Game No. 58: That kinda game
Ryan Lambert
February 12 2011 06:26PM
The Flames have been rolling along happily enough, but tonight's not quite the same.
Back when this latest run of positive results was in its infancy, Calgary snuck by the best team in hockey with a 4-3 shootout win. At the time, they had earned points in six of their previous seven, but were flying under the radar a bit because all but three of those had been wins.
Tonight, they play that same best team in hockey again, this time having established themselves far better than the team that was 14th in the West on Jan. 22. Since then, they've picked up 14 points in just eight games and climbed six spots up the Western Conference table, not including the shootout victory over Vancouver.
I'm not saying the Canucks took the Flames lightly. But certainly Calgary was just getting its feet under it for this remarkable streak and the result almost certainly surprised everyone, given it came on the road in the second half of a back-to-back.
Tonight the Flames are out to prove something. This point streak is nice of course, but pretty much all of it, and certainly everything since the Vancouver game, have come against teams that could in no way be considered elite or, in most cases, anything more than middling. Nashville, St. Louis, Nashville again, Atlanta, LA, Chicago, Ottawa and Anaheim. These sides aren't exactly the steel of the National Hockey League, and no real way of testing the Flames' mettle.
Vancouver is obviously a different story. They enter tonight's tilt in much the same way they did that last contest: as the league frontrunners. Until they're most recent game — a 4-3 loss to Anaheim — they'd won six straight (beginning immediately after the loss to Calgary) and earned points in their previous nine.
Clearly, this is still not a team that messes about, and it's been very impressive despite a run of injuries to virtually every key defenseman they've got. Despite that, they've allowed just 12 goals in their last seven games, and scored 32. Yes, a plus-20 goal differential in seven games, one of which they lost.
This Vancouver team is terrifying, no doubt, and the Flames will need to rely on more than their pluck tonight to keep the streak alive.
Chances were 9-7 in the second, again for VAN. Flames had a nice run going, but the Canucks rallied after the Glencross goal.
Corsi.
CGY -3, EV shots 20-18 VAN. I'm a little surprised that Vigneault keeps using Andrew Alberts against Iginla, because that matchup is one that the Flames are winning comprehensively.
John Deere Green SAYS Hagman is so frustrating to watch, like a chicken running around with his head cut off.
TRULY! So much movement, so much effort, such a flurry of activity to get bodied off the puck, to get checked off the puck, to simply lose the puck, it's so tiring watching him!
That's something I'm going to mention on OT tonight...Iginla is eating Alberts for breakfast.
@TheGirlOutWest
Yeah, Hagman is erratic as hell. Sometimes he contains it and is useful, but it's not often enough to be worth the dollars.
@Kent Wilson
Ya, we seem to have about 25% erratics. Dancing Iggy and the Erratics at a lounge near you...
Post!! Damn you Bourque.
Now the Flames are using the PP's to run up the chance count.
Iginla looks about as agitated and strong on the puck as he ever has. Something's clicked lately. He just needs to focus it on getting shots on net.
Now we're exposing their D. Now if we can't make it work on any of these PP's, we don't deserve the 2 points tonight my friends.
Yeesh that was close.
Jarome has definitely taken advantage of the Canucks lackluster blueline tonight.
Bummer, it was a good effort. We beat them down physically though, lots of big hits. Would you slug it out against that team in the first round?
Corsi.
CGY -4, EV shots 25-21 VAN. The disparity in special teams is pretty striking, and until that gap gets closed, the Flames are never catching this team.
I'd prefer to see someone like DAL or, hell, SJS.