I am not defending his play in preseason or in general as a Flame, but you are making a classic Flames fan mistake, that young players who play the coach wants them will develop the best way.
Sometimes kids need more of a long leash to develop their game, and then as they enter their prime they can add the aspects of reliable play.
If Hartley never gave Gaudreau a leash, Johnny would never have become the player he was last year.
If Gulutzan had given Bennett a leash to wheel and deal, he's probably be a very similar player to what Kadri is right now. Instead he coached the creativity right out of him and turned him into a zombie. The player you see in Florida, while still a better centre than Elias Lindholm, is not Bennett's best case.
Sometimes playing on a bad team is the difference between a Thomas Chabot that people fellate and an Oliver Kylington who people think is disposable when he's actually elite AF