[Gaudfather]

Originally Posted by kermitology

Let's think about the past few cup winners.

Penguins: all world centre, league leader and ultimate game changer in Crosby, augmented by very talented support throughout the forward core. Stable defence, and good to excellent goaltending.

Kings: Solid forward core, good depth and built for the playoffs forward core, excellent defence and exceptional goaltending.

Hawks: Forward group led by a game changer in Kane and a built for playoffs Toews, who isn't spectacular, but always shows up when the game is on the line. Very good defence and very good goaltending.

Compare that to Calgary.

Forward group has some good pieces, but no game changers. Monahan is a solid centre, good to very good, but not quite on an elite level. He produces in spurts, not consistently. Gaudreau is an elite scorer, but not built for playoffs. He has to be opportunistic. They have no RW, not a true high caliber one. Second line is very good, but inconsistent offensively. The rest of the forwards are mediocre for the most part. Not outstanding offensively or defensively.

Defence is very good, no real question marks, though some regression from Brodie over the past two seasons.

Goaltending is mediocre. We're putting our hopes in Parsons, like Gilles before him. Unproven and lacks experience. Smith is aging and Lack has never been much more than a low tier goaltender.

So, yeah, I stand by my assessment.

Looking forward, not backward, this 2017/18 version of the Flames just might stack up very well against some of the SC champs in the past six of seven years (the Bruins, the Kings, even the Hawks). If the goaltending is there, and these young high potential players keep developing, you may have to write a different narrative about these Flames 10 months from now. That's why they play the game and that's why we're fans of it.