By Nick Symon
Sometimes reality isn’t what people want to hear, it can be good at times but harsh at times. Never has it been more apparent that the Flames should re-build after their mediocre 10-12-2 start, including two losses to the last place Columbus Blue Jackets. It’s the same story over and over again: consistency, competing, playing the system etc. etc. etc.
Quite frankly as a Flames fan I am sick and tired of watching, listening and talking about it constantly.
I really thought the Flames were in a stage a couple seasons ago much the same the Philadelphia Flyers were in, in 2006-07. That year the Flyers were horrible, much worse than the Flames have been in recent seasons. Then, Flyers GM Paul Holmgren swung three deals (essentially two) which helped turn the franchise back into a contender as fast as you can say ‘top cheese’.
He traded Peter Forsberg to the Predators for Ryan Parent, a 1st and 3rd rounder, traded Alexei Zhitnik to the desperate Atlanta Thrashers for Brayden Coburn and then used that 1st round pick acquired in the Nashville deal to give it back to the Preds for the rights to then free agents, Scott Hartnell and Kimmo Timonen. The Flyers have since been perennial contenders, been within 2 wins of a Stanley Cup and even after another face lift this summer, once again look to be in the upper echelon. Excellent drafting along the way hasn’t hurt either (Giroux, Richards, Carter, van Riemsdyk, Couturier, etc).
The Flames had a valuable piece in 2009-10, which they wasted for a bag of popcorn – I don’t think it should take anyone with a brain one second to figure out who that player is. The Flames have been horribly miss-managed the last couple of seasons and yes I know you’re all saying thanks captain obvious. I’m not saying deals like the Coburn one come around every day, because they don’t, but I really believe if they had received the proper pieces in the Phaneuf trade, unloaded some expiring aging contracts instead of acquiring more (Steve Staios, Ales Kotalik) at the deadline and continued to miss the playoffs that season, the Flames would have been right back in contention -- given their core, better/younger players to compete with for a Cup moving forward. That’s a whole lot of ‘ifs’ to make a comparison but I think it’s a fair one and it’s what I believe and have believed since the Flames traded Phaneuf back in January 2010.
This all brings me to the point of this blog, the beginning of the end. The miss-management and mediocre drafting of the Flames in the past has led to the end of an era here in Calgary and as sad as it is to say and admit for the 1st time, this is the time for the Flames to trade Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff. Their time and numbers speak for themselves, Iginla with his 1,000+ points with the franchise, is the heart of soul of the this team and would like nothing better but to bring the Cup home to Calgary. Same goes for Kiprusoff, the all-time franchise leader for wins, but the reality is, it just isn’t going to happen here. Iginla, 34, and Kiprusoff, 35, are on the back side of their careers but have shown in recent seasons that they still have a lot to give.
Judging by the recent trade market, Iginla would be easier to deal than Kiprusoff but nonetheless the right deal has to be in place in order for the Flames to pull the trigger. A combination of prospects and drafts picks have to come back the other way and this franchise’s official re-build will begin. This is a huge task for GM Jay Feaster, it’s never easy to trade away the face(s) of a franchise especially in your first full season, but if he really wants to put his stamp on this franchise and show that he is the right guy for the job, (judgment to be made if deals are done and who the Flames receive in return) I think he has make the deals. Do I have complete faith in Feaster to make the right call and the right trade? At this point, no, but so far I haven’t minded the deals he has done as he has made the Flames a bit younger and given some young players a chance to play this season. It will no doubt be a sad day if Iggy and Kipper are traded. They have given so much to this franchise and it’s time for the Flames to give something back and allow them to win a Cup, somewhere else.
If I’m correct in writing this, I would like to thank Iggy and Kipper for their time here, it’s been a fun ride, especially the ’04 Cup run, and there is no doubt #12 and #34 will one day hang from the rafters inside the Dome.
The last question to be asked is… What comes first, Iginla’s 500th goal or his trade to another team?
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