The Calgary Flames are at a crucial point as the trade
deadline approaches. They have two top players at the end of their careers,
Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff, that could play a significant role in their
franchise's rebuild. The issue is whether Flames GM Jay Feaster is the guy to
make the trade.
Now there is no knowing what kind of pressure Jay Feaster is
getting behind the scenes from ownership and what role they have played in past
decisions, but that still doesn’t excuse him from his obligation as a GM to make
Calgary a Stanley Cup Contender (which he has not done).
Feaster has had a
rough ride with the Flames this season, highlighted by the O’Reilly blunder where
he almost handed Columbus a top 6 forward and Colorado some draft picks for nothing.
But it’s not just this year that he’s had trouble. He’s missed the playoffs every
year of his brief tenure and has gone back to the well on former Flames Mike
Cammalleri and Alex Tanguay instead of rebuilding with young talent. To cap it
all off he pushed off the Iginla and Kiprusoff trade off by a year and
diminished their trade value.
Still, there is hope. Feaster once turned a terrible franchise around to a Stanley Cup Champion (as he did with Tampa) and there's no reason why he can't do it again. He may be under much scrutiny now but with the right luck he could land the next franchise player for the Flames, if not a top six player.
Flames fans are hoping that this trade isn’t like the Rick
Nash situation (where Columbus got the short end of the stick) and more like
the Brenden Morrow trade where Dallas attained a top defensive prospect. If it isn't then Feaster might be looking for work elsewhere. Needless to say this trade deadline is going to be a significant one for Jay Feaster and the Calgary Flames.
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