Flames rank No. 32 of 32 in ESPN's NHL Future Power Rankings

[TheScorpion]

... which I think is pretty ridiculous. ESPN says the Flames' roster ranks 23rd, their prospects rank 24th, and both their cap situation and management ranks 32nd.

There's being realistic and then there's underrating the hell out of things. I'm inclined to think this is the latter.

https://www.espn.com/nhl/insider/ins...coaches-roster

Why they're here: Why they're here: Great question. The experts didn't like the Flames' current roster (23rd) despite them finishing 16th in the NHL during 2022-23. They ranked 24th in prospect pool. What sent them tumbling into the basement was a pair of last-place finishes: The Flames were ranked 32nd overall in contract management and 32nd overall in owner/coach/GM -- probably due to the fact that GM Craig Conroy and coach Ryan Huska are brand new to their gigs. Someone had to finish last, and our voters decided to snuff out the Flames. -- Wyshynski


Points of concern: Right now, the Flames' roster is split into two parts: the players who have more than two years left on their contracts and the ones who could be elsewhere a year from now. Both of those dynamics present their own set of questions. For the long-term group: How do the Flames get Jonathan Huberdeau and his $10.5 million cap hit over the next seven years back to being the player who averaged more than a point per game? For the short-term crowd? It's about what will happen with pending UFAs such as Mikael Backlund and Elias Lindholm and whether the Flames can keep them in Calgary. Then there are the questions about a farm system that is thought to be in the bottom third, which is compounded by the fact the Flames have had just five of their draft picks reach the NHL since 2017. -- Clark

Reason for hope: Calgary was victim to some serious bad luck last season, and the organization has undergone an appropriate face lift -- new coach, new GM, etc. -- since the spring. Make no mistake, though, the Flames' roster is solid right now and there are a few exciting players in the pipeline, too. The fresh start Calgary needs is right in front of it, and top-tier talents like Lindholm, Nazem Kadri and Noah Hanifin should all be motivated to help the Flames get back on a playoff trajectory. Plus, Calgary has to be emboldened by Lindholm's public declaration he wants to re-sign with the team. After all the talent the Flames have lost in recent years, retaining the services of an elite center like Lindholm would go a long way in every aspect. -- Shilton

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

Lol.

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[Reggie Dunlop]

In danger of being relegated.

Haha Stupid Flames!

[1qqaaz]

If it was just ranked on prospects or young players, I would think the ranking is ridiculous. But for cap projections, yes, the Flames are in a terrible position.

[OutOfTheCube]

Come on now, their one bad year wasn’t even that bad, compared to the league. They can legitimately be a playoff team this season. Huge hyperbole.

[Vinny01]

It seems some of the media are still being fooled by the up and down Flames where I see others making comments on how they expect a big bounce back.

Coronato, Wolf, Honzek, Pelletier, Zary, Poirier are an intriguing group of prospects with a couple of guys with high end upside.

I think the Flames are much more likely to be in a battle for 1st place in the Pacific than last place in the west.

[Tkachukwagon]

Blue Jackets at 9th is probably as far as you need to read to gauge the quality of this ranking.

[Bonded]

Originally Posted by 1qqaaz

If it was just ranked on prospects or young players, I would think the ranking is ridiculous. But for cap projections, yes, the Flames are in a terrible position.

That one is still a question mark. They’ll have tons of cap space in the UFAs want out

[Strange Brew]

Can't give much weight to these things but it certainly is directional.

Something like this should be music to Conroy's ears. Gives him time to change direction and start building a team differently.

[TrentCrimmIndependent]

I love how much the Flames bomb in every ranking after a down year. Pundits can't wait to write them off it seems. I'll be impressed when someone actually pegs them to rebound (as they have been after every down year). As someone else said it wasnt even that bad a season, and they would've made the playoffs in the EC. And that's with virtually everything going wrong except their PK and a toxic locker room situation.

Flames faithful WISH they were in the lottery conversation, but they never are. They're just not that bad.

[ComixZone]

The Flames have been a disaster since the moment Gaudreau informed them he was going to free agency.

Their response to their dysfunctional coach and inadequate general manager was to replace them with their assistants, showing no clear direction change after apparently wanting keep both their GM and Coach in place.

There was no significant change to the top of the roster, and their plan for 2023/2024 is to hope that the players at the top of their roster bounce back. They’ve resolved exactly 1 contract situation of the 7 that they were facing at the end of last season.

The media should be hard on the Flames. Do I think they’re 32nd? No. Do I have a problem with other people looking at the team like this? No. I also just don’t think it’s that crazy. I’d also sooner the team actually be the 32nd team than the 23rd team.

They do seem to be projecting where they think younger players will be making impacts, and that’s why Columbus and New Jersey and some others are as high as they are…and with that in mind, yeah I get it for the Flames.

The ESPN article stipulates:

These rankings consider how teams are set up for success this season as well as the next three seasons.

The ranking makes sense. They don’t have Lindholm, Hanifin, Backlund, Zadorov, Kylington, or Tanev under contract after this season. That’s a huge chunk of the team that can’t be accounted for.

[the-rasta-masta]

Easy for the media to pile on with all the narratives, most out of the Flames control, in the past couple of years. This will be laughable in a few months.

[Calgary4LIfe]

This is what makes the Flames so fascinating. I really can't think of a team that is more difficult to predict at the moment.


With that being said, this is laughable.

[redmile04]

Originally Posted by ComixZone

I’d also sooner the team actually be the 32nd team than the 23rd team.

Exactly, this is the reason they dont ever win.

[BeltlineFan]

Contrarily, Daily Faceoff just ranked the Flames #2 in Cap Management.

https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/20...p-rankings-8-1

[Burning Beard]

Not surprising that this is music to some posters ears.

[Erick Estrada]

Well someone had to finish 32nd and there's likely a very good chance that fanbase would disagree. There's a lot of uncertainty around the organization given the pending free agents.

[ComixZone]

Originally Posted by BeltlineFan

Contrarily, Daily Faceoff just ranked the Flames #2 in Cap Management.

https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/20...p-rankings-8-1

That’s…odd. I would have thought that having $10.5M attached to a 56 point winger and $6M attached to an AHL quality goalie would have had a bigger impact against the absolute bangers of Hanifin, Lindholm, Andersson, and Tanev contracts. The bit on the Flames does close with the fact that their perceived window will slam shut in short order.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Have ya met Columbus? Or any other terribly run team? How are the Flames 32nd?