The 2019-20 edition of the Calgary Flames was good enough to reach the postseason, and took the eventual Western Conference champion Dallas Stars to six games.
As the team looks ahead to skating in the all-Canadian North Division for the 2020-21 NHL season -- clad in new jerseys that look like their old jerseys -- what should fans expect? Here's everything you need to know prior to opening night:
Big question: Were the struggles of Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan temporary or a downward trend?
The Flames' top two offensive stars -- with due respect to Matthew Tkachuk -- had career years prior to the 2019-20 season, and then slipped off the peak. Both Gaudreau (0.83) and Monahan (0.69) had their lowest points-per-game averages since their rookie seasons, leading to trade speculation after Calgary was ousted by Dallas in the first round of the playoffs. The Flames need their stars producing at levels befitting of the label. Another down year offensively, and changes could be afoot, given Gaudreau is an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2022 and Monahan is up after the 2022-23 season.
Did realignment hurt or help?
Hurt. The Flames go from a Pacific Division where one could pencil in four also-rans this season in Arizona and the California teams, to the (We The) North Division, where even the weakest team (Ottawa) is going to be a pain to play. On the plus side, this Flames team thrives inside emotional pressure cookers against Canadian rivals: They were 7-2-0 combined against Edmonton, Toronto and Vancouver last season.
Offseason comings and goings, plus the cap situation
The Flames have $223,334 in cap space, according to Cap Friendly. They made a significant free-agent splash in signing Vancouver goalie Jacob Markstrom to a six-year, $36 million deal. He's a workhorse that they hope can solve their goaltending problem, as Calgary was 19th in the NHL in team save percentage last season (.906). But their defense suffered a pair of losses, as T.J. Brodie left as a free agent to Toronto and Travis Hamonic wasn't re-signed.
The Flames signed veteran Vancouver defenseman Chris Tanev to a four-year deal and added Nikita Nesterov, who spent the last three seasons in the KHL. Joakim Nordstrom, Dominik Simon and Josh Leivo were all depth signings at forward.
Bold prediction
Matthew Tkachuk will be the most hated player in Canada. The Flames pest's feud with Drew Doughty is going to be a speck in the rearview mirror by the time he's done making new friends in the All-Canadian Division. Especially when one factors in the levels of self-motivation required to get going in an empty arena regular season.
Breakout candidate: Andrew Mangiapane
The forward hit offensive career highs last season playing with Tkachuk and Mikael Backlund on the Flames' best line. His 12.5 goals scored above average, per Evolving Hockey, was second most on the team. At $2.425 million against the salary cap, expect him to make a few "best bargain in hockey" lists.
Biggest strength: Forward depth
It's entirely possible that Gaudreau and Monahan have stronger seasons but play fewer minutes, as coach Geoff Ward -- who lost the interim tag after the season -- dedicates more of it to the rest of the lineup. It's possible Tkachuk pairs with Elias Lindholm down the lineup, while Mangiapane and Backlund play with Sam Bennett. The offseason signings add more depth, as do veteran center Derek Ryan and sparkplug winger Dillon Dube. Milan Lucic remains an object of much ridicule for his contract and dexterity, but he's a solid defensive player and remains a presence physically.
Biggest weakness: Defensemen
How long has it been since Calgary's defense corps could be considered a potential liability? They lost their best defensive defenseman in Brodie and brought on Tanev, whose underlying numbers in Vancouver were troubling. Rasmus Andersson is solid and Juuso Valimaki could have Calder Trophy potential, but Mark Giordano's numbers cratered after winning the Norris Trophy in 2018-19. But even if this group is a downgrade or doesn't jell, at least the Flames finally have a solid last line of defense in Markstrom.
Flames in NHL Rank
No. 51: Mark Giordano, D
No. 59: Johnny Gaudreau, LW
No. 64: Jacob Markstrom, G
No. 97: Sean Monahan, C
Prospect perspective
Pipeline ranking: 23
Prospects in the top 100: No. 55 Connor Zary (C), No. 88 Juuso Valimaki (D), No. 99 Jakob Pelletier (C/W)
Fantasy facts to know
There's a new goaltending sheriff in Cowtown in the form of Jacob Markstrom. The ex-Vancouver netminder will earn a reasonable shot at mimicking his solid numbers from last season -- 2.75 goals-against average, .918 save percentage -- while seeing a reasonably hefty workload in Calgary. Bonus for Markstrom: The addition of former Canucks teammate Chris Tanev to the back end helps bolster the Flames defensively overall.
With full respect to Johnny Gaudreau, forwards Matthew Tkachuk and Elias Lindholm strike as Calgary's most attractive fantasy assets up front. Tkachuk because he scores, often on the power play, and brings a bit of nasty in the form of hits; while Lindholm, somewhat quietly, pots goals. He had 29 of them last season, despite playing only 70 games. Clearly loving his time with the Flames, the former Hurricane scored 78 points his first season with the club in 2018-19. I'll take this guy as my No. 2 RW any day of the week.
Despite seeing a dip in production in 2019-20 following a sparkling campaign the previous season, Mark Giordano remains a top-12 fantasy defenseman. Beyond his value as member of the Flames' top power play, Giordano is also inclined to block shots -- finishing seventh in the league in that category in 2019-20 (and that would've been higher if he hadn't missed time). -- Victoria Matiash