Quote:
Originally Posted by Vinny01
The team is at a crossroads for sure when you look at future outlook.
In my mind if the goal is to tank then these are the 3 absolute must move assets.
1. Sutter fired
2. Markstrom traded
3. Lindholm traded.
You can’t have a coach that can drag a bad team from bottom 3 to bottom 8 and lose that extremely high pick. You can’t have a goalie that can steal games taking away your tank position and who would be too old to help when the team is ready to compete and you absolutely must sell high on your best contract and a player that makes no sense keeping around as a bargain deal when the plan is to suck for the rest of it.
I don’t think any one of those 3 things will happen this summer so then I look at the other alternative. The fate of Gaudreau needs to be addressed and considering that the team has taken a step back 2 years in a row since his peak season and so has Johnny it makes sense to part ways for both. Getting the best return in a trade is key and the focus should be on a player or players/prospects/picks that will help in the future but also pieces that could help now. Giordano is the face of this team post Iginla and his leadership has been questioned by fans but he still appears to be a favorite of the coach, GM and owners. He won’t be traded this summer but he could be chosen in expansion. I am not opposed to the organization paying assets to have Seattle take Lucic (depending on the cost) but I am absolutely opposed to have them send assets to protect Gio.
I see this offseason as a chance to move on from a couple of key parts of this team to help start a new era of Flames hockey. I think they have the ability to do that and still be a much better team than they were this year. A full year of Sutter and a consistent year from Markstrom and I think this team is top 3 in the Pacific
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I agree with most of this. However, I do still think that without an elite center, the Flames are prone to return back to mediocrity.
The Flames are a team that typically rely on a number of "ifs" in order for things to go well. But these results change on a year-to-year basis.
If the Flames do end up doing well next year, I hope they don't trade away the future.