Quote:
Originally Posted by Enoch Root
Complete waste of a season?
Far more important than what number they draft at in June are things like: development of the players and prospects that are already in the system, salary and cap management, etc.
Saying that a season is a complete waste because they pick 10-12th is a pretty big slap in the face to the 50 or so guys on the team, no?
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Maybe waste of a season is a little overboard in that you can point to continued development by younger players but guys like Giordano and Wideman aren't getting any younger and there will be more question marks at the goaltender position at the end of the season than the beginning. This team needs top wingers in a bad way and the only way to properly address that is via trade (very difficult) or via draft and getting a high pick makes the odds much better at finding those players. No teams want to finish 12-15 as it's no-man's land and of all fans Flames fans should know this with Iginla's last years of hanging on trying to make the playoffs and finishing just outside. That got us Tim Erixon, (pick traded), Sven Baertschi, Mark Jankowski vs picking top 10 and getting Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett. Pretty easy to see the major difference between drafting inside and outside the top 10 when it comes to finding top line talent. The verdict is out on Jankowski but the Flames have little to show for the other picks.
I don't see why it would be a slap in the face of the players as they collectively make millions of dollars regardless.