Nice write up and it echos what the entire city of Calgary is feeling: rebuild properly and patiently and the fans will continue to support the team. Continue to spin the wheels with ''big name stars'' and the fans will grow restless. Those who complain about a rebuild and how were going to lose and how the team should always try to spend to win every year, are the bandwaggon fans who are still stuck in the twilight of 2004.
One of the smartest things the Flames did all summer was really market the scrimmages. As Bingo said, fans were lined up early and packed the place...for scrimmages! Now, names like Kanzig, Gaudreau, Monahan etc are becoming household names in the city. Fans have something to look forward to and once we finally get over the hump and back into contention, those who stuck around will reap the benefits.
I'm excited for this rebuild. I can stand losing, as long as the team puts forth an effort and has a clear established view of the direction they want to take. We've had neither of those for the last half-decade. And to put it bluntly, the Flames have never really been in this position before since they moved to Calgary. I'd hardly call the last young-guns era a rebuild. There was nothing to look foward to year after year. The Canadian dollar sucked, the team didn't spend to keep its stars, and we became an after thought. The only highlight I can recall during that era was Iggy. That's it. Nothing coming through the pipelines, the Flames threatening to move if the ticket drive didn't come through. It was a sad time before Darryl arrived.
Now, I think most of us can see light at the end of the tunnel. Do it right this time. The true fans will wait.
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