Poll: How satisfied are you with the Flames' re-build so far?

[Calgary Highlander]

I am whelmed, so I picked 5. I like the deals CC has made; he's won more than he's lost, but he should have been rebuilding this team much more aggressively.

He should have managed his roster in 2025 to a bottom 10 finish, allowing the team to keep their pick if it was top10 (Montreal would have gotten Florida's 32nd overall). Had he traded Andersson last year (for a return that included a 1st rounder), the Flames could have sunk to a bottom 10 finish and walked with O'Brien/McQueen + Reschny + Potter all within one draft.

If Coleman and Kadri both get traded this year, my satisfaction would be at an 8, because it would signal for the first time the Flames are trading players that have term on their contract, and are becoming more aggressive with a rebuild.

[PeteMoss]

I put them at a 6 but they can move up if they make the team bad enough to finish in the bottom 3. If they let other teams out tank them by keeping too many vets - its ungood.

This season is bad already - let it get really bad so we can hopefully land a franchise player. Getting a million picks is good, but you also have to maximize your own picks by being terrible so you can land the elite talent.

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by Calgary Highlander

If Coleman and Kadri both get traded this year, my satisfaction would be at an 8, because it would signal for the first time the Flames are trading players that have term on their contract, and are becoming more aggressive with a rebuild.

Except they already did that when they traded Markstrom.

[BaconGuy]

7 for me

Like the direction Conroy has taken to get more assets in the organization. However he needs to ignore the Rebiggle advice and get us some blue-chippers

[Toonage]

6 - Similar feeling to Bonded, and EE, but my add would be that it felt like their hand was forced and they weren't a willing participant until recently. Drafting on the surface looks good, but time will tell. I do fear that if they get a McKenna or Stenberg this year they'll turn to the UFA market with all that cap space or use their additional draft capital to try and fast forward.

[Roof-Daddy]

I voted 9.

If they trade Coleman and/or Kadri this season it goes to 10.

Been stacking up draft picks for 3 years now, and especially stockpiling them in the first three rounds of the draft. Very important and hopefully it continues.

[Table 5]

6.

Like with the back half of the Iginla team, they wasted years coming to the conclusion of needing to rebuild too late (and still don't seem to be fully onboard publicly), but the moves Conroy has been making have been generally good.

The cynical side of me still assumes that at some point ownership will screw things up by trying to short-circuit the process after one positive season, but let's see how it goes.

[topfiverecords]

I voted 5 because you can’t be satisfied or dissatisfied with something that hasn’t or isn’t happening.

I would however give the direction of roster decisions since the start of Conroy’s term a 7.

[Locke]

I dont know. Early stages of rebuilds tend to be a bit of a #### sandwich, it takes some time.

Conroy has assets. Now they've just got to pan out and maybe...hopefully, hit a couple home-runs. I sincerely doubt we're going to nab a top draft pick just because there are too many teams who just out-suck us.

I will say that I'm happy that he's moved a lot of old, expensive players. That to me was very key. The Lindholm, Zadorov, etc and onward and now he's got to make good on the returns.

At the moment it looks like Huberdeau is going to be the most expensive Harvey the Hound back-up in history but thats not Conroy's fault.

[Barnet Flame]

I gave it a 6. I approve of the direction, but we're really early in the process, and the messaging up to very recently has been poor. My view could change depending on what we do with our remaining assets like Kadri and Coleman. I also think, if his form continues, teams may want to kick the tires a little in respect of Cooley, who I was impressed with since last season's pre-season.

Conny has a tough job, maybe, I'm a little harsh with the 6, but its where I feel right now.

[Locke]

I think a 6 is perfectly cromulent.

He hasnt gone around tossing around money at old washouts, he's hoarded assets, now its about seeing how some of those returns pan out and who they can draft.

I really cant say that anything Conroy has done has smacked me in the face as an obvious mistake.

Bad team is bad. Water...still wet. More news at 11.

The pain has hardly even just begun.

