I never really understood until this year - that all CDC flu numbers are projections. That only in a small percentage of the deaths attributed to the flu was the deceased given a flu test. It's more interesting as you point out that flu deaths could have been up to 62,000, or as low as 24,000. It's a strange system.
That said, no one talks about flu deaths because we know all about the flu. We have vaccines and know that if a typically healthy person gets the flu they have a crappy couple of days on the couch - not a trip to the hospital. This new virus is largely unknown and though we look at it killing people with "pre-existing conditions" and older people - we don't actually know why and how exactly it taxes our bodies.
The flu vaccines is more like a guess of the type of strain that may be out there...
It's all a guess...