Quote:
Originally Posted by New Era
No, but Stajan's contract is. You can't pay a 4th liner $3M+ and think it isn't going to hurt the team in trying to be competitive. Every dollar matters and you can't unnecessarily spend money on players that don't make a difference. Matt Stajan, while a likeable fellow and a decent enough player, doesn't make a difference for the Calgary Flames.
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But it isn't hurting the team to be competitive, unless you'd bring in another centre instead of Stajan. So you have to ask yourself. Are you happy with Bennett and Mony being pegged as our #1 and #2. IF yes, then Stajan's contract becomes irrelevant given it expires as Bennett will need a raise.
Even if you could get rid of Stajan, you wouldn't do so and bring in another centre. So then you are left with using his money on a player for 2 years or less. Any player signing a UFA deal at 2 years or less isn't a player we are looking for, that's another Raymond type flyer (and if it works out, the money isn't there to remind-sign after). You could argue that maybe you could get a player via trade, but the same issue exists when the contract expires, and I don't think the Flames have the assets that we'd be willing to part with to acquire such a player.
The whole point is, anyone complaining about the Flames cap space has lost the plot on this rebuild and gotten impatient. The Flames aren't trying to be peaking next year or the year after, nor should they be. Very easy to look at our place in the standings, and get uncomfortable that a basement dweller is pushing the cap. But that ignores the expiry dates of our bad contracts, when our new young core is going to peak, and the fact that even if we had that cap space that there likely wouldn't be any assets to use it on because we need the money to be used wisely down the road as the players we are building around come if their entry level deals.
There is no cap issue with the Flames, just a patience issue with the fan base as to when this team is truly being built to be a contender. I'd love it to be next year too, but that's simply realistic based on the age of our key players.