Quote:
Originally Posted by GranteedEV
It`s not semantics. The reality is this: 30 teams in the league could claim they are rebuilding. What separates Calgary from a team like the Ducks? We have a few young players in our forwards group? Well they have Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm, Simon Despres, and Sami Vatanen in their defense group. Are the Ducks rebuilding? What separates Calgary from the Winnipeg Jets, who have Ehlers, Petan, Scheifele, Trouba? There's just nothing that gives the Flames special status for youth or inexperience. If rebuilding just means a lack of talent, then why are the Flames up against the cap?
Is the team right now a finished product? No, neither are the 29 other teams. If you want to use rebuilding as an excuse then you need to have young players in the meat of the lineup making mistakes. Healthy scratching Granlund every other game is not what a rebuilding team does, it's more what a perennial playoff team up against the cap might do though.
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Forcing guys who aren't ready into the line-up are what bad teams do. As we have seen from the Kings, Ducks, Hawks, Pens and Bruins there are more than one way to build a team into a perennial contender so acting as though doing x means they aren't rebuilding is crap.
As for having young guys in the meat of the order, you don't think having Monahan, Gaudreau, Hamilton, Brodie, Bennett and at times Ferland is doing just that? There needs to be more than just putting guys into important roles because they are young you need to put guys in roles that they will be successful in. Last year the Flames did a great job of this with guys like Monahan, Gaudreau, Jooris and Brodie. This year they have given Bennett, Ferland and Kulak the same opportunity. Outside of Ortio I can't think of a single instance when they are playing a vet more than a young when the young guy deserves a spot more.
It isn't Treliving's fault that Granlund continues to be a bit of a tweener in terms of an AHL guy and full time NHLer.