If Calgary misses the playoffs will it be the biggest debacle of the season?

[varano]

I figured you meant the Rangers, who were in the finals a few years ago

Thats a good one to throw in the mix too.

 

[Breakers]

ANYTIME you trade your 1st round pick unprotected and miss the playoffs it is massive embarrassment.

 

[Guffman]

Matt Duchene trade

That is a pretty big debacle too give the Sens collapsed. Wonder if they give up their first rounder in 2018 or 2019.

 

[Mr Positive]

Ottawa's situation is worse. They owe what will be a top-10 pick in the next 2 years, they are 4th last in the league, and show no signs of improving in the next year, or year after.

one could only imagine how that 2019 pick would be if Karlsson were traded as well. Or do they desperately cling to him and open the door to him possibly walking like Suter did for Nashville.

 

[FireGerardGallant]

The other Alberta team is the biggest debacle of the year ainec.

 

[3074326]

Calgary has a young team with loads of talent. The season is a disappointment, but their young guys still look really good. They have a bright future.

Edmonton has done a terrible job at putting players around McDavid and turning that team into a contender. They need to get it going.

Ottawa is the biggest disappointment for me. From the Karlsson stuff, to the owner, and then the Duchene trade, which was absolutely terrible. Just a big change compared to last season. I feel for the fans.

 

[CantLoseWithMatthews]

nah. Ottawa and Edmonton have done a lot worse

 

[Mr Positive]

The other Alberta team is the biggest debacle of the year ainec.

idk. They are 15 points ahead of us right now, which is a huge margin and shows how big a screw up the Oilers were this year, but if they miss the playoffs, then those extra 15 points don't matter.

Teams turnaround quickly in this league. The Oilers were mostly brought down by weird issues and I don't think it continues.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

They deserve to miss the playoffs with GG as coach.

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Nah..

I mean the goal is to win. They got to the playoffs last year and not sitting around hoping it's going to happen again was the right thing to do in my opinion.

Of course it's going to suck if they miss but even if they do they won't miss by much. They've still won a lot of games this year, which makes it easier to have success moving forward. Keeps a winning environment. If they didn't go get Hamonic and Smith the team would've been out of it already. And those two guys will be with the team next year too.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't. We have multiple fanbases always crying why their GM doesn't do anything.

 

[BBB24]

Ottawa's situation is worse. They owe what will be a top-10 pick in the next 2 years, they are 4th last in the league, and show no signs of improving in the next year, or year after.

No one knows this. No one expecting them to be where they are now to how they finished last year, shocked really. They could do a move or two over the summer and be right back where they were last year.

 

[FireGerardGallant]

idk. They are 15 points ahead of us right now, which is a huge margin and shows how big a screw up the Oilers were this year, but if they miss the playoffs, then those extra 15 points don't matter.

Teams turnaround quickly in this league. The Oilers were mostly brought down by weird issues and I don't think it continues.

Yea I get that but the expectations were way higher for the Oils then the Flames this year. Flames were expected to make the playoffs maybe win a round, but that was about it. Oilers, on the other hand, were expected to make the finals this year by a lot of people, or atleast make the conference finals. I think nearly everyone thought their days at the bottom of the basement were done, the fact it went this bad has to be the biggest disappointment of the year

 

[Bjornar Moxnes]

Meh the 1st round pick is already gone and the Islanders play in the east, so it doesn't matter where the lottery balls fall. Missing the playoffs sucks either way.

If the Flames miss, the Islanders might as well win the lottery on both of their picks. Would be great if they knocked the Oilers and Canucks out of the top 5.

As much as I don't want to see Oilers and Canucks winning Dahlin, I'd actually rather them than Islanders. I can't explain it but there's just something I really hate about the Islanders and it's been like this since their dark days, so I don't really think it's so much jealousy because than I'd hate every team in the league. Here's hoping Ottawa gets Dahlin.

 

[Mr Positive]

Yea I get that but the expectations were way higher for the Oils then the Flames this year. Flames were expected to make the playoffs maybe win a round, but that was about it. Oilers, on the other hand, were expected to make the finals this year by a lot of people, or atleast make the conference finals. I think nearly everyone thought their days at the bottom of the basement were done, the fact it went this bad has to be the biggest disappointment of the year

you are right about that, but maybe I'm looking at this too much from my own point of view. I expected the Oilers to be a lock for the playoffs, but after that loss to the Ducks in the 2nd round, I figured that even for this season we'd be too immature to be a contender. We could get regular season success, but we'd still have no answer for the veteran contenders.

