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Old 05-01-2024, 11:21 AM   #2261
Winsor_Pilates
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CliffFletcher View Post
I was pointing to those teams this year as examples of what bottom-feeding rosters look like. The Flames roster next season won’t be anything close to as bad.

As for next season, Anaheim will likely take a step. Chicago and SJ will still be awful, and deliberately so. They’re still in full tank mode.

Columbus will likely still be bad. I don’t see Montreal taking a big step - most of their best prospects are d-man and will take time to develop. Arizona is still not ready to make a big jump unless they take a big shot in free agency.

Then there are teams like Washington, NYI, and Minnesota who could see big drops in the standings. The Torts effect may wear off in Philly. I think the Kraken will continue to fall to earth after their surprising debut. Those are the teams the Flames will likely find itself in the mix with next season.

It’s actually pretty difficult to be a bottom five team in this league unless ownership and management are committed to tanking. And I just don’t see that happening with this franchise.

Here’s how I’d handicap next season:

Bottom tier

SJ
CHI
CBJ
MTL
SEA

Non-playoff

ANA
ARI
CGY
WAS
MIN
PHI
OTT
PIT
I more or less agree but could also see the Flames in the position you have MTL & SEA and swapped.
It's hard to pin things down exactly but it's a very good bet the Flames are bottom 10, 5th or worse in the Pacific and could go a bit lower from there if/when Markstrom is traded.
I would say every team you listed has under a 1% chance at the cup, which is the main thing.
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