A decade ago many thought the Flames were going to be in the mix for McDavid but that hard working team that had good goaltending and a lot of puckluck was able to make the playoffs and win a round. That team had 18 year old Sam Bennett, 20 year old Monahan, 21 year old Gaudreau, and 23 year old Ferland. Backlund and Brodie were mid 20’s and Gio was in his prime and playing at an elite level.
Fast forward to today this is a very different rebuild. The Flames moved on from a ton of veterans and have a surplus of future assets which is a great start to a rebuild. They also have a veteran 6 who are all quality players and contributing to a strong culture. Bahl, Coronato, Zary are all early-mid 20’s pieces that look like top 4/top 6 mainstays. Wolf is trending toward superstar status over the next few seasons. He has just dominated every league he has played in and looks very good and is likely a Calder finalist.
For myself personally I felt that Gaudreau/Monahan/Bennett were all high potential to be elite players down the road. I feel like Wolf and Parekh have superstar potential but this team is lacking that upfront superstar talent. Hopefully they end up with a high pick in 2026 but as far as this year goes they might as well push for a spot and see what happens. At this stage I don’t see this team falling off a cliff and plummeting down the standings.
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