I agree with the "cemented mediocrity" take.
Ownership/management's mandate for the team, for as long as I can remember, has been "make the playoffs".
Darryl Sutter as GM always talked about being just a piece away from that big run. In reality he had stellar goaltending and not much else. Enough for some first round exits. And he gave up all kinds of picks and prospects for "win now" stuff.
When Feaster took over, I thought "Oh good, a new vision." His first press conference, he talked about how he was going to take the team in a new direction, and the mandate was to make the playoffs. So...exact same thing as before.
With Treliving, it's clearly the same thing - he was handed some nice pieces and moves like the Hanifin/Lindholm trade were obvious attempts to shore up the missing elements of the team, and the moves he tried to make this summer were more of the same. We're just about there!
The trouble is, was, and will continue to be, Flames pick about 10th-20th every year - they are good enough to never get that superstar in the draft, and bad enough to not win it all, and the ownership group is totally fine with that, or the mandate of perpetual playoff hockey would change.
This isn't Tre's fault, it wasn't Feaster's fault either (although Hertl instead of Jankowski would feel good). The issue is that the team has mediocre talent coming up, our very best farm guys turn into decent NHLers - Rasmus is going to be one of those guys, looks like he's going to have a nice career, but he's not Shea Weber. And that's what the team can expect, at best, year after year.
The farm kids are competing with Toby Reider for a spot on this team. Our bottom 6 isn't great, and our top 6... isn't good enough. Tight on the cap and the team has a pile of forwards who would (and just did in Rieder's case) clear waivers.
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