[sureLoss]

The rebuild was supposed to be more painful than this
http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...166/story.html

This was supposed to hurt. Hurt like hell. Hurt like trying to pass a kidney stone the size of a croquet ball.

Six months of uninterrupted discomfort bordering on agony. Morphine, not patience, the only prescribed medicine capable of dulling the pain.

Instead, it’s been the most fun in years.
...
No, they’re nowhere near a playoff spot.

Admit it, though, this dismissed rabble is starting to grow on you. If only just a little bit ...

Calgary's hard-working Flames strike right note with fans
http://www.calgarysun.com/2014/03/25...note-with-fans

The Calgary Flames are Canada's Feel Good Team.

It may sound odd to say about a 26th-place team but standing ovations at the last three home games hammer home the point -- this city loves this team like no other.

Think about it.

You could spend weeks debating which organization is the bigger gong show right now -- the Edmonton Oilers or the Vancouver Canucks. Fans are furious in both cities, and who can blame them?

The Ottawa Senators and Winnipeg Jets both

Calgary Flames believe Colborne just Scratching the Surface
http://www.calgarysun.com/2014/03/25...ng-the-surface

Rewind to late September, and Burke had just helped pull the strings on a trade with his old employer, acquiring lanky centre Joe Colborne — a Calgary kid, former first-round get of the Boston Bruins and a guy with a 6-foot-5 frame and some untapped offensive potential — from the Toronto Maple Leafs for a conditional draft choice.

The Flames fanbase was buzzing, at least until Burke told reporters the new guy might just be the next coming of ... defensive-minded faceoff ace David Steckel?!?

“Brian, and I’ve seen him do it with so many guys, is extremely good at not putting pressure on his players,” Colborne said after Tuesday’s optional skate at the Saddledome.

“I’m sure he was hoping I would be a little more of an offensive threat than Stecks is, but (Burke) is so good at taking the pressure and blame off a lot of guys. I’m sure he was just hoping there wouldn’t be too many expectations when I came in.”

Wotherspoon beginning to attract attention for all the right reasons
http://www.calgaryherald.com/sports/...087/story.html

“I don’t find (the media attention) a pain at all. You’ve got to enjoy it. It’s fun.”

Which Bob Hartley would be happy to hear.

The coach, after all, wants no wallflowers in his lineup.

“He’s starting to feel good about himself,” Hartley says of Wotherspoon. “Gosh, that’s great. We don’t want timid kids, sitting in their stalls, looking at the carpet.”

New on the scene, Wotherspoon came advertised, as a shutdown defender. One of those quietly efficient rearguards.

But he may have opened eyes — and raised expectations — with his perfect shot-pass to a wide-open Joe Colborne.

“All the credit goes to Spooner — he made an NHL pass there,” says Colborne. “Fake shot. Froze (goalie Alex) Stalock. Froze the defencemen. Found me with a crisp pass right on the tape. Flat. It doesn’t get any better than that. Those are the ones you dream of getting.”

Adds Hartley: “What a pass. I would have bet my house that he was shooting. Then, suddenly, pow — that rifle across to Colby.”