I think every single one of us should take this information as evidence of what we personally hope to see.
What I hope to see: An actual rebuild. 3 seasons long, then come back up. "Thank goodness for this organization finally seeing the light!"
What I don't want to see: Minor tweaks. "Damn you Murray Edwards! You have all our tax dollars in this new building, and you are force-feeding this embarrassing team who can't even be bothered to compete hard in the Heritage Classic?"
I will personally wait until the start of next season to really express how I feel. One way to re-state what Francis is passing on is: "Yes, we realize that we suck a tremendous amount. We are going to make big changes. Please be patient."
They will not announce a rebuild (if it is happening) 9 games into the season. Nobody does that. They won't announce squat even if they are able to move a player or two for futures until at least the trade deadline is on the horizon. We all know the market is extremely tight right now, and teams have to accrue cap space, or bigger injuries have to happen to make more LTIR room.
Nothing is going to happen overnight. We were sort of blessed that last time Calgary decided to rebuild since it was a short season. We didn't have to endure a boring, disjointed team for so long.
So, I am going to get myself to watch every game until the end of the season, and I am going to enjoy it tremendously, because I know this boring, difficult to cheer for team as we know it is coming to an end. How many pieces move out is anyone's guess - I have no clue how deep the changes will go, but I also don't know where the exact threshold is between "Rebuild" and "Retool". I am guessing this hoopla (and the very fact that the Flames are finding themselves in second last place right now!) means that even if it is a retool, it won't be 'change around the edges'.
The last rebuild was fine. This team needed to add more to the core, but instead Treliving added too much to the perimeter from the UFA market and through trades. Let this rebuild learn from that one - let it develop organically. It will show you when it is ready to start transitioning to being a competitive team and ready for those additions on the perimeter. The core - especially in a market like Calgary - has to be drafted IMO.
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