The Calgary Flames are trending upward after securing a playoff berth as a wild card team in the Western Conference last season. Calgary reloaded in the offseason with the hope that they could make enough improvements at the defensive end of the ice to take another step towards becoming a Stanley Cup contender. The Flames are looking up at the Anaheim Ducks, Edmonton Oilers and San Jose Sharks in the pacific division heading in to the season. That could change if they can maintain their scoring production while doing a better job of keeping pucks out of their own net in 2017-18.
How They Finished Last Season
Calgary recorded 45 wins and 94 points to secure a wild card playoff spot last season. The Flames couldn’t possibly have drawn a worse opening round playoff matchup though as they faced an Anaheim team that has completely owned them in recent years. Calgary was swept by the Ducks in four games but to their credit three of their four losses were by a single goal. In order for the Flames to take that next step in the Western Conference, they will need to figure out how to beat teams like Anaheim, Edmonton and San Jose in key divisional matchups.
What Changed In The Offseason
Another offseason led to another change in goal for Calgary, which signed veteran netminder Mike Smith while allowing Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson to walk. Smith went 19-26-9 with a 2.92 goals against average and a .914 save percentage last season and will turn 36-years-old in March so there is no guarantee that the Flames latest goaltending experiment works out. It should help that Calgary added to one of the deepest defense cores in the league when they added Travis Hamonic in the offseason. Hamonic joins Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, T.J. Brodie and Michael Stone to make up a very talented defense core. The Flames also signed goaltender Eddie Lack, who could end up getting a decent number of starts if Smith struggles this season.
One interesting note to keep in mind is that the Flames and the city of Calgary are having some issues in regards to a new stadium. There are disputes over how much the city should contribute and how much taxpayers should be helping out. As a result, the city and the franchise have broken off negotiations. Why that’s important is because it’s put a real damper on optimism surrounding this team. On the ice, this team looks like they are on the rise. Off the ice, there are suddenly concerns that they could end up moving the team. Destinations such as Seattle have come up as the Flames management is going to be exploring all options. Hopefully the franchise and the city can get back on the same page and work towards a new stadium.
Most Valuable Fantasy Hockey Asset
Nobody has been more consistent for the Flames over the past few years than Johnny Gaudreau, who has topped 60 points in each of his first three full NHL seasons. Gaudreau overcame injuries to register 18 goals and a team-high 61 points in just 72 games a year ago. He should be a lock to hit 30 goals if he can stay healthy this season.
Regular Season Win Total Outlook
The NHL futures regular season win total for Calgary has been set at 44, which is actually one fewer than they finished with last season. The top four teams in the Pacific division all finished with 45-47 wins so the key for the Flames could very well be picking up more points for shootout and overtime losses while maintaining last year’s win total. Calgary needs to be better defensively and the additions of Hamonic and Smith should help in that department. Full seasons from Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk should also help their offensive production. The problem is that improvements from the teams behind them in the standings could hurt their bottom line. The Flames will finish somewhere between 42 and 45 wins so the smart money is on them finishing under 44 wins this seasons with a good chance they push on that total.
Pick: Under 44 Wins
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