The Flames are actually a better example of a '3 year drop' than the Avs are.
The Flames went full rebuild in '13 and drafted Monahan at #6, then Bennett at #4 the next year. Had Bennett become the #1 C that he was projected to be, the Flames would have come out of that with C depth of: Bennett, Monahan, Backlund, which would have been the foundation of a true contender.
Unfortunately for them, 2 things happened to derail the plans:
1) they drafted a kid in 2011 in the fourth round named Gaudreau, who joined the team in year 2 of the rebuild, and immediately connected with monahan and the team found success too quickly, and
2) Bennett didn't turn out to be that #1 C.
It's wrong to blame this on Bennett, thse simple fact of the matter is that all draft picks down't turn out. That's why you can't just tank for 3 years. Only some players are going to turn out, only only rarely do you luck into franchise players, which is why when teams tank, they are down for much more than 3 years. Some (see EDM, FLA, ARI) stay down indefinitely. But some (COL, CHI) get a good collection of talent and become contenders.
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