[TheScorpion]

I think there is still a lot of reason to have hope for this team moving forward.

- They are safely in a playoff spot, for now.
- The core is still so young, and god no Sam Bennett is not a damn bust
- The goaltending has been mostly great
- Most of the scoring has been from secondary guys like Frolik, Versteeg, etc. so when Johnny, Monahan, Bennett eventually, inevitably rebound, the team will be in even better shape
- The top 3 defence has been mostly fine, and there are lots of good options on the UFA market this summer who the Flames will be able to afford
- Even most of the underachievers are young and have room to develop. Johnny, Mono, Bennett, Brodie, Bouma, Chiasson, Jokipakka - these guys have been either inconsistent or just bad, yes, but they are all also 26 or younger.
- Other guys who are poorly performing are all UFAs after this year. Wideman, Elliott, Engelland... their money is off the books after this season.

This is a young team with a ton of upside. The worst players are either still young (Jokipakka, Bennett) or are gone after this year anyway (Wideman, Elliott). There are no anchor contracts here. The Sutter era of a million NMCs is by a bygone, distant memory.

This is an awesome time to be a Flames fan. Don't let a one-goal January loss to New Jersey get you down. This team has an incredibly bright future, controls its own destiny contracts-wise, and has very competent management. Just because Gaudreau is on a cold streak doesn't mean that any of this is less true. Losses happen.