The Flames and Canucks split their four game Northern Division run, with Calgary winning two of three in Vancouver before taking a face plant in a 5-1 win for the Canucks in Calgary tonight.
Honestly if it wasn’t for the audacious turnovers we saw all night I’d say the Flames probably played their best game of the four tonight territorially, but the mistakes were big, and the impact large as the Flames slip back to one game over .500.
The Flames need to settle down. Skill players are creating their own worst nightmare by handling the puck like a hang grenade and giving the puck away without a whole lot of resistance.
With the Oilers on tap for Friday and Saturday night the momentum should be there. Hopefully the game is too.
The Line Up
Anyone getting tired of Vancouver yet? I know I am!
The Flames took two out of three in Vancouver despite not playing their best hockey in at least one of them and potentially two. They’ll take it.
The Cage
Don’t you just love Jacob Markstrom’s request (insist) on playing all the games against his former teammates. As a Calgarian I’d love to believe that playing in Calgary was always his first choice, but I think we know better than that. He liked Vancouver, wanted to stay, but was pushed out in order to avoid losing Thatcher Demko in an expansion draft. So four straight against the Canucks, winning two of the first three on this run, and four of the five he’s played on the season.
Jacob Markstrom
Save % Above Expected – 0.456%
David Rittich
Save % Above Expected – -3.670%
The Blueline
Just one change on the blueline as Connor Mackey comes out for Nikita Nesterov after playing the last two games in Vancouver. Nesterov gets paired up with Rasmus Andersson tonight, and not is usual partner in Mark Giordano. Mark Giordano and Juuso Valimaki had a very good first game together on Monday night, and are back together again tonight. The team staple is of course still together with Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev taking first line duties.
Giordano – Valimaki
60% xGF in 13 minutes
Hanifin – Tanev
62% xGF in 219 minutes
Nesterov – Andersson
79% xGF in 2 minutes
Up Front
With Mikael Backlund a go there was of course going to be some change up front as well. Geoff Ward sticking with the top two lines as they were on Monday; Elias Lindholm between Matthew Tkachuk and Andrew Mangiapane, and Sean Monahan between Johnny Gaudreau and Dominik Simon. Backlund gets inserted in Sam Bennett’s spot between Milan Lucic and Dillon Dube, and finally Sam Bennett takes fourth line center duties between Joakim Nordstrom and Brett Ritchie in his first spin in Calgary silks.
Tkachuk – Lindholm – Mangiapane
72% xGF in 37 minutes
Gaudreau – Monahan – Simon
51% xGF in 55 minutes
Lucic – Backlund – Dube
100
% xGF in 2 minutes
Ritchie – Bennett – Nordstrom
Brand new line
Turnover after Turnover
When a team is pressing, trying to do too much … they start to cheat offensively, and with that you start to see low percentage risks, and a lot of assumptions on the ice.
That’s been the case with the Flames over the last couple of weeks.
Trying to do too much? Not bearing down with the puck? A lack of confidence?
So hard to say, but it’s becoming a habit and a thing as we’ve seen so many of Calgary’s skill players turn away from the easy play and look for the more difficult play almost always ending in a turnover.
They have a great goaltender and some offensive pop. They need to let the game come to them more and stop forcing things that just aren’t there.
Valimaki on the Powerplay Again
Never going to say a 22 year old shouldn’t be doing something, as coaches that give responsibility to young players get rewards later in the season.
Juuso Valimaki is a horse, he’s developing before our eyes. He sees the ice better than most NHL defenseman already.
But I like Rasmus Andersson on the powerplay better than Valimaki, and Andersson isn’t exactly 38 years old.
First off he’s a right shot. Second he has a cannon. Third he seems more comfortable with the bump back and facilitating the break in.
Both are young, and they should probably be unit one and two going forward, but put Andersson back on the first unit.
Wouldn’t You Know
A lot of debate today on the site about who should play with who when the pregame skate lines came out.
A huge amount of out rage with Dominik Simon getting Gaudreau/Monahan minutes with Sam Bennett heading to the fourth line.
So how ironic that Simon turns the puck over on his first shift, and pretty much gets buried by Ward the rest of the way? Ward was clearly incensed after the turnover and the quick 1-0 Vancouver lead, and promptly punished the guy going forward
So Ward detractors … is that anger over the starting lineup, but credit for making an adjustment?
That question is rhetorical, don’t worry.
Not the Best Markstrom Start
The Flames didn’t play all that well, but that wasn’t the Jacob Markstrom we’ve been used to either.
I don’t blame him for the first goal for sure, that was a giveaway and a two on one. His choice on the Canuck’s second goal was somewhat suspect, but the third and fourth goals were pretty tough to manage. Goal five a snipe from a guy that can shoot, you don’t like it short side but a helluva shot.
So overall wouldn’t blame him at all. He wasn’t the problem. But he wasn’t Jacob Markstrom either was he?
We’ve seen the guy stop so many shots so often in so many games, that a game like that comes along and it feels like something is missing.
Giordano / Valimaki Pairing Emerging
That’s back to back impact games from the new pairing of Mark Giordano and Juuso Valimaki which is interesting.
With both players being left shot defensemen, many opined that Valimaki was the heir apparent on the left side when Giordano, instead Valimaki moves to the right side and provides Giordano with a big boost in his metrics in back to back games.
Makes you wonder a bit about the start to the season given Rasmus Andersson’s struggles tonight. Maybe the top pairing to start the season was struggling more due to Andersson’s play than Giordano’s?
Also possible, of course, that the mix was better, and you can’t blame it on any one player.
Counting Stats
Team Stats:
Shots – Flames 33 Canucks 36
Face Offs – Flames 35%
Special Teams – Flames 0/2 Canucks 0/1
Player Stats:
Points – Andrew Mangiapane with a goal, both Mark Giordano and Juuso Valimaki with assists, the only point earners for the Flames tonight.
Plus/Minus – Only two players managed to avoid a negative on the night, Joakim Nordstrom and Mikael Backlund at even.
Shots – Three Calgary shooters had four shots on goal; Johnny Gaudreau, Matthew Tkachuk and Juuso Valimaki.
Fancy Stats
Ironically the Flames probably played their most consistent game of the four tonight having a five on five shot attempt split at 59% with period splits of 59%/55% and 65%. Vancouver had the high danger split five on five though with a 14-12 edge on the night. Expected goals were 51% Flames.
In all situations the Flames had 59% of the shot attempts, 48% of the high danger chances and an expected goal split of 53%.
Individually the Flames were led by Mark Giordano and Juuso Valimaki who had a great night with numbers above 75%. Brett Ritchie was the other guy in the 70s, quite a start in Calgary. Mikael Backlund, Dillon Dube, Joakim Nordstrom, Milan Lucic and Matthew Tkachuk all finished in the 60s. Only three players finished under 50% on the night; Noah Hanifin, Rasmus Andersson and Dominik Simon.
