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Originally Posted by ricardodw
If a team is spending to the cap it is absolutely crazy (a complete and utter management failure of Lowe-esque proportions)) to say that they are not good enough to compete for a playoff spot.
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I don't quite agree. I do agree that we should be good enough to compete for a playoff spot, but I don't think spending to the cap quite marks the end of the rebuild.
As I posted earlier, I think there's a transition period at the tail end of the rebuild, which is where we're at now.
During the rebuild you end up overpaying players for various reasons. Some because players are not excited to sign for non-playoff teams, others because to some extent you pay players according to their role, and during the rebuild you have guys playing higher in the lineup than they normally would. (Stajan is a prime example of the latter.) We still have a few of those oversized rebuild-era contracts left, and they're eating a disproportionate part of our cap (compared to their current roles).
IMO the rebuild is really done after those rebuild-era contracts run out (or traded out or in the worst case bought out).
As a non-rebuilding playoff team and hopefully a contending team we should be a more attractive place to sign. That should mean more value for the cap that's not tied to core players.
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The core 7 are in place for at least the next 4 years and how they do is how well the Flames do.
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Obviously mostly yes, but in the cap era contenders generally have core players (or at least very good supporting players) on ELC:s. For example with luck Tkachuk and Pribyl might be impact wingers in the playoffs while on their ELC's.