Why Extending Bob Hartley's Contract Is a Bad Idea for the Calgary Flames

The Calgary Flames are in the midst of a six-game losing streak and are one of the league's worst possession teams for a third season in a row under coach Bob Hartley.

So, of course, the Flames on Wednesday announced a multiyear contract extension for Hartley.

The timing is humorous but also representative of Hartley's time in Calgary. A fluky, downright miraculous start to this season despite getting destroyed at 5-on-5 that had pundits talking about the heart and toughness of the Flames was followed with six regulation losses, a comeuppance that better represents the quality of this club.

The Flames have trailed after two periods 16 times this season—only Carolina (18) and Edmonton (17) have been down more often after 40 minutes—but have a league-high six victories in that situation. They have the third-best winning percentage in the league when trailing after two periods; it's up to you to decide if that's a repeatable skill based on grit and heart or a heavy dose of fortunate outcomes.

(Hint: It's the second one.)

This, on the heels of two subpar seasons, earned Hartley more years of employment?

Ever work at a company that featured an employee who was almost unanimously considered bad at his/her job, yet that person continued to receive raises and promotions? And the only explanation was one person—the boss—somehow thought that person was doing a great job, and that's all that mattered?

If you look at Hartley's time in Calgary, a deep love and unrivaled devotion from team president Brian Burke and general manager Brad Treliving is the only explanation for Hartley's job security.

Here's Hartley's coaching record and related numbers since he became the Flames coach before the 2013 season and the season prior.

Season	Record	Points	Fenwick	Fenwick Rank
2011-12	37-29-16	90	46.7	29th
2013	19-25-4	42	47.5	23rd
2013-14	35-40-7	77	47.7	25th
2014-15	17-14-2	36	46.4	27th

What exactly about the past two-plus seasons says Hartley is making progress? The consistency is certainly there; there's no arguing that. But being consistently bad at possessing the puck for three years isn't what most teams want from a coach.

There are only three teams below the Flames in Fenwick this season—Colorado, Ottawa and Buffalo, three teams that are among the worst in the standings. The Flames' record through 27 games (17-8-2) flew in the face of their dismal possession numbers, yet it was likely evidence in the eyes of Flames management that Hartley had the team headed in the right direction.

In Hartley's defense, he was asked to win a car race in a vehicle with three wheels that's powered by unicorn breath.

The Flames have Mark Giordano and TJ Brodie, arguably the best all-round defensive pair in the NHL. They drive possession and post great offensive numbers along the way, a rarity and luxury for any team, never mind one as unequipped to win as this one.

Considering the first offseason under Treliving featured the signings of Mason Raymond (out 18 games with injury), Devin Setoguchi (now plying his trade in the AHL), Jonas Hiller (losing time to Karri Ramo) and three years for Deryk Engelland (LOL), it's not as if Hartley was placed in perfect position to win a Stanley Cup.

But this team should be better.

Norm Hall/Getty Images

Johnny Gaudreau. Jiri Hudler. Curtis Glencross. Sean Monahan. Josh Jooris. The Flames are in no way a playoff team, but they're certainly not a team that should have the Avalanche breathing down its neck in most possession metrics. Point to the Flames' record right now all you want, but with possession numbers like these, it's extremely unlikely the Flames take a significant step forward from last season's 77-point finish.

The Flames are nothing more than a two-line team with a great top defensive pairing, but that's not an excuse for being this bad at puck possession.

Maybe the Flames are going with the devil-you-already-know approach; after all, there are plenty of underperforming squads in 2014-15 (New Jersey, Philadelphia, Minnesota) that are sticking with their coaches. If there isn't anyone else out there, perhaps the right move is sticking with the current coach.

Then again...

Hartley hasn't won a playoff game since 2001, which covers nine seasons with the Avalanche, Thrashers and Flames. His only playoff trip in the past eight seasons was with the Thrashers in 2007, and that ended with a four-game sweep. In a league slowly moving away from fighting, he had a fight instructor come to training camp.

If this season ends with the Flames missing the playoffs while getting crushed at 5-on-5, what exactly is the foundation for Treliving's faith in Hartley?

No one is saying Hartley should be fired now, but waiting to see how this season played out was the way to go before offering a contract extension.

All statistics via NHL.com and Stats.HockeyAnalysis.com.

Dave Lozo covers the NHL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter: @DaveLozo.