I expected it to be a sideways year. We didn't add anyone major. Our big priority, which took all attention and cap flexbility during the key trading and signing times, was extending McDavid and Draisaitl. We even prepped for the 2018 offseason in that 2017 offseason by trading Eberle for Strome, likely for that cap space that we didn't even need at that moment. So really, with our only personnel moves being downgrades, and with Sekera having a major injury to start, I don't see how we were supposed to really be much better that we were.

 

[Hockeyholic]

Debacle??? Do you know that a team that was in the stanley cup finals just last year are in complete tear down mode right now ?

Thats a debacle.

Who exactly are you referring too?

 

[Reinhart]

A debacle, irrelevant of size, is still quite the exaggeration. It will just 'suck' if the Flames miss the playoffs while not having their 1st, but as the PREVIOUS THREAD on this topic already encapsulated, Hamonic is signed for another few seasons and is very much worth the cost of acquisition. There are other things that the Flames need to address.

The only time this will come close to a debacle is if the Flames miss the playoffs AND that pick ends up being selected in one of the lottery spots. That's it. Not much to worry about. Hamonic has been solid and I look forward to seeing him in Calgary for the next few seasons.

 

[JT Kreider]

Thats a good one to throw in the mix too.

Rangers are most definitely nowhere near a debacle. How about the Islanders??? In one of the most important seasons in franchise history in which could be the last chance to go on a playoff run with their best player in the last 30 years and they have two less wins than the Rangers in their "debacle" of a season.

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

Eh, hyperbole.

To put the Flames' situation into perspective: The 2014-15 Kings missed the playoffs and had no draft pick in the 2015 OR 2016 drafts in trying to acquire Sekera (for about two weeks) and Lucic (for one season).

Compared to that the Flames

- Still have their 2019 first round pick.
- have Hamonic for another two years AFTER this one - that's a three year acquisition that has helped us become a top possession team. One Stanley Cup in those three years and it wouldn't matter if that 2018 pick became Rasmus Dahlin.
- don't have any albatross contracts besides the ever-managable Brouwer one
- have a young core with players like Bennett, Gaudreau, Tkachuk, Rittich, Jankowski, Monahan, Ferland, Hamilton, Kulak and still-spry vets like Backlund, Frolik, Brodie. Only Giordano is old, and he hasn't shown any signs of falling off and should have a Markov type trajectory.
- have a rather deep prospect pool with players like Parsons, Kylington, Fox, Dube, Mangiapane, Phillips, Lazar, Klimchuk, Valimaki, Andersson, Foo, Tuulola, Sveningsson, Lindstrom, that can weather a lone year with fewer draft picks.
- haven't actually missed the playoffs yet. With the return of Versteeg who has missed the whole season, their power play should see a timely spike, which is the main reason they're not in a playoff spot.

If you want to talk about major debacles re: Calgary, I'd look back to 2015-16 preseason when they decided to waive Paul Byron, even though anyone who can perform the act of breathing could tell you that was beyond idiotic and set us back years. Truly the Curse of the Spulll.

 

[RalphKing]

Hypothetically, 16th OA + 47th OA + ~50th OA for Hamonic for 3 years @ 3.8m AAV and the ~105th OA pick isn't that bad of a trade. If the Flames win the lottery it changes a bit, but the deal is decent enough for the Flames. Hamonic has a good contract which I don't think is considered enough.

 

[qwerty]

No 1st round pick. No second round pick. 1st round pick not lottery protected. I can't imagine a worse situation.

Uh no, hardly a debacle at all. Disappointing, yes. But it’s not like Hamonic was a rental, they have 3 seasons with him.

Personally I expected this team to battle it out with the previous division leading Ducks, the Sharks and the other central wild card teams and that’s exactly what they’re doing right now. It’s not like they’re some 100 point team last season who’s a bottom feeder this season or something.

 

[M C D A V I D]

Ottawa's decision to give up either this year's pick or next year is the definition of debacle lol.

I honestly have no idea what I'd choose (assuming Ottawa doesn't win the lottery this year).

 

[tucker3434]

That is a pretty big debacle too give the Sens collapsed. Wonder if they give up their first rounder in 2018 or 2019.

2019. They don’t REALLY have a choice. You can’t send the message that you think next year will be worse than this one.

 

[Bounces R Way]

Debacle? That's pretty rich considering how many cap or nearly cap teams there are in the bottom 3rd of the league.

I would say the 2017-18 Ottawa Senators are the only ones who might qualify as a debacle.

 

[MikeK]

Debacle? This topic is a debacle.

 

[Mr Positive]

Rangers are most definitely nowhere near a debacle. How about the Islanders??? In one of the most important seasons in franchise history in which could be the last chance to go on a playoff run with their best player in the last 30 years and they have two less wins than the Rangers in their "debacle" of a season.

I think the Islanders would win this thread if Tavares leaves in July