The Flames are already further ahead than anyone in the media figuered a season ago. All we saw last September was "square one", "from the ground up", "rock bottom", "very beginning of a rebuild"
The idea was they had Monahan, two other firsts that may or may not have been good picks, and that was it.
The Flames put forth a decent season, including a huge charge at the end which was timed precisely with the entry of advanced stats into the daily dialogue, and three of their players moving from filler to key components due to obvious good play, and their names being displayed on various lists for pushing the play.
So now the same media has the Flames with a bright future, a stable full of prospects, and four good components on the roster, but likely heading for a tough season and little hope to move out of the very bottom of league standings.
Are they wrong again? Maybe ...
Maybe the Flames have an injury or two, some call ups, monster leaps from Backlund and Brodie, a solid season from a goaltending tandem, and a season of almost making the playoffs.
Stranger things have happened.
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