The Calgary Flames are halfway through the 2023–24 season, and with an 18–18–5 record, their performance could not be more mediocre than it is right now. As we approach mid-January, it is time for the organization to start thinking about how they will approach the NHL Trade Deadline on March 8.
Part of this decision is made by the players based on their individual and team performance, but the outlook of management also dictates it. Eric Duhatschek from The Athletic sat down with Craig Conroy to hear about how he sees the team and the future of it. Below, I break down a couple of quotes from the article.
Conroy talks about the idea of rebuilding
“I know some people believe in the full rebuild. Personally, I feel you want to be competitive, and you want your team to win. So, there is a balance between short- and long-term. You don’t know what you’re going to get for certain assets that you have—or what’s to come. Or maybe somebody here wants to re-sign with you. All those things are still out there. So, you’re looking at your team, who’s going to be your top line? What positions are filled? Who’s coming in the system? Two, three years down the road, how is this team going to look?”
Calgary Flames GM on his thoughts on rebuilding
I think Conroy is right when he says that you want to be competitive and that you want your team to win. There is no team that is in the NHL that does not want to win the Stanley Cup. No matter how many times they have choked (cc: Leafs Fans), or how many times they have barely made or missed the playoffs (cc: Flames fans), every player in that dressing room wants to win the Stanley Cup.
However, as a general manager, you have to build a roster that has a chance to win a Stanley Cup. That starts with having a core foundation of elite players who you can build around. We have seen it with every Stanley Cup winner. The Flames tried it with Iginla and Kiprusoff, they tried it with Giordano, Gaudreau, and Tkachuk, and now they are trying it with Huberdeau, Weegar, and Kadri. The reality is that it just is not working. The team has no chance to win a Cup with this roster, and they barely have a chance to make the playoffs.
Year after year fans have seen the approach of “get in the playoffs and you never know” from this organization. But all it has brought is mediocrity. With Conroy saying that compared to rebuilding he would rather stay competitive, it doesn’t bring any silver lining to Flames fans in the more than likely event that they will miss the playoffs.
To go into the trade deadline and make deals that try to keep the team competitive at this stage is a colossal mistake long term. This approach does not give the organization a chance to get a top five pick and draft an elite/generational talent, which is something that the last 14 of 16 Stanley Cup champions have had. Conroy further doubled down on this when Eric followed up stating that this approach won’t get you a Connor Bedard or Leo Carlsson type of player. Conroy’s response? “No, you don’t”.
Conroy openly acknowledging that with his approach, the team is probably not going to land a cornerstone player in the long-term future is a thought that many Flames fans did not want to have when he was hired. One would think that with how long this approach has failed for the organization, they would finally learn that if you play stupid games, you win stupid prizes.
Conroy on asset management
However, the silver lining with Conroy is that he seems a lot more open to the rule of not letting unrestricted free agents walk from the organization without getting assets back.
“You’d rather not have that (rumours) because it fuels the fire. But in the end, I still believe that you can’t let assets walk out the door. The hard part is, if we were first in the West, it might be harder to do. But my mindset has always been, we have to make sure we have assets coming back.”
Craig Conroy on asset management
After the Johnny Gaudreau saga that Flames fans know all too well, it’s reassuring to see Conroy take a firm stance on this. Especially with players like Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin approaching UFA this summer. Lindholm is reportedly asking north of $9M for a long-term extension, which to me is him saying “I don’t want to stay, but I’ll stay if you pay me enough”. It’s still to be determined whether Conroy trades Lindholm, and whether that package will be a long-term future-oriented deal which includes a first-round pick and top prospect, or if it will be a pure hockey trade. However, it’s at least somewhat comforting to know that Flames fans probably won’t have to experience the Summer of 2022 again.
What can Flames fans expect?
From reading Conroy’s comments, it’s clear that this organization will not enter a rebuild unless they are forced into one. The approach will likely be to make trades and acquisitions that make the team better, and fight and claw to try and land a playoff spot. With this approach, fans can expect a lot more first-round exits, picking between 17th and 25th in the first round and being eliminated from playoff contention around Games 75 to 82. Let’s hope that Conroy proves me wrong.