[Calgary Highlander]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

Except they already did that when they traded Markstrom.

I was thinking more about the skaters, but this is a fair point. Wolf also put them in a position where it made sense to move on from Markstrom.

[Five-hole]

Hard to say. I think they've been committed to stockpiling draft capital and slightly younger players. It would be nice to see one to three more vets moved out before the draft, and ideally before the TDL, both to continue to stockpile as well as remain "competitive" in the bottom of the standings. (If STL beats us out by a tiebreaker for a playoff spot and then gets a better draft pick this year I'm going to lose it.)

However, I think there's still a mismatch on tone between the head office and the coach. I want to see younger players given more of an opportunity to learn on the job. I'm not advocating they be thrown into the fire but not putting Gridin out in OT is disappointing. You never coach to lose, but playing "safe" veterans in OT to try to win a meaningless game at this point, rather than give your young players a taste of that experience, seems misguided to me.

[Knut]

I went with 8. They are not signing UFAs or post-apex players to long term deals. They are layering ages to help with veteran leadership. Accumulating draft picks, trying out reclamations and College UFAs and giving the young players playing time. It is tough to go beyond this point with a lack of high end talent at C. Seems like lots of good depth guys + Parekh and Gridin.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Knut

I went with 8. They are not signing UFAs over post-apex players to long term deals. They are layering ages to help with veteran leadership. Accumulating draft picks, trying out reclamations and College UFAs and giving the young players playing time. It is tough to go beyond this point with a lack of high end talent at C. Seems like lots of good depth guys + Parekh and Gridin.

Yeah. I think you're more optimistic than me, but I'd consider that a pretty good take.

[bluejays]

I rated this a 6, but think it can go as high as a 7.


Things I think could've been better:
- Maloney not talking down to the fanbase and just calling it a rebuild. When execs don't speak truthfully and talk in circles they always come out with egg on their face and lose trust with the people around them
- Waiting for player contract years to deal them
- Being too polite with players who eventually take their kindness as a weakness and screw them over in the end, thus not allowing them to maximize their true value


Aside from that, I think Conroy and team have done a good job of accumulating 1st round pics. I also like that that they've staggered them over a few years which will be needed to resign guys who need to, over time. I'd also go so far as to say that aside from Wolf, and Parekh, no active player on the roster should be off-limits as they're unlikely to be part of a contending team during our contending timeline 5 years down the road.

[blankall]

Jury is still out for me.

If they get a top 3 pick this year, I'll be very satisfied. If they don't, it will make me less satisfied. They need to get one of McKenna, Stenberg or Verhoff.

This is a golden opportunity. Don't F it up.

[The Fonz]

Went 5. Upon reflection, should have gone 6.

[Jiri Hrdina]

For those scoring at home the current average is 6.544.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

I gave it a 7. I think they should have made some moves about a season prior to when they did, but overall, they've still been making the right moves when needed. The only other quibble I have is in leaving the negotiation of trade destination open to a few players. It didn't result in a bad outcome, but it did hamper the quality of assets back a little.

Overall, they've been doing the right thing in moving out veterans or underperforming players (Huberdeau notwithstanding) and getting good young assets or picks back. I think they've built a solid foundation for the future in net, on defense, and on the wing. I just think they're missing a star center and maybe another top line winger, but that should come in the next couple years of the draft.

What's really good about the build is that they've timed the development window of players to about the right time for it all to come together. Goalies take the longest to develop, then defensemen, then forwards. We have our starting goalie now at 24, likely to hit his peak in about 3 years time. We have some good young defensemen in their early to mid 20's who will peak in about 3-4 years time. We have some good young forwards around 18/19/20 who will peak in about 3-4 years time.

If we hit on a star center or winger in this draft, we'll have all the things we need to build around long term. Where we lack we may have to supplement through free agency, but we've created a crazy amount of cap space to go out and do that when the time comes.

I think everything is lining up well, I just wish they realized it a season earlier.