I don't think the argument is that you have to tank to get good players.
The argument is that the easiest and most-likely way to get good players that can become the core of your franchise is through the draft - and the higher you pick in the draft, the more likely you are to get those players.
Outside of the draft, you have to rely on trades or (U)FA signings... and Matthew Tkachuk trades are very. very, very rare. Not only that, but they aren't waiving to come to Calgary if we don't already have a team worth joining. It's the same with free agents.
Places like Florida, Toronto, New York, LA, etc, can put together a core using the market, because players want to play there - and players know that other players want to play there, so there's always going to be talent coming through the doors. No one's signing in Calgary unless the talent is already here. Even if they're coming from a worse situation than "-40 winters and no playoffs," we still have to compete with NY, TO, LA, etc, to sign them.
So, in summary, while it's not mandatory to tank in order to win... How many elite, "build your team around" players have we acquired outside of a top 10 draft pick?
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