Quote:
Originally Posted by CGY12
What is farther in the playoffs? Further than this year? Forget Edmonton, they aren't the barometer, Colorado may be that team, but a lot of their past failure came after the 1st round and the hump they couldn't get over was largely due to either depth or injury (completely different issues from the ones we face). In my personal opinion, in terms of playoff hockey success, the Flames have the depth but dont have the top end talent. From what I see, year after year, in the playoffs, the top end guys are easily contained against very stiff competition because they aren't good enough when it comes down to that level of hockey. I firmly believe Johnny is part of the solution, but his linemates (although very good and valuable) aren't the guys who can be your 2nd best players, if you want to win a Stanley Cup.
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That's about where I'm at. Tkachuk and Lindolm are good (great in Tkachuk's case) 1st line players in the league, but the championship caliber teams have more than that, especially through the middle, and especially when it comes to pace and athleticism.
I also don't think the Flames had as much depth as you think this year, given that Edmonton's depth, exposed by the Avalanche, out-dueled our own outside of Backlund.