In what can only be described as the most turbulent 96 hours in the history of the Calgary Flames hockey club, a very important hockey game needed the full attention of the carnage left over/brought in from Darryl Sutter’s epic 48 hour purge. The oddity of Olli Jokinen and Brandon Prust and their teammates skating as Flames in the most recent home contest whilst knowing they were soon after heading to Broadway, made the most recent affair one of the strangest in Calgary lore. Mission one tonight was to leave that nonsense in the dust and secure a very much needed win on home ice win against one of the statistically worst teams in this year’s NHL.
On The Line
The fragile psyche of a hockey team, their fans and an entire city. No big deal and nothing exaggerated.
The Flow
1st period was all about the Flames and how they would come out of the gate with 30% of the team all just shaking hands and learning each others names. They answered really well. Not only did the Flames take the game to the Canes, they hit them all over the ice as well while seeing Mikka Kiprusoff playing out of this world one more time. The results when doing so were obvious when a fortuitous bounce landed on the stick of a snake-bitten Curtis Glencross. If this was a boxing match, round 1 went to the good guys 10-8 on the cards, but only 1-0 where it mattered most.
The second period was a good one for the home-side as well, but for very different reasons. A steady stream of Flaming C’s to the penalty box made this 20 minutes a very uncomfortable one for players and fans alike. The Flames not only proved most observers wrong, they started to look like a decent NHL hockey team. Weathering one bad penalty after another, the PK looked as good as it has in years, and that included giving up a PP goal.
The third was a good one for the home team as well as they never eased up and kept the opposition in check for what can be described as one of the most complete games in 2 months.
Three Stars
1. Curtis Glencross.: A terrific rebound game by a guy that has been playing some horrendous hockey of late, and nice to see his teammates help him out by getting him the puck for the hat-trick empty netter
2. Jay Bouwmeester.: Over 26 minutes of ice, was rushing the puck with some confidence and was someone that had Paul Maurice having to account for all night.
3. Cam Ward.: Though he gave up 3 goals on the night he was tremendous at times and kept this one much much closer than it would of been otherwise.
Big Save
With his team at a dead draw with 5 minutes left in the 2nd period, Mikka Kiprusoff flashed his left pad out of no where to steal a seemingly sure goal from Ray Whitney. That one goes in and you would of tangibly felt the wind go out of a rather tight Saddledome crowd.
Big Hit
Easiest call of the year. Mark Giordano absolutely annihilated Joni Pitkanen during the 2nd period. Catching the Finn defender with his eyes not where they needed to be, Giordano lowered the boom right near the Canes bench and sent Pitkanen head over heels into his teammates laps. A highlight reel hit sure to be replayed for a long long time.
The Goat
Maybe the second easiest call of the year. Cory Sarich. Though i applaud his aggressiveness while trying to find his game and a way to contribute to the team, a player just cant take the kind of penalties he did in this game. 4 minors in this game is simply unacceptable and he is fortunate his teammates were able to cover his butt for the most part.
Mr. Clutch
Flames PK. Though the only goal surrendered was on a Canes PP, the boys were blocking shooting lanes, had active sticks and killed 5 of their 6 shorthanded situations. Well done and a good sign moving forward that the work ethic and level of compete may in fact be back.
Odds and Ends
These have been the most bizarre few days to be a Flames fan with all that transpired, it was just nice to see the guys just buckle down and play a good game…. I wonder how odd it is for Brent Sutter to find himself having to concentrate on the Flames for a full 60 minutes when his son is skating for the other team… Sutter sending a message to Iginla with only 14+ minutes on the night?…….Though he didn’t hit the score sheet, Ales Kotalik looked somewhat dangerous at times… Jamal Myers showing why Darryl Sutter wanted him in the Phaneuf deal went out and did his job, though the team could do without the instigator….between players, coaches, management, friends and family, how many Sutters do you think may have been on hand for this one? Over/under is at 18…….McGrattan, Lundmark and Johnson were all healthy scratches….
Next Up
Traveling to Florida for a Friday night tilt against the Panthers
Lines:
Hagman- Stajan- Iginla
Kotalik – Langkow- Higgins
Nystrom- Mayers- Glencross
Bourque- Boyd- Backlund
Regehr – White
Giordano – Bouwmeester
Sarich – Pardy
Kiprusoff
