"There were plenty of softballs lobbed at the panel at Flames Central Thursday night as the Calgary Flames hosted a Town Hall question-and-answer period with season ticket-holders.

But there were some curveballs from voices of discontent, as well.

Despite a pretty promising summer of work by GM Jay Feaster, some worries still exist regarding a club that's missed the playoffs in two NHL consecutive seasons.

They worried about being 'stuck' with Alex Tanguay for five years, Curtis Glencross' no-trade clause, the loss of a second-round pick in the Robyn Regehr trade and Miikka Kiprusoff's workload.

It didn't take long, however, to get the crowd applauding.

All they needed was Feaster to mention the departure of winger Ales Kotalik and his US$3-million salary, which headed to Buffalo in the Robyn Regehr trade."