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Old 10-03-2014, 12:28 PM   #5
Table 5
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Solid article, and on point.

I think we have to realize that we're not at the beginning of the rebuild anymore...we're somewhere in the (admittedly earlyish) middle part of the process. We've traded away most of the last generation for assets, we've drafted a lot of good prospects over the last few years (still need more in certain areas, but I think the depth is undeniable), and now it's now time to start slowly implementing some of the guys who are looking like they need the next level up to continue their process.

Granlund, Ferland, Gaudreau and Baertschi are all guys that I think are better off spending most (not all) of their time in the NHL, rather than the minors. They will have their ups and downs, but I'm not convinced that sending them down does much anymore. Granlund looks the most NHL-ready out of all of them and Gaudreau has shown over and over that he adapts really quickly. Baertschi to me looks much more well-rounded this year, and I think it's a matter of time before he gets some of that swagger back on offense too. Ferland, I could see bouncing up and down a bit, but when on, there's something great there.

I don't see us keeping all 4 at once, but I would be disappointed if we don't have 2 of these guys on the Flames at any time. I'm not saying you have to trade half the vets, but if I was Treliving, I would be looking hard at some exit-strategies for at least a few of them this year. In a perfectly fair world Setoguchi is not even on this team, but I think Paul Byron, as much as he deserves to be on an NHL team, is the guy who goes first.
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