's like, I don't think Longberg can play. Like he just,

he had energy and he'd go out and he'd do what he do. Maybe he'd score a goal, but it wasn't even about that. Easier for him to, to be that guy, it feels like it's harder when you're just not playing well. Technically, it's harder as a defenseman to do that. Sure. I don't, and it's

not an excuse and it's not a bias for a defenseman, but it is. It's a forward. It's like, I, I don't have to make a play if I'm Lomberg. I can, chip it in and all I have to do is running a guy charging in there and run it. Whereas Middleton's the guy going back to get the puck and is getting, he's

turning it over. He's lumbering around. He's, he's having, he's in a bad way right now. We've looked at he's got two more years after this year. What are you seeing with, uh, with 55? Is bad start, better days ahead. How does this come around? I'm not, I'm not sure because,

so when, when they acquired him. Lots of people in Minnesota said, you're going to love this guy. Like he, he plays a certain way. He's going to be a perfect fit on your third pairing. And hey, I mean, they, as, as you guys said, you lose Lomberg. So you kind of lose that element on the ice and, and you lose that element in the locker room. We've seen plenty of highlights of Middleton dropping the gloves. We know we can do it. And I even, like, when they paired him and Perak together for training cap, I even said to myself, huh, that's kind of interesting. Like, you know, right now, Zane is the number one prospect on the team and and you already see it like teams do take that they they maybe uh focus on

finishing checks a little bit more on 19 than maybe some of the other guys like there's that it all just goes as as part and parcel of learning your way in the league and and so having a guy like middleton you're like okay you know that's that's the right potential fit because not only is he uh as as everyone told us like a really good stay at home d but he also can be a guy that can maybe add a little bit of the protection element when per X on the ice. And so we just, we haven't seen really any of that to this point. I mean, you take a look at the Colorado game and a couple of the goals that end up as dashes for those guys. I mean, it's, it's, it's Middleton who's, you know, flash screening coolly or it's Middleton who is losing puck battles and losing races behind the net.

Like it's been like kind of hard to, it's kind of hard to gloss over the fact that through the five games, he has struggled. And it's been, like I can tell you the last two post game shows, it's been a really hot topic in terms of do you take him out? Do you bring a Hanley in? And I think there's probably some sense in it. I don't know what they're going to do tonight. Didn't look like it at practice on Monday, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's what the decision is going to be in the game tonight.

But like it seems to, I certainly would like to see a slightly different look. Like I think Ball Nemitz is something they need to give some real runway to. And then I think they need to really give some runway to another partner for Perrek. And whether that's Kuznetsov, I heard you guys talking a little earlier. Like, do you make the flip? Like Perrex talked about playing on the left and how much he likes doing that. Do you flip that at some point and playing with White Cloud? Because that was a really nice run down the stretch.

Like, I get it. Like, if they're saying right now that we don't want to, we're not quite ready to flip Perak in like his true rookie season, even though he's not a rookie. like it's it's his first full NHL year. If they're like, okay, let's just pump the brakes on that. Let's keep them on a strong side. Well, then put them with Kuznetsov because at the very least, I think you have a little bit more,

a little bit more comfort to put Perek out there in more minutes at five on five. Because right now, unless you're, unless you're putting them out there with different defense partners, like I do think there's a bit of a hesitation playing that pair right now. And it's more because Middleton has struggled. So I, it could very well be, just an early five game malaise.

And he is better than this. And I know, I know well enough not to judge a book by a 15 period sample size, but there's, there's also no debating that he is struggled, that it doesn't look like a good fit with your most important prospect on the team. So I, I really, and I've said this a few times on post game shows, because the text line has been lit up about this topic for two straight games. I was like, yeah, you know, I think it's probably at the very, If you don't want to scratch Middleton, like I get it.

He's a big, but you gave him an A for a reason is one of those rotating alternates. You see a lot of leadership qualities in him. Like, I get all that, but I still think you need to have a really large conversation about putting Perrette with a different partner. If you want to go Middleton, White Cloud, have at it. That seems like a really potential tough pairing to play against and a really good, you know, kind of defensively sound pairing and let Perak and Kuznetsov go. because I think Kuznetsov's defensive metrics and defensive side is, again, a decent fit for a guy like Perrex.

So I definitely think it's valid to be having these conversations. I've noticed the struggles. It's been difficult early on. And so, you know, they've put a lot of other things in the blender back there, for whatever reason, that pairing hasn't been split up. And I think it's a valid conversation to have to see if maybe you can get a little bit of a better fit on the left side of Perrek. Right.