Winters haven't been kind to the Calgary Flames in the last couple of years, but perhaps the summer of 2013 will mark the beginning of a return to becoming a National Hockey League powerhouse.
When the NHL brass gathers in New Jersey next week for the amateur draft, the Flames will not have a crack at the consensus top two players, defenceman Seth Jones of Portland Winter Hawks and Nathan McKinnon of the Halifax Mooseheads, but they'll nonetheless have a great draft haul.
The Flames will have an unprecedented - for them - three picks in the first round, and if general manager Jay Feaster and his scouting staff are up to snuff, this could be the start of something good.
Two of those first-round selections in what is generally regarded as a strong draft class came as a result of the Flames facing reality at the trade deadline in March - that it was time to throw in the towel and start rebuilding. See ya, Jarome, as Iginla was traded to Pittsburgh for, among other things, a first-round pick. Defenceman Jay Bouwmeester was then sent packing to St. Louis in exchange for a package of players including the Blues' first-round selection in the draft.
The Flames' draft buffet in the first round shakes down like this: their own pick at No. 6, the Blues' first-rounder at No. 22 and the Penguins' first choice at No. 28.
John Weisbrod, the Flames' assistant general manager, said Feaster might be open to some wheeling and dealing on draft day, using that trio of first-rounders as currency to perhaps trade for some additional assets.
"But," Weisbrod told NHL.com, "we like the way things sit right now. We like the idea of picking three times, but we've got a lot of things to address with our team."
After being on the playoff sidelines for four consecutive years, it's about time for the Flames to get a new look. With three first-rounders and a fairly strong nucleus of youth - Mikael Backlund and Sven Baertschi among others - a team that will be much younger next year might struggle for one more season, guaranteeing it one more high draft choice, before the run to respectability begins for real in 2014-15.
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