PERTH, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 17: Eddie Betts of the Blues looks on with team mates while the Australian national anthem is played during the AFL First Semi Final match between the West Coast Eagles and the Carlton Blues at Patersons Stadium on September 17, 2011 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
It's no secret that the Blues have let some good players go in recent times.
Yes, Carlton have recruited several quality youngsters in the last few years and are headed in the right direction. But they have also been guilty of carrying too many list cloggers with little potential and allowing their more talented names to walk.
While some of these stars wanted out, that can't be used as an excuse, and a better list transition could have taken the Blues anywhere.
Here are the best 10 players Carlton have traded or delisted since 2006:
Garlett's best season in navy blue was 2013 when he kicked 43 goals, and no Carlton player has reached that mark since or even hit 40.
Traded to Melbourne at the end of 2014 after an off-field incident with then teammate Mitch Robinson, the zippy forward struggles for senior opportunities these days. But he could've provided the Blues with much-needed firepower up forward in recent years.
Henderson requested a trade to Geelong at the end of 2015 and was one of the best defenders in the competition at the time.
The Blues' back six has been one of their strengths in recent years, but losing a player of Henderson's calibre is never ideal and he could've been swung forward to assist with their scoring woes.
Waite departed the Blues as a free agent at the end of 2014, joining North Melbourne on a two-year deal .
Always booming with talent, we saw the best of Waite in the blue and white stripes, booting a career-high 42 goals in his first year at the club in 2015. As previously mentioned, the Blues could really have used that sort of goal-kicking prowess over the last few years.
Jacobs only played 17 games for the Blues between 2007-10 and never looked like anything special. But you know what they say, big men take longer to develop.
Jacobs requested a trade back to his native Adelaide at the end of the 2010 season and turned into one of the most dominant ruckman in the league. Imagine the tandem he could have formed with Matty Kreuzer!
Grigg played 43 games for the Blues from 2007-10 before getting traded to the Tigers at the end of 2010.
While the midfielder has never been a star, he helped build Richmond into a formidable side and played a key role in their drought-breaking 2017 premiership. The midfielder would've brought more to the table than a Sam Kerridge, Kane Lucas or Tom Bell did.
Robinson showed plenty of potential at Carlton but never lived up to the hype. A number of off-field incidents saw him get delisted by the club at the end of 2014.
He went on to become a key member for the rejuvenated Lions, maturing later in his career and winning a best and fairest in 2015. At the age of 29, he still has a few good years left in him and could've provided the Blues with some needed grunt and aggression that every side needs. A manic Robbo running around makes Carlton a much better side.
Tuohy is one of the premier half backs of the competition and a beautiful kick of the footy, which is amazing considering that he converted from Gaelic football.
The Irishman requested a trade to Geelong at the end of 2017 and has become a key staple in the Cats' back six. He has taken his game to even greater heights in the blue and white hoops and such a skilled player would be solely missed by any club.
Gibbs requested a trade back to Adelaide at the end of 2016 but wasn't granted his wish until the end of 2017. You could argue that the Blues won this trade, given that they bagged two first-round picks in return and because Gibbs just turned 30.
However, ask any Blues fan and they would take Gibbs back in a heartbeat. Plus he would have been a great role model and mentor for guys like Sam Walsh, Sam Petrevski-Seton, Zac Fisher and Paddy Dow.
Betts was the last Carlton player to boot over 45 goals in a season and provided a spark inside 50 that the Blues haven't had for years. He kicked at least 25 goals or more in six of his nine seasons at the club.
At the end of 2013, the silky forward signed a four-year offer sheet with Adelaide worth around $500,000 a season, a deal the Blues were unwilling to match (he was a restricted free agent).
Betts went on to cement his legacy as one of the greatest small forwards to ever play the game, booting 51, 63, 75, 55 and 29 goals in his five full seasons at the Crows.
The one that got away. Taken with pick No. 4 in the 2005 National Draft, Kennedy played 22 games for Carlton from 2006-07. At the end of 2007, he was famously traded to West Coast for a bloke called Chris Judd.
Judd played a huge part in helping the Blues reclaim their status as a finals side in the late 2000s and won the 2010 Brownlow Medal. But Carlton only featured in September in four of the eight seasons Judd spent at the club (one of those with an asterisk next to it), never making the top four or playing in a preliminary final.
As the old as goes, midfielders grow on trees while goal-kicking key forwards are worth their weight in gold. It feels like the Blues could have accomplished so much with Kennedy. Aside from Buddy Franklin, Kennedy has been arguably the most dominant forward of the modern era, claiming two Coleman Medals with multiple 80-goal seasons and a premiership in 2018.
The fact that Carlton have been crying out for a goal-kicking forward ever since the trade makes it that much harder to bear.