With rookie camp set to begin on Wednesday, I felt it appropriate to tie a final bow on the offseason chatter. Though I am excited to embark on my first full season covering the Flames, my outlook on the year is currently quite vanilla.

Heading into the offseason, I truly felt like Calgary would be one of the organizations that experienced the most roster turnover. Yes, Brad Treliving's tenure as General Manager should have had me thinking differently. However, it seemed like the writing was clearly on the wall that drastic change was needed to move the needle forward.

Well, here we are. It's mid-September, and this team feels eerily similar to the one that underachieved last season.

To be fair, Treliving did go out and make some important additions to the team. Blake Coleman is set to become a key piece to the roster, while Nikita Zadorov and Daniel Vladar should prove to be intriguing players as the season progresses. At the same time, not much as been done to provide a jolt to the Flames core, which was something that appeared to be a necessity in May and June.

For the most part, Treliving decided to run it back once again with primarily the same cast of characters, while adding a few Sutter-friendly assets. If Calgary looked like a team close to a breakthrough last season, this would not be a poor strategy.

Unfortunately, this was far from the case. Maybe a full year under Darryl Sutter's control will make a difference. Maybe enough players that went through down-years will turn it around this season. My some some "low expectation" members will surprise. Crazier things have happened. Still, the Flames are counting on too much to go right to inspire enough confidence in this current group.

When I look at this currently constructed Calgary Flames team, I not only see a group with a lot of questions marks. I see a team with an unclear direction. They have not done enough to be considered true contenders in the Western Conference. At the same time, they don't look like a franchise with "rebuilding" on the mind either.

This is a team whose goal will be to make the playoffs. Playing in the Pacific Division, that certainly is not out of the question. But how far can they really get once they are in? Is this a team that we can confidently say can win a round? I'm not really sure. Once you reach the playoffs, anything can happen, but the organizations that have brought home the cup in recent years possessed far more top-end talent than the Flames currently do.

It goes without saying that there is a lot riding on the upcoming season. If they fail to show any real progress and take a drastic step forward, ownership will need to take action and start over with a new leadership group.

Yes, it is always exciting when hockey returns. Unfortunately, it is challenging to enter the year with too much optimism if you are a Flames fan.

Okay, enough talking about the offseason. Moving forward, it will be all about the year ahead with the content picking up frequency soon.

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