This is how I view the team
- What are the strengths of the team right now?
We have a good supporting cast of players. Guys like Backlund, Reinhart, Horak, Aliu, Hanowski, Arnold, Bouma, Cundari, Breen, Wotherspoon, Kulak, Culkin all have the capability of being legitimate NHL players in the long term. On a contending team, only the best of these guys will be your 3rd and 4th lines and your 3rd pairing. Thankfully we have enough options from this group to have a solid stable moving forward.
- What are the obvious weaknesses?
We do not have any skill with the exception of Baertschi, Jankowski and Gaudreau and none of them look to be 1st line players on a contending team if they reach their potential. Obviously we need some impact players, as well as a decent amount of them so that way we can grow our top 2 line depth from within, instead of plugging in a UFA and hoping for the best.
- Do you draft for a position player or for the best available player?
For me, with the first pick I go Forward period. Defensemen are a bit more of a toss up, where forwards tend to be easier to project (at least at the top end). We need to have our first pick to be as likely of a bullseye toss at the dart board as possible, and with a D-man, there's a little more risk involved. After our first, I draft for best player available with the caveat that we take a goalie some time after the 3rd round.
- Do you fill the weaknesses of the team via existing AHL/drafted players or by signing new free agents?
This team is not going to be good for a while. So, I would try and establish what you have for certain and give players the opportunity to surprise. They can't do that if they don't receive enough ice time. That said, I would be all for trading some of our existing veterans for draft picks/prospects and then going after new blood through UFA.
- Which free agents, if any, should be targeted?
We are in need of people to teach the kids the right way to play hockey and win (aka, the please please do not do what Edmonton's doing even in the slightest method). Eric Nystrom embodies that type of player on the lower end and a guy like David Clarkson on the upper end. It really depends on what the cap available will be and whether or not we need to hit the floor.
- Where should we be with regards to the salary cap next year?
We should be scraping the floor. There is not a ton of quality in the UFA pool, certainly not enough to warrant signing several of them to 5+ million dollar contracts. If Kipper retires, we'll be around 34 million, and that's with 5 D-men spots, and 11 forward spots accounted for. Other than trying to hit the floor, there really isn't a need.
- How long do we anticipate the rebuilding process taking based on our existing assets? Do we aim for a 2 year, 3 year, 5 year plan?
It's going to be a minimum of this year and next. The problem with not giving any of our prospects an opportunity to shine over the past 5 years is that we haven't really determined what exactly we have in the stable. Backlund and Baertschi both look to be solid 2nd/3rd liners, but will they be able to step up even more? We won't know till we see. I don't see it taking 5 years though as they have quite a solid group of secondary players already in place.
- Is our coaching as good as it needs to be?
Hartley is a decent teaching coach, and knows how to utilize players properly (see Stajan, Matt and Bouwmeester, Jay as examples). Whether he stays on towards the end of the rebuild or not is anyone's guess. We might at that time sign someone like Tippett or Quenville (sp) to push us over the hump. Depends really on what's going on at the time.
- Do you see any existing Flames that can be traded for an asset or two?
I think all the players over Backlund's age will be traded at some point for other things. The returns will be varied though.
For me, I approach this draft with the mentality of "if I can trade down a couple spots and get a similar prospect or the guy I'm after and acquire additional assets then it's worth looking at"
This draft is very deep in the top 3 rounds this year. If we can acquire additional picks through trading roster guys, or by possibly moving down (depends on the who/what/where) to get more shots at it the better. Even if that means moving from say 65 down to 75 and getting an extra 4th and 6th.
We are going to be in asset management mode, and we need to try to maximize the odds that we can find those hidden gems, either through the draft or otherwise.
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