It took just twenty
minutes to conclude the
experiment a complete
and utter failure.
That is, just 20
minutes of no Darryl
Sutter cooked up one of
the most lifeless and
disappointing first
period's in the team's
season.
In a league and a
playoff race this tight,
you just can't spot a
good hockey team with a
very good goaltender, a
three goal lead, but
that's exactly what the
Flames did in embarrassing
themselves to the tune
of a 4-0 loss to the
Dallas Stars on Monday
night.
And Sutter is
thinking of kicking
himself upstairs? Hold
that thought Darryl.
Sutter was watching
the game from home, of
course, having been
handed a two game
suspension for his
part(?) in a end of game
melee with the Nashville
Predators two nights
earlier. It's speculated
that if a season is
played next year, Sutter
might relieve himself of
the coaching job and
become a full time
general manager, though
given tonight's
performance that isn't
exactly a plan that will
have Calgary fans
excited.
But then it's only
one game.
One very, very, very
bad game. The Flames
were flat, failed to
score and then to cap
things off managed to
score on themselves in a
night better left
ignored with a game in
Phoenix to start a new.
The Stars carried the
play from the get-go
peppering Miikka
Kiprusoff with many a
chance and coming close
to running the table on
the sleepy homeside.
Shayne Corson opened
the scoring when he took
the puck around the net
and stuffed one in along
the ice to beat
Kiprusoff.
The plan happened a
few moments after Chris
Simon and Sergei Zubov
had their legs tangled
in center ice, the
latter leaving the game
with an obvious hobble.
One might suggest that
Zubov may actually miss
more than this game,
leaving the Stars
shorthanded for the race
for home ice.
They didn't need him
on this night however.
The Stars doubled
their lead when Denis
Gauthier got tangled
with a player behind the
net leaving Brendan
Morrow all alone to
deftly tip a centering
pass past Kiprusoff.
The Flames looked to
have scored a goal at
the halfway point of the
first, but the upstairs
official deemed Marcus
Nilson to have kicked in
a Shean Donovan pass and
the goal was waved off.
It could have gone
either way.
"If they want to
allow kicking I'm all
for it", Marty
Turco told Sportsnet,
"but the rules are
the rules and there was
a kicking motion".
The visitors pretty
much salted things away
late in the first when
Rhett Warrener lost the
handle on the puck
coming out from behind
his own net giving a
freebie to Jason Arnott
after three swipes.
The second period
featured a more
determined Calgary team,
taking the play to the
Stars and running a 12
to 4 shot advantage, despite
failing to convert on
any of their chances.
"It's important
to play 60 minutes, we
got the bounces in the
first period. It's tough
to play in this league
when you're
behind", stated
Turco.
The Stars were more
than happy to sit on
their heels and let the
Flames come at them,
figuring a three goal
lead was pretty much all
they needed. They
figured right.
Calgary returned to
their listless ways in
the third period pretty
much putting a pretty
bow on a shut out for
Marty Turco.
Chris Clark put the
cherry on top of a very
frightful evening by
passing the puck back to
the point on a late
goalie pulled powerplay
only to find no pointman
on said point and a 195
draw shot into an empty
net.
Kiprusoff gave up
three goals for only the
fourth time this season,
hurting his chances of
beating, ironically, his
adversary, Marty Turco's
record for goals against
average through a
season.
The Flames with 86
points are still in good
shape for a playoff
spot, but need to get
back on track and win at
least half of their
remaining six games to
put that little
"x" by their
name.
They way they handle
Dallas this season, they
may want to stay in
sixth spot, a seven game
series like tonight
would be very tough to
watch.
