The only answer that I have for as to why people are thinking that the prospect pool is shallow is that they haven't tracked any of the prospects - even just stat watching.
There are still legitimate top six (and even top-line) talent in this pool left unpicked. Pettersen, Phillips, Zavgorodny. then there are a number of middle-six players on top of this, some with legitimate top 6 potential. You have two potential starting goalies in Parsons and Wolf, with Schneider having taken a step forward, and though Gillies hasn't had great seasons, he hasn't looked bad in his NHL games that he got up to this date - nothing to sneeze at.
The only place I find the pool shallow is on defence. Yes, it is very shallow there, but that is also ok. Most of the defencemen on the team are either in their prime with a number of years ahead of them, or really young and at the start of their careers. I am sure Treliving will help to address this by aggressively going after college UFAs, future drafts, or whenever something comes up in trade talks.
Make no mistake - this is a fairly deep pool with the forwards. This is about as talented and deep as you could possibly get without tanking and drafting high. Treliving in the upcoming seasons can stop trying to plug holes with expensive UFAs - Flames will have some luxury in plugging holes with home-grown options from the farm.
It has taken a very long time, but the Flames' organization as a whole from top-to-bottom is on a clear upward trajectory that is SUSTAINABLE. What I mean is that this team doesn't need to mortgage the future in order to try and win now. They don't have to trade 2nd's because they feel their drafting and development is sub par, and it is better to acquire players than just throw those picks away at the draft.
The last season's playoffs didn't bug me as much as it should have, and I think it is because I saw it as just the real start to a continuous series of playoff appearances, rather than "This is the year you have to try to win, as you probably won't be this good for a long time again" moment.
I am excited about the Flames for the future and it isn't because I have been drinking any Edmonton water. Calgary actually has proven themselves as above average in drafting and development, and this current pool of prospects has a tonne of potential players - some of them will fail, but some will succeed and thrive, and that's all you need.
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