Quote:
Originally Posted by Bourque's Twin
Conroy has to strike a balance of rebuilding and keeping a competitive culture. I think he’s doing that. We have tons of draft picks now, and he’s committing to a Wolf / Vladar combo for next year. You can’t trade the entire team in 1 off season and you need some good veterans to help the young guys grow. I think fans underestimate the importance of that.
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I think fans overestimate the importance of that.
You need top talent more than you need veteran leadership hanging around providing intangibles, and that veteran leadership could end up preventing you from acquiring the top talent you need to win.
You need to draft a Sasha Barkov/Nathan MacKinnon far more than you need a random smattering of veterans to "help the young guys grow", and that random smattering of veterans may very well prevent you from drafting a Sasha Barkov/Nathan MacKinnon.
It's really easy to find veteran groups like what the Flames currently have today. They're available every off-season.
Step 1: Draft the elite, foundational talent
Step 2: Find the right veterans to to help them grow
You can't do that out of sequence, because if you do Step 2 before Step 1, you'll never accomplish Step 1.