[united]

I consider this to be the most frustrating season since 2008-09, when the Flames were a top three team, in my opinion, until the playoffs when they lost Warrener, Regehr, and Giordano for the first round and had Sarich and Phaneuf playing hurt out of desperation.

Coaching aside, the reason for my frustration is the easiest part of the roster to assemble, being depth, is what is hurting the Flames the most. Not only is the depth among the worst in the league - certainly among playoff hopefuls - it is also grossly over-paid. Yet depth should be the easiest part of any roster to fill out...and if the players aren't good, they damn well better be cheap.

On paper, the Flames not only have a roster that should be a contender this season, but a contender for the next few years, too. To have that torpedoed by depth is infuriating.

The Flames are likely going to finish the season with the following:
- One player in the top 10 in both the Art Ross race and Hart Trophy/Ted Lindsay voting.
- One player in the top 15, possibly top 10, in the Rocket Richard race.
- One and possibly two players top 10 in Norris Trophy voting.
- One player in the top 10 in Selke Trophy voting.
- One player in the top 10, possibly top 5, in Vezina Trophy voting.

To have that talent having those seasons wasted by the inability to roll out a competent full roster on a nightly basis is insane. Not only should the Flames be in the playoffs with those seasons being had, they should be considered one of the Cup favourites...instead they are probably going to miss the playoffs entirely. What a massive waste of a season if so.

Top scoring line? Check.
Elite checking line? Check.
Elite first pairing? Check.
Elite goaltender? Check.
Depth? Complete horse####.

I mean, the Flames are blowing $11 million on three bottom line/bottom pairing players. Drop that to $1.5 million per position and the Flames have $6.5 million for another scoring winger.
Troy Brouwer $4.5
Matt Stajan $3.125
Michael Stone $3.5

The thing is, aside from Stajan, this was completely avoidable from Treliving.
Brouwer was widely-panned as being horrible the moment it was signed.
Even if you like Stone, the signing made no sense dollar-wise when accounting for roster position (Hamonic), or term given what's in the pipeline coupled with Andersson's development last year.


Now, the huge positive of the whole thing is that fixing depth issues is a hell of a lot easier than having good depth but no high-end players. With Stajan gone, Brouwer bought out, and one of the right-shooting defenceman - presumably Stone - traded, Treliving will have a lot of room to fill the bottom of the roster with cheaper and equal-or-better options, leaving a decent pile of cash for another forward with scoring ability. If Treliving makes some good cost-effective bets there, and Smith plays even as close to the level he has this season, the Flames are going to be a really good team next season. Add in a coach who doesn't take 60 games to make changes even the average fan recognizes in pre-season, or the first month of the season, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them surge up the standings like the Bruins or Jets have this season. When it comes to the second pairing disaster, you hope for natural rebound seasons from both and/or rebounds with better coaching.