Not sure if anyone has noticed the trend of this team and it's not hard to see it and no one has mentioned it. This team was never and has never been built to play in the playoffs or go past the first round. From the first playoff series that went 7-games in the first round and then getting trounced by the Ducks during the rebuild should've been the first clue. If it wasn't enough of a clue, they got trounced again by the Ducks the second time, then by the Avs the 3rd time, then by the Star last year!
Now, comes the COVID shortened season format where the same teams play against each other in consecutive back-to-back playoff style format. Flames are losing, not badly, but they can't adapt to playing the same teams whereas other teams like Ottawa has adapted to beat the Flames. Other teams like the Leafs know they can just jam the front of the net with big bodies on the smaller Flames D. This team was built to win games on a regular season where they play different teams in which they don't have to adapt to playing against each other consecutively like in the playoffs. Smaller teams can survive in the regular season but playoffs are meant for teams that stock up on big, gritty players. So, Tre hasn't adapted the team for anything but a regular season matchups. This is why this team sucks so bad this year and they sucked so much in past playoffs. Tre has not learned much over the years and it's too bad that his only goal was to pursue a top end goalie to mask the holes he's got all over D and forward lines.
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