One of the conclusions I've drawn over the years from watching the league is that at the end of the day, the individuals and their talent level is not really the be all and end all, but it draws by far the most focus from fans.
We see time and again good teams lose their best players (thinking about Pittsburgh in their heyday losing Crosby, Malkin and Letang all the time) and being able to plug AHL guys in and keep rolling, or even Boston losing their top two centres and a top-six winger in the same offseason and not losing a step at all. We also see bad teams not make any significant roster additions and then suddenly have a great season (Flames 2015/2021, Seattle 2023). We also see great teams make lateral changes or appear to improve only to come in and be way worse.
At the end of the day, the factors of locker room vibe, chemistry and confidence seem to contribute way more variance than talent levels, and while fans always claim that these factors should be short-term and even out, it really seems like they tend to last through a season most of the time (coaching changes seem to be the only way to give it a real kick mid-season). This truth can make us think that a team is a sure thing in the offseason because why would they get worse, only to have them... get worse. It can also make us think that a team has no way out from their situation because of roster restrictions, only for the team to pull itself out.
Obviously, as a Flames fan, I was banking on these factors improving over the offseason, but it seems clear that if they aren't exactly the same as last year, they may actually be worse. But I think that the fact that these issues lead to team-wide disarray that makes every individual on the team look bad still presents the hope that, if fixed, we could see a jump in results like we saw across the 2021 offseason.
I still don't buy into the fact that the Flames are bad, therefore every individual player is as bad as they look right now. I don't think analysis of cases around the league backs up that line of thinking.
I am reminded of Gaudreau in the 2019 playoff series against Colorado. He took an outstanding amount of shit from the fanbase for not producing during the series, but the ice was thoroughly tilted against the Flames after Game 1. Gaudreau was getting the puck against the wall to go 1-on-3 over and over again, which of course led to turnovers. Lo and behold, when the team played in a way that had them moving and thinking together, Gaudreau's own personal production took a big leap and he looked just fine in the playoffs.
That, more than anything, is what I think is holding Huberdeau and Kadri back from producing the way they are expected to. It can't be a matter of "he's a 115-point guy, he should figure it out." They are guys who can exploit moments where the opponent is on their heels, but it is up to the team as a unit to create those moments. If your only opportunities entering the opponent zone are 2-on-2 or 2-on-3, it's going to be really hard to put up numbers. So how can the team start making decisions so that it's 3-on-2 or 3-on-3 with a trailing defenceman entering the slot at the right time? How can we make it so the guy defending Huberdeau has difficult decisions to make on the fly instead of just locking in and closing the gap while he searches for a passing option?