Good teams win ugly once and a while, they’re not all Rembrants.
The Flames gave up back to back powerplay goals in the first period and then relied on the veteran presence of Brian Elliott to hold them in it in the first half of the game before settling down, and wrestling the game away from the Senators in a 5-2 win.
Sometimes shots aren’t all that indicative of the play, that was certainly the case tonight as the Flames were the better of the two clubs in from the midway point in the second period on as the Flames generated play without directing pucks to the net.
Bottom line, three straight wins for the Flames, back to .500 before Halloween Night and potentially salvaging the upside of their season.
The Flow
The game started with a 4 minute run of whistle free hockey, a portion of the game that featured the Flames off to a very good start. The Flames opened the scoring when Dougie Hamilton one timed a shot off his back foot right at the blueline past a startled Hammond, and the Flames led 1-0. Quickly however, the Senators erased that lead with back to back powerplay goals both on deflections, to give them a 2-1 lead through one period.
The Senators continued to take the play to the Flames in the second, putting pucks on net and forcing Brian Elliott to prove his rough start to the season was a thing of the past. They couldn’t solve the Flame’s goaltender however, as he held the fort letting his teammates find their legs and get back into things. The Flames tie the score when a deft backhand pass by Alex Chiasson, against his old foes, finds a streaking Sam Bennett who directed the puck home and the Flames have tied the score at 2. A half period later the Flames go ahead once again when a Dougie Hamilton shot from a tough angle hits Mark Methot in the slot and goes back bar against former Hitmen goaltender Chris Drieger.
The Flames played a sound third period to start, nursing a one goal lead before they broke things open with back to back third period goals to put things away. First Sean Monahan finished a good pass from Johnny Gaudreau off of a Chiasson rush, a one timer that made it 4-2. Then a few minutes later Mikael Backlund found Michael Frolik in the slot with a one timer to finish off the scoring on the night. In the end the Flames were out shot 33-19 in this one, though they carried the majority of the play in the final 30 minutes.
1. Dougie Hamilton:He may not have that Bobby Orr feel to him when it comes to offensive defensemen, but the kid generates offense, and tonight he put up his 7th career three point night with two goals and an assist, including the game winner.
2. Brian Elliott: All those worries early seem a little bit foolish now don’t they? He’s authored all three of the back to back to back wins for the club, this time turning aside 31 of 33 shots, his first win on home ice.
3. Alex Chiasson:Makes a statement against his former teammates with a two assist, +3 effort.
Big Save
Felt bad for Drieger having to come into his own barn unprepared after the first period. The Flames scored 4 on him, but he made some good saves too including a great shoulder save on a Troy Brouwer tip shot that should have caved in the top corner.
The Goat
Tempting to give the goat to Erik Karlsson and his -3 night but his buddy Mark Methot had the same stat line plus managed to score on his own goaltender so he takes the prize. Both were victimized for three even strength goals against on their watch. Not good for a top pairing.
Mr. Clutch
Johnny Gaudreau is starting to feel it. Finally. The contract stalemate led to a slow start, but in recent games the little dude is starting to generate chances. Tonight he had two assists, including a key one to give the Flames a two goal lead in the third period, and was +2, chipping away at that ugly -7 he posted to start the season.
Odds and Ends
Have to love the way Sam Bennett has started to produce in this young season (he has 6 points in his last four games to pace the club on this winning streak). Additionally however, you have to be a little bit alarmed at his tendency to take bad penalties in the offensive zone. The young center now has 10 minor penalties in 10 games this season, a bad sign if you’re Gulutzan trying to trust him with more ice time. Playing well, has helped anchor a second line but he needs to make better decisions. … Amazing feeling to watch a one goal lead in the third period with Brian Elliott between the pipes. The goaltender himself is the picture of calmness, and that resonates through the team and into the fan base. Efficiency in movements, he never seems to over play anything, the only two that beat him tonight were on tips that left him little chance. Looking better and better as an acquisition at the draft. … The Flames were 56% in faceoffs again tonight, a stat that has certainly improved this season despite losing key ones to start powerplays often this season. The big marksman were Backlund at 72% and Matt Stajan at 62%. The team was 5th in the league coming into tonight at 51.7%, a far cry from the past few seasons where they’ve been a disaster in the dot. … As said above, the win moves the Flames back to the .500 mark essentially saving the start to their season, as a point against Washington will conclude the month with an even record making the rest of the campaign interesting once again. So now that we can stomach gazing at the standings again what is this Western Conference anyway? The Oilers are at the top, the Coyotes are at the bottom and the Flames find themselves in a wild card spot though teams have games in hand. If the team is adjusting to the Gultuzan system things are setting up to be a pretty fun ride. … Want to talk balance? The Flames now have 8 players with 5 or more points in the first ten games of the season. 8! More importantly the players that fill those spots are the players you’d hope to see with the only exception being Sean Monahan who has four, all goals. Gaudreau, Brouwer, Bennett, Hamilton, Frolik, and Backlund are all where they should be given their status on the team. Good to see Micheal Ferland off to a good start as well.
Next Up
The Flames brief 2 game homestand comes to a close on Sunday night when Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals come to town. Later start, 7.30pm on Sportsnet.
Lines:
Gaudreau – Monahan – Chiasson
Versteeg – Bennett – Brouwer
Tkachuk – Backlund – Frolik
Bouma – Stajan – Ferland
Giordano – Brodie
Jokipakka- Hamilton
Engelland – Wideman
Elliott